Google launches Australian movie rentals for Google Play, YouTube

By Seamus Byrne |

Today, Google has launched its movie-rental service to Australian users across its mobile and web platforms, with rentals available through Google Play and YouTube. The service launches with thousands of movies and prices, ranging from $3.99 for back-catalogue SD to $6.99 for new-release HD.

The Movies store on Google Play.
(Credit: CNET)

The service can be accessed on Google Play, making it available to most Android smartphone and tablet users, as well as through the web via both Google Play and Google's dominant video site, YouTube.

YouTube Movies
(Credit: CNET)

Google has announced that a wide range of film studios are participating in the service, including The Walt Disney Company, Sony Pictures Home Entertainment, NBCUniversal, Village Roadshow Pictures and Lionsgate, as well as local distributors, such as Roadshow Films, Icon Film Distribution, Madman Entertainment, Hopscotch and Transmission Films.

The service is operating with two-tiered pricing, with new releases available at $5.99 and $6.99 for SD and HD, and older titles available from $2.99. YouTube Movies also offers a number of free movies and documentaries. Viewers will have 30 days to start watching any rental, and 48 hours to complete watching once viewing has begun.

Movies can be streamed instantly or downloaded to be watched while offline, and a logged-in user can watch the same title across both Google Play and YouTube.

Google joins Telstra, Sony, Microsoft and Apple in the Australian on-demand movie-rental market.

More on: Google, Movies, Youtube, Streaming

About the author
Seamus Byrne - CNET.com.au

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5 comments

Latest comments (Add your comment)

I'm with smartalec and ChristopherM2 - they need to be more reasonably priced and have purchase options available. I can go down to my local Blockbuster/Video Ezy and get the same movies for anywhere from $2 to $6: and that's for longer than the 24hours that Play allows you - some for up to 7 days (and those are generally the cheaper ones). And places like Blockbuster/Video Ezy have more (obvious at least) costs involved than Google Play.

Once again, the film industry has failed miserably in their attempts to monetise digital distribution.
Posted by Chandler
Reply
pffft, id rather watch it in awkward, slightly off time, 10 minute sections of the movie free on youtube.
Posted by PeteL
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Cool, will have to give it a look and see what they have available in their catalogue
Posted by Im Batman
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Still needs to be cheaper, or at least have a cheap day once a week. I can rent a new release blu ray from blockbuster for $2 on tuesday
Posted by smartalec
Reply
I like the idea but its simply too expensive. I'd also like if they had a purchase
Posted by ChristopherM2
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