It has already changed the music business and amassed an army of fans sporting its trademark white earphones. But the next revolution, according to Apple, maker of the iPod, will be televised.

The company last night raised the curtain on its plans to take on the movie industry by selling full-length feature films over the internet, for viewers to watch on their home TVs.

Steve Jobs, Apple's chief executive, put an end to months of rumours about its interest in movie downloads by announcing deals with the Hollywood studios owned by Disney, of which he is a director. "Today we're starting out with films from Walt Disney Pictures, Pixar, Touchstone and Miramax films," Jobs said at the company headquarters in California.

"We're making available over 75 films online, and we're going to be adding more every week and every month, including the year's most popular movies, Pirates of the Caribbean 2 and Cars."

Jobs also unveiled a forthcoming device called iTV that will be able to transmit video from a computer to a living-room television screen.

The new download service, which will initially be available in the United States but is expected to roll out in other countries next year, will offer new movies as well as classics such as Shakespeare in Love, The English Patient and Enemy of the State.

Downloads will cost US$9.99 and viewers will be able to watch their purchases on an iPod, computer screen or stream them to a TV.

"This potentially could be the time that portable video kicks off in a mainstream way," said Adam Vaughan, managing editor of Stuff magazine.

Apple, which has sold more than 50 million iPods in five years, will hope it can use its status as market leader in digital music to steal a march on rivals and become the No 1 destination for online films.

It needs a success. It has been a year since any significant improvements were made to the iPod and, despite huge sales last Christmas, the brand show signs of flattening out.

Researchers have warned that signs of a consumer backlash are beginning to appear, but retail experts believe that the new products, which also include a colourful iPod nano and a tiny clip-on iPod shuffle, could provide a boost for the busy winter period.

Source: China Daily