The Walt Disney Company has expanded the number of programs it will make available through Apple’s iTunes video service.
Are you ready for 15 minutes of football? Disney thinks you are. Condensed versions of the Fiesta Bowl and the Sugar Bowl went on sale at iTunes today for $1.99, FT.com reported. After the Rose Bowl, Disney should have the highlights of that game available online as well for the same price.
With these program offers, Disney becomes the first broadcaster to make sports programming available on iTunes. The mutual admiration society that’s reportedly formed between Disney execs like Bob Iger and Richard Cook and Apple/Pixar top man Steve Jobs ensured the video iPod had significant brand power behind the initial content available for it.
Now there’s going to be more. ESPN’s ‘This is SportsCenter’ commercials await downloading; there’s no charge for them. A Reuters report noted several more sports programs, as well as other features from Disney properties, are destined for iTunes: “Best of the X-Games,” “Knight School” featuring legendary hoops coach Bob Knight, Disney Channel’s “Kim Possible,” and the iconic education series “Schoolhouse Rock” among others.
NBC has made a similar arrangement with iTunes, with programs from network competitors CBS, Fox, and WB likely to follow. ABC, owned by Disney, has made ad-supported news videos available for free on iTunes.
—
Email the author here.
Add to document.write(“Del.icio.us”) | DiggThis | Yahoo My Web
David Utter is a staff writer for Murdok covering technology and business.
