Cutting the Cord: Is Fox's Movie of the Day movie app a deal?

Mike Snider | USA TODAY

Consumers have embraced digital movies via streaming services and digital downloads, but studios continue to experiment with ways to stoke the business.

No question, streaming is the fan favorite, but digital sales, also called electronic sell-through in the home entertainment industry, are on the rise, too. Digital sales rose 22% in the first quarter of 2015, compared with the same period last year, surpassing $430 million, according to preliminary statistics from DEG: The Digital Entertainment Group, the Hollywood studio trade group.

But that pales compared with subscription streaming from services such as Netflix, which rose 23% to $1.1 billion. For all of 2014, streaming subscriptions brought in $4 billion, compared with $1.6 billion for digital sales, DEG says.

So Hollywood is trying new strategies to entice movie lovers. The latest example: Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment's Movie of the Day app, which lets you own a digital copy of a movie like recent release The Fault in Our Stars for $6.99 rather than $19.99, or older favorites such as Alien: The Director's Cut, Office Space and Mrs. Doubtfire at similar savings.

Available on Apple iPads and iPhones, the Movie of the Day app offers up a new deal at 12:01 a.m. ET daily. You can see a clip, check the cast and director, and read a synopsis and viewer reviews.

To test out the app, I bought Bride Wars, a 2009 romantic comedy starring Kate Hudson and Anne Hathaway. (I knew it was a movie that my wife would wholeheartedly join me in watching.) After tapping the "Get it on iTunes" button, I was taken to the store and completed the transaction. (The credit card on file in your iTunes account is charged.)

In minutes, the movie showed up on my iPhone, iPad and Apple TV. The video is high definition, just as if you had bought any studio's Digital HD download.

I did not choose to share my purchase on Facebook and Twitter — didn't need the likely ribbing I'd get from my online buddies — but I could see where you might want to. Other friends might want to get in on the deal.

By the way, Bride Wars was not available to stream on Netflix, but it was found in Amazon Instant Video in HD for $5.99.

Coming up: Die Hard ($7.99, on Sunday) and The Grand Budapest Hotel ($7.99, Monday)

Fox plans to include all kinds of movies in the promotion in hopes of getting folks to increase impulse buying or plan ahead while on the go for upcoming movie nights.

"Marketing on mobile is not only a priority but a necessity in our industry," said Mary Daily, the company's president and chief marketing officer for worldwide marketing. "Consumers are searching, purchasing and enjoying their entertainment across all their mobile devices. The Movie of the Day app gives consumers the convenience of purchasing movies through the value of a flash sale that we hope will bring them back again and again."

That flash-sale mentality could succeed for Fox. When I told my wife about my purchase and the app, she said, "This could be dangerous, because I could see myself buying a lot of movies."

Exactly. So, buyer beware.

Other studios have some strategies of their own. The Disney Movies Anywhere app collects digital movie copies and digital movie purchases in one place to make it easy for viewing. When I added codes for Disney films Maleficent and Brave, they showed up in the app — on the Web and my devices — as well next to Bride Wars within my Apple Videos collection on the devices. (You can also choose Google Play or Vudu as your collection point.)

Meanwhile, Lionsgate is at work on a Netflix for geeks — that's a term used lovingly — with Comic-Con International, which conducts the annual Comic-Con and WonderCon events. Due to launch later this year, the channel will have special Comic-con content from past events, as well as movies and TV series that appeal to the fan base.

Lionsgate has already partnered with Alibaba to start a movie service in China and has a Tribeca Shortlist video-on-demand service due to begin operating this summer.

All this is good news for cord cutters and other Net video addicts because these won't be the last attempts that studios will make to cater to you.

"Cutting the Cord" is a regular column covering Net TV and ways to get it. If you have suggestions or questions, contact Mike Snider via e-mail at msnider@usatoday.com. And follow him on Twitter: @MikeSnider.