Taking on the likes of Foxtel Presto and Fetch TV, EzyFlix.tv has announced that it will be officially adopting Digital HD, which will give you early access to a number of movie titles.
Twentieth Century Fox launched Digital HD back in 2012, which allowed users to purchase a digital copy of a film before DVD and Blu-ray release.
Since then, a number of studios have also been releasing films early under Digital HD, with EzyFlix.tv claiming that it is "the first Australian retailer to adopt the Digital HD moniker".
"The Digital HD initiative underscores studios' drive to increase their more lucrative digital sales and they are therefore extremely supportive of EzyFlix.tv and our approach in Australia," said Craig White, CEO of Access Digital Entertainment, which runs EzyFlix.tv.
He said that last year, Digital HD helped increase consumer spend in the US by 47%.
"... This was a direct result of providing viewers with an incentive to buy movies, electronically, ahead of their availability on traditional video-on-demand services, DVD or Blu-ray disc and subscriptions services like Netflix."
Competition
Though Digital HD early access is available through Google Play, iTunes, Sony Entertainment Network and Xbox Video in Australia, according to White, it will give EzyFlix.tv an edge against other Australian video-on-demand and subscription streaming services.
"Digital HD helps set us apart from services like Netflix, Quickflix, [Foxtel] Presto and other video-on-demand providers such as BigPond and Fetch [TV] because most of these companies have restricted content rights and new release availability due to their chosen business models and/or technology platform," White said.
"For example, Netflix doesn't offer the latest releases until months or years after their initial release."
Early access films on EzyFlix.tv has previously included titles such as Frozen, Gravity and Anchorman 2: the Legend Continues, with nine new early releases available right now under Digital HD, including Spider-Man 2, 300: Rise of an Empire and Muppets Most Wanted.
There is a total of 24 titles that EzyFlix.tv says is upcoming, and these include Maleficent, The Grand Budapest Hotel, Guardians of the Galaxy and Transcendence.
On average, early access can end up being one week (Captain America: Winter Soldier), a couple of weeks (The Other Woman), or even a full month (A Walk of Shame).
- Here's more info on what EzyFlix.tv and how it works
