More details . . .
It could be `Showtime' for Apple movie downloads
COMPANY MAY OFFER SERVICE ON ITUNES
By Michelle Quinn
Mercury News
Apple Computer sent out invitations Tuesday to an event next week in San Francisco with the clue ``It's Showtime'' -- fueling speculation about its plans to distribute movies online.
One rumor has Apple Computer announcing it will begin to sell full-length movies that can be downloaded at its iTunes store.
Another predicts the Cupertino company will start to sell video iPods with bigger screens. Or maybe it will be an iTunes cell phone. Still another has the company selling a video streaming device that could put video on any screen in the home, including the television.
They all might be true. What seems certain is that Tuesday in San Francisco, Steve Jobs, Apple's chief executive, will don his trademark black turtleneck shirt and jeans, take the stage at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts Theatre and unveil new products and services, striving to cast an iPod spell on the Christmas shopping season.
A company spokesman declined to comment about the speculation or about the company's marketing strategy. Apple's stock rose 4.5 percent, or $3.10 a share, to $71.48, on speculation around the Tuesday event.
The invitation itself contains a few big hints. Spotlights scan the sky on a black, gray and white background, illuminating the Apple logo in the center. ``It's Showtime'' may be the biggest clue and one that has led Apple aficionados to wide speculation.
``The word `showtime' may mean Apple is going to go more into long-form video, perhaps motion pictures,'' said Michael Gartenberg, vice president and research director at Jupiter Research in New York. ``Whether it's a rental or subscription model or on what devices, I can't say. With Steve Jobs, it can always be one more thing as well.''
Last year, Apple introduced the video iPod and earlier this year, it began to sell downloads of TV episodes at its iTunes store. Jobs himself has courted Hollywood studios and has one deal with Disney, where he is its biggest shareholder following the sale of Pixar Animation to the entertainment giant.
``Looking at the invite, it's likely going to be movie related,'' said Shaw Wu, analyst with American Technology Research. ``It's the next logical step. The focus is probably going to be on the content side.''
But ``It's Showtime'' could just refer to the show that Jobs will put on. Not everyone believes the announcement is only going to be about movies. ``It's been a year since we've seen new iPods,'' said Larry Angell, senior editor at iLounge, a publication based in Irvine dedicated to Apple's iPod, iTunes and related products. ``Apple's not going to let last year's models sit on shelves for the second straight holiday shopping season. The only question is whether Apple has a radically new iPod ready or if we'll see more minor revisions.''
But Angell said it is possible the company will introduce a ``home media product,'' something that will make it possible to download music, movies and TV shows into the living room. ``Many have said that they'd never watch a two-hour movie on their iPod, and would only consider buying movies online if they could watch them on their TV,'' Angell said.
John1
I mean i guess she was just such a cow at size 6 or 8 
) 
Kim? I know you have it somewhere. 
Lisa - can you give me the number of your people? 
(image this is gator orange and blue 
or a granola bar i could share? 
Nothing personal!
