Apple Roundup: MGM, Rumors and Vlogs

MGM’s Roar Online: MGM Studios has signed a deal with the iTunes store to sell catalog titles but not new releases, according to Variety. The 24 new films bring Apple’s motion picture library up to a meager 500 films, which would make for a small video rental shop indeed. As Variety points out, the $9.99 price point for back catalog titles is more than bargain-bin DVDs like MGM’s Dances With Wolves might sell for otherwise.

iTunes Subscription Model: INTENT MediaWorks CEO Les Ottolenghi says that after meetings with Apple, he believes they’ll offer a music subscription service, according to CNN’s Paul La Monica. Television program ’season passes’ and the iTunes store’s podcast section certainly prove it’s feasible, but charge a monthly fee for all-you-can-eat video from the iTunes store as well and you’d have IPTV. Which has the same rhyme and meter as a recent Apple product.

Possible Vlog Standard: Speaking of podcasts, Apple sent content creators on its podcast network suggested best practices for formatting video to work on last-gen iPods and the Apple TV. Many popular vloggers derive a substantial amount of viewers from the iTunes store, and can now compete for the couch potato market. Though for podcasters, unlike MGM and its ilk, the extra popularity would have the effect of increasing bandwidth costs, since the iTunes store just hosts the directory and doesn’t help with delivery.