Music fans and TV addicts will welcome Apple’s latest announcements, writes Cliff Joseph. As well as launching a new iPod that plays video, Apple also announced that you can now buy and download music videos, short films and even episodes of TV shows from its online iTunes Store, though they are only currently available if you live in the US).
The video material for sale at the iTunes Store is limited, but Apple’s move into the video market means it has, in effect, launched the first mass-market, video-on-demand service. This is great news for fans of Desperate Housewives, but could also be a huge opportunity for education.
The iTunes Store doesn’t have just sell commercial material. There are already hundreds of video podcasts available at the store free of charge.
This is an opportunity to download educational material and for schools to create their own video podcasts, already know by some as vodcasts.
Now that mainstream TV programming is available at the iTunes Store, there’s no reason why educational broadcasters such as the BBC can’t make their vast archives available as well - either free or at very little cost.
