DirecTV to Offer Video Downloads

Satellite television provider DirecTV will launch a broadband video service for users of its DirecTV Plus digital video recorder, the company said Wednesday. The service would start out with 2,000 videos and debut by the end of the year. A user would need their own high-speed Internet connection to download content.

While pricing was not announced, the downloaded videos would be available for viewing for 24 hours. Customers will either have the option of purchasing the content through the DVR or on the DirecTV Web site.

The service will be a win-win for the company; it gives DirecTV a feature to compete with cable's on-demand offerings, while also negating the need for the company to build out its own broadband network. Content is downloaded over a preexisting cable or DSL line, the company said.

DirecTV first demonstrated its DVR at CES 2005. The company at the time promised interactive features, of which the download service is one of the first.

The satellite provider also said it was looking into spending up to $1 billion to launch its own broadband service. However, DirecTV has made no commitments. CEO Chase Carey said the company would like to see more broadband players in the marketplace.

According to The Wall Street Journal, DirecTV has been looking into wireless Internet as a possible option for such a service.