Stephen Withers
Tuesday, 24 June 2008 18:23
Opinion and Analysis
Page 1 of 2
It's been a while coming - and some are sure to say it wasn't worth the wait - but Australians can at last buy episodes of TV shows from the iTunes Store.
There's no official announcement from Apple Australia yet, but as far as we can see, all shows are priced at $A2.99 ($US2.85) per episode.
Update: Apple's announcement came this morning, and the $A2.99 price does apply across the board. Unlike the US store, there are no discounts for buying entire seasons.
A mix of local and overseas content is available from free to air and pay TV channels, with shows coming from the US ABC, the Australian ABC (apologies to those who feel that's like referring to a "PIN number"), Disney, the Nine Network and MTV.
Popular local shows include McLeod's Daughters, Surfing the Menu, comedy success Summer Heights High, and Sea Patrol.
Imports include Desperate Housewives, Scrubs, Grey's Anatomy, Lost, Hannah Montana, South Park and Pimp My Ride.
South Park has got off to a strong start with Australian buyers, with various episodes taking seven spots in the top ten published by the Apple Store Australia. Grey's Anatomy, Summer Heights High and The Hills also put in an appearance.
South Park also tops the 'seasons' chart, followed by We Can Be Heroes and Summer Heights High.
Nine's Canal Road and Sea Patrol are still available for free download from NineMSN, yet Canal Road is showing up at number eight on iTunes' seasons chart.
Would you pay more for shows via iTunes than from another source? Nine thinks so -
read on to find out how much more!
