As someone who is under 60 and has used the internet at least once, when I hear the name Rupert Murdoch I get a little angry.
Murdoch has long railed against any efforts to move any form of media into the digital age, and seems hell bent on keeping his old school media network intact at any cost.
So it seems strange to me that NewsCorp, Murdoch’s company is behind Apple’s proposal to offer 99c TV episode rentals.
Every other content provider has flatly refused to budge, preferring the current model of selling episodes either by the season for a lump sum or at around $2.99 per episode.
Murdoch has stated previously that he believes the iPad will save the newspaper industry, which kinda works out well for him, so maybe he’s just returning the favor.
As per usual, the huge gap between what consumers want and are happy to pay for and what the content providers wish to offer can be explained by corporate greed and an ongoing desire for time to stand still at around the 1995 mark, just before that pesky internet was invented.
Perhaps with NewsCorp leading the charge as the unlikely voice of reason and logic, the other content providers will see the light?
Who knows what Mr. Murdoch is up to. I have to be suspicious of anything this guy support due to his refusal to move into the 21st century.