iCinema raises curtain on first legal movie downloads

Hong Kong's first legal movie-download website, iCinema, was launched yesterday, but an industry veteran said mainstream films were unlikely to be available any time soon and the service would do little to curb illegal downloading.

Woody Tsung Wan-chi said it would be difficult to use online distribution for major releases - the main target of internet file-sharers - because movie-distribution deals were regional in nature and any internet access would affect distributors across Asia.

'That is why you can see from all over the world that legal downloads for movies are now only limited to niche or older films,' said Mr Tsung, of the Hong Kong, Kowloon and New Territories Motion Picture Industry Association.

Such films rarely fell victim to illegal downloading, he said.

The launch of the iCinema service, developed and operated by government-owned Cyberport, comes less than a week after the recording industry sought a court order that would force internet service providers to disclose the identities of 22 individuals suspected of illegally sharing music files.

The only major film distributor to sign on for the iCinema service so far is the Intercontinental Group. It has made three British movies - Song for a Raggy Boy, Elephant Juice and The One and Only - available at $15 for two days.

The critically acclaimed Song For a Raggy Boy was shown at this year's Hong Kong International Film Festival, but none of the movies had a cinema release in Hong Kong.