Accountant Ossie Kilkenny and three US film executives are backing technology developed in Galway that will allow people to download standard and high-definition films in seconds from ATM-style machines.
Investors in the project include Special Olympics chairman and film producer Tim Shriver, who is a nephew of former US president John F Kennedy.
The second US investor is former Fox Cable executive Lindsay Graham. This deal is his first since stepping down from the Murdoch-owned business and joining LA-based boutique investment firm Mediatech Capital Partners.
The third US investor, former Warner Brothers president Jay Emmett, has been involved in the film business for more than 25 years.
The company behind the technology, Portomedia, also has a number of technology partners, including IBM, Toshiba, Panasonic and Samsung.
The Republic will be the testing ground for the technology, which was developed by founder and chief executive Chris Armstrong.
The Galway-based business has been developing the product for the past three years and has recently signed a series of deals with the six major film studios in Hollywood, in addition to a large number of independent studios.
The first "Moviepoint" machines are set to be rolled out in October and November in Galway. The initial locations will be in airports, train stations, coffee shops and convenience outlets. Using a portable USB device, films can be downloaded from the Moviepoint machines in 15 to 30 seconds.
The initial roll-out is aimed at the mobile user with a PC or laptop. Those who would prefer to watch films on a television will be able to buy a box called a Movievault, which can store and play the films.
One of the main concerns raised by film studios about the venture was the provision of digital rights management (DRM) to protect the content and ensure it could not be copied illegally.
Portomedia marketing director Cathal Deavy said these worries were assuaged when the major US studios ratified Microsoft Windows DRM as a bona fide rights management solution in April 2006. "When that happened, it gave us the green light to go ahead and we knew we were protected . . . Windows DRM is on every laptop and PC, and once that happened we were in business," he said.
According to the International Video Federation, the Irish DVD rental market was worth €14 million in 2006. Portomedia plans to grow this business by 15 per cent in five years.
