In its bidding to become competitive against content provider/distributor juggernauts like Apple and Amazon, Google has been taking an aggressive stance to make sure that Google Play, the company’s mobile storefront, has the goods necessary to keep the Android ecosystem attractive. This is true not just in terms of apps availability, but also for books, music, movies, and other entertainment products. The latest deal in this direction is the one that Google recently signed with Paramount Pictures.
The deal between Google and Paramount will bring over 500 movies to Google Play and YouTube in North America, where users will be able to rent popular titles, in a price range of $2.99 to $4.99 for various rental periods. Once paid, the movies must be watched within 30 days, and you’ll have the option to watch them on YouTube and Android devices.
Considering that the parent company of Paramount Pictures, Viacom, has been still is engaged in a long-winded legal battle with Google over copyright infringement, this is a possible sign that the two are close to reaching a resolution. Another theory is that Paramount Pictures simply doesn’t want to miss the boat that other major movie studios have been rushing to get on.
Paramount Pictures is responsible for recent and past box office hits such as the Adventure of Tintin, Transformers, the Godfather trilogy, Hugo, Iron Man, Mission Impossible, and more. By securing the deal with Paramount, this leaves 20th Century Fox as the odd one out. Google Play now offers movies from five major studios (Sony Pictures, Warner Brothers, Universal, Walt Disney Studios, and Paramount) and 10 independent film studios that offer more than 9,000 titles for rental.
Do you dig renting movies on an a la carte basis? Would you prefer it if Google introduced a monthly subscription fee for an all-you-can-watch movie binge?
