inside LOVEFiLM

Yes, lots of people have been asking for it and yes, it’s taken us a little while to get here, but LOVEFiLM Instant titles are now available in High Definition. At no extra cost.

There are around 900 HD titles as we go live on 30th May – roughly 200 films and 700 TV episodes – and we’ll be adding more to the roster all the time.

Films in HD include those with an epic sweep, like The Way Back and Apocalypse Now; as well as LOVEFiLM Instant favourites like RED, Attack the Block, Eclipse and Gnomeo & Juliet.

TV episodes in HD include beautiful documentaries like Planet Earth and Human Planet; as well as long-running sagas like LOST, Ghost Whisperer and Robin Hood.

How can you tell if a title is available in HD? Well, it will be clearly marked with an ‘HD’ badge on the packshot and on that title’s main page. And we’ve gathered some of them together into collections like Beautiful Planet and Family Fun.

HD streaming will be available on the Xbox 360, on TVs & Blu-ray players from Samsung and LG, and on PCs & laptops (Windows and Mac).

We’re working hard on bringing HD to Sony TVs & Blu-ray players, and to the PS3™ – which is already streaming in higher than standard quality (though not quite HD at this stage) – and we don’t currently have studio rights to stream HD on iPad.

You’ll need a minimum internet connection speed of 3 Mbps to watch HD 720p; and a minimum internet speed of 12 Mbps to watch HD 1080p – but don’t worry, it’s all automatic.

Because all internet connections can vary in speed, our service automatically selects the best video quality for uninterrupted viewing, switching seamlessly between full HD, lower HD, or standard definition, dependent on the bandwidth available.

If you can, use an Ethernet cable rather than Wi-Fi to stream to get the best quality of playback.

And it’s worth checking your monthly data allowance with your ISP (Internet Service Provider) – watching 2 hours of HD content at 1080p will consume about 10 Gigabytes of data.

We’re as committed as ever to providing our customers with the best quality in viewing entertainment, so we hope you enjoy LOVEFiLM Instant films and TV episodes in HD.

You can find more info and our HD FAQs here…

Ben Lavender, Digital Product Director

If your thumbs are twitching for some gamer action, there’s plenty here to keep your addiction satisfied. Or fuel it even further…

Shooters

• Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon: Future Soldier continues the much-loved gameplay of its forebears while offering fresh new challenges.Set in the near future (i.e. after Greece leave the Euro), warfare has become a delicate combination of negotiating table and covert action. A new soldier has been created: better than the best, and able to remain undetected on the battlefield.Yes, Deus Ex kind of did it already (and Metal Gear Solid before that), but this is Ghost Recon, so there’s lots of action to go with your stealth.
• Max Payne 3 is the much anticipated sequel of the sequel, and Mr. Payne isn’t doing too well.No longer a cop, and addicted to painkillers, Max takes a protection job in Sao Paulo, Brazil; but soon finds himself alone on the streets of an unfamiliar city, fighting for his life, and searching for answers.Plenty of amazing visuals and an in-depth story make this one game not to miss.

Role Playing Game

• Dragon’s Dogma has exhilarating action and the freedom to explore, and interact with, the world around you.And while this could easily have been just another RPG where you seek out and kill dragons, Dogma does it a little differently: your partners – or pawns, as they’re called in-game – fight independently, learning skills and abilities from you or your friends. And you can swap your pawn with a friend over Xbox Live or the PlayStation Network to gain experience.Expect lots of ye olde English, fireballs and sword fighting. Oh, and I continue to wait for a game that lets me be a dragon. (That isn’t Spyro, by the way. He’s just not scary enough.)

Platform

• LEGO Batman 2: DC Super Heroes arrives on 22 June, and – just like the first game – your characters have different suits to put on, each of which grant different abilities. This time, though, you have all new characters to get to grips with, including a certain Man of Steel…Personally, I can’t wait to jump back into those little Lego boots and smack the Joker upside the head to collect some Lego studs.But then again, I don’t get out much.

And probably won’t, with this little lot to keep me busy. Until next time, happy gaming…

Alexa Muir, UK Merchandising Manager

On May Bank Holidays past, I’ll have been polishing my best It’s Still Good To Watch Films Even When The Weather’s Hot & Sunny speech. Would that such a thing were required for this weekend.

Alas, grey skies and temperatures under 10 degrees is the lot for most of us. Still, it’s a 3 day break, so if you’re looking for the latest additions to our streaming service, here’s the May issue of the New to LOVEFiLM Instant feature.

Some great titles therein, including Guy Ritchie’s first geezeriffic take on Sherlock Holmes, with Robert Downey Jr in truly excellent form, Morgan Freeman superb as Nelson Mandela in Invictus (and able supported by Matt Damon as Francois Pienaar), and Spike Jonze’s version of the popular kids fantasy story, Where The Wild Things Are.

Some tasty superhero titles make their entrance too, courtesy of our friends at WarnerFilms, tying in nicely with the Avengers action kicking off all over the big screen at the moment.

And on the subject of Warner Bros, if you’ve heard word of their recently opened Harry Potter studio tour and wondered if it’s worth it, wonder no longer: it’s fabulous.

A few LOVEFiLMers took the tour and even the most cynical and buttoned-up of our number were well and truly wowed. There’s a bit of history, a small amount of helpful guidance through the early parts (including the Great dining Hall), and then you’re left to explore some amazing sets and marvel at the incredible level of detail, care and passion that has been poured into this ground-breaking film series.

You can even fly a broomstick if you want. Probably best to do this before you sample the Butter Beer.

But whatever your plans, from all of us here at LOVEFiLM, have a great Bank Holiday weekend…

Darren Bignell, Senior Communications Manager