Burbank, Calif. – NBC will start offering limited free downloads of shows such as “Heroes” and “The Office” as part of its bid to expand the digital distribution of its programs and compete with Apple Inc.’s iTunes Store, the network announced Wednesday.
The new service, dubbed NBC Direct, will allow users to download episodes to computers running Microsoft Windows software for up to a week after the show has aired on television. The file will contain embedded advertising that cannot be skipped.
Seven days after the episode’s TV debut, the digital file will expire.
The new service will launch in a test version in October and be expanded in coming months to let users subscribe to shows and download them automatically. Upcoming versions to be introduced by year’s end will also allow viewers to move the file to a portable viewing device or watch them on a Mac computer.
High-definition shows will eventually be available through peer-to-peer technology, which will speed the download of larger files, NBC said.
A special software player with filtering technology will prevent users from playing illegally downloaded videos.
NBC, like many networks, already sells episodes for permanent download and streams them for free on its website.
