UltaViolet Reportedly Tapping Walmart To Aid In Consumer Registration, Enlightement

UltraViolet. Heard of it? Not surprising. It's the movie industry's big-money shot at curtailing piracy, and while loads of companies are onboard, few people have heard of it -- let alone understand it. One major factor is that Apple, a leader selling of media online, isn't onboard with the program, and these days, it's tough to win in media distribution if Apple isn't on your side. All of that aside, UltraViolet is hoping to get a major push by teaming up with a major retailer: Walmart. According to the Wall Street Journal, Walmart is talking with UltraViolet in order to bring a service to stores that will "assist customers in registering DVDs they already own with the movie industry's UltraViolet system." This would certainly be a stretch for Walmart, which has typically shied away from sophisticated extras in favor of just providing barebones, low-cost products.


But given that Walmart sells so much media, it's a good place to start. Once someone's purchase has been registered into the UltraViolet system, it can then be streamed online or downloaded to a computer, TV or mobile device without issue. Most folks aren't aware of this. The cumbersome registration process could be made easier if Walmart makes it more automated, but again, this is only one retailer. Something tells us it won't be exactly what's needed to shut down piracy as a whole, but it's a solid start.