Studios Spin Disc Bonuses As iPhone Apps

November 11, 2009 · Posted in Connections, M&E Daily 

iPhone integration is the new “it” feature for Blu-ray and DVD discs, as Hollywood seeks to establish itself on the putative “second screen” of today’s Net-connected living rooms.

The new crop of studio iPhone apps are designed to play as the movies run on TV screens — offering value-added interactivity that studios had originally envisioned including on Blu-ray discs themselves. With the newfangled iPhone delivery mechanism, studios hope to gain some coolness cred for disc releases, along with a better shot at sparking movie-based conversations on social networks.

With several upcoming Blu-ray titles from Universal Studios, the iPhone can literally control the home entertainment experience. The studio is reportedly set to introduce “Pocket Blu” functionality on its higher-profile Blu-ray releases, enabling viewers to navigate BD-Live menus and movie playback with their handsets. The Pocket Blu app, available for free on the iTunes store, also lets users update their Facebook and Twitter profiles while watching certain films, such as “American Pie Presents: The Book of Love” (out Dec. 22).

The slate of Pocket Blu releases — which includes “Public Enemies,” “Inglourious Basterds,” and “Bruno” — follows Universal’s rollout of iPhone features with its “Fast & Furious” Blu-ray disc in July.

Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment is taking a more platform-agnostic approach in streaming bonus materials to iPhone screens, with technology that works in tandem with Blu-ray or DVD playback. The studio’s “FoxPop” app employs audio recognition technology to deliver pop-up information on a movie’s actors, soundtrack, and other details to a user’s iPhone or computer, while they watch the movie. Users also can update their social network profiles from within the app. FoxPop launches with Fox’s DVD and Blu-ray release of “Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian” (Dec. 1).

Marketing services provider The Cimarron Group develops the FoxPop bonus materials for the app, which runs on technology from interactive entertainment company Spot411.

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