iTunes selling movies on DVD release date

NEW YORK - Apple Inc. said on Thursday it would begin selling movie downloads on its iTunes service on the same day as the titles are released in DVD form, under an agreement with top Hollywood studios.

Titles that will be available this week include "Juno," "American Gangster" and "I Am Legend."

iTunes will offer new releases and catalog titles from such studios as 20th Century Fox, Walt Disney Studios, Warner Bros., Paramount Pictures, Universal Studios Home Entertainment, Sony Pictures Entertainment and Lionsgate.

The move would allow a broad slate of top-shelf films to be offered day-and-date with home video releases, which risks cannibalizing DVD sales. Such a move would also put significant pressure on iTunes competitors ranging from Amazon's Unbox to Microsoft XBox Live Marketplace.

David Lee / Universal Studios via AP iTunes also offers "American Gangster" this week. Denzel Washington, left, stars as gangster Frank Lucas and Russell Crowe plays outcast cop Richie Roberts.

Movie sales have been eyed as a new area of growth for Apple, possibly prompting consumers to buy newer models of its iPod digital media player. Earlier this year, Apple launched a service for iPod and iPhone users to rent and download movies to watch on their devices. Each title costs just $3 to $4 for consumers to access for a 30-day period. Movie purchases, however, could cost as much as $15.

Apple hasn't moved as aggressively to date on film as it has in TV, with most download-to-own devoted to older titles in studio libraries. But Apple's success with those deals, which included MGM, Disney and Paramount, likely encouraged studios to take the next step.

Barry Wetcher / Warner Bros. Pictures via AP Will Smith stars as Robert Neville in "I Am Legend," also offered on iTunes this week. His character's dog is "Samantha."

In March, Disney CEO Bob Iger publicly estimated that his company had sold 4 million movies via iTunes since it became the first studio to try download-to-own in 2006. A few major new releases already have been made available day-and-date in recent weeks on iTunes, including Fox's "Juno."

The news follows Wednesday's disclosure by Time Warner CEO Jeffrey Bewkes that Warner Bros. will experiment with video-on-demand releases day-and-date with DVD.

The announcement originally was expected to be released earlier in the week, perhaps timed to the fifth anniversary of iTunes, which was Monday.

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