BY EVAN THOMAS

ANCHOR MEGAN MURPHY

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Distribution company Miramax is bringing its movies straight to Facebook-- in the largest streaming deal the social network has seen to date.
It’s through an app called Miramax eXperience.

Facebook users can watch movie clips for free and rent any of the app’s 20 feature-length films on their computers and iPads for $3. Once you start watching something, you get 48 hours to finish it.

Users will eventually be able to purchase movies, according to the Miramax blog, and access them in the cloud from any device. 

Miramax CEO Mike Lang says the app is still in beta-- and the company plans to refine it as they get feedback from users.

“...notice the word beta.  I know you don’t hear that word a lot from movie studios.  Usually we premiere a film after working on it for years ... and then move on to the next project — for those in the technology world this must sound like a crazy business…”

Staci Kramer at Paid Content gave it a test run. She says the beta software was solid, but it wasn’t going to replace streaming service Netflix anytime soon.

“Compared to single-movie apps, it’s an advance, but it can’t compare in number to subscription VOD or rental titles on other services.”

Maybe not in terms of overall volume-- but PCMag breaks down the numbers. 

Netflix streaming offers only seven of the 20 films available now on Facebook, and iTunes sells them for an average of $5.

And according to MediaPost News, being so closely tied to Facebook will give Miramax the opportunity to market itself to millions of viewers.

“While the various movie offerings on Facebook may not yet rival Netflix or Hulu, the social network's 700-million strong audience … is proving alluring to studios as a powerful marketing vehicle and additional revenue stream.” 

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