Microsoft Signs HD DVD Pact with Amazon

July 2nd, 2007

Amazon and Microsoft are joining forces in an alliance that, on the surface, might be a boon to independent filmmakers. The bottom line, though, is that the deal is designed to bolster the chances of the HD DVD format’s survival.On Monday, the companies announced the “1,000 HD DVD Indies Project,” which the industry giants developed to lower the barriers to entry for filmmakers to produce and distribute movies on HD DVD. Jointly sponsored by Amazon and Microsoft, the project will provide free authoring and setup services for up to 1,000 selected indie titles.

Specifically, indie filmmakers can produce and distribute their movies through an Amazon manufacturing-on-demand division called CustomFlix, which produces and ships DVDs only as they are ordered.

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