The Wall Street Journal reports that Walt Disney Co. is close to unveiling technology, code-named Keychest, that could contribute to a shift in what it means for a consumer to own a movie or a TV show, by redefining ownership as access rights rather than physical possession.

With Keychest, says Disney, consumers will increasingly rely on computers, cell phones and anything else with a screen, in place of DVD players and TVs.  People will pay a single price for permanent access to a movie or TV show across multiple digital platforms and devices. It involves the “cloud computing” logic used in Web-based applications, permitting users to store files and photographs on remote Internet servers and access them from anywhere.

WSJ says Disney plans to unveil the technology next month and has been quietly demonstrating Keychest for other movie studios and technology companies in a bid to get them to sign on. Though the paper points out that some other movie studios may be understandably hesitant to put a competitor in charge of access to their content.

Keychest may wind up being in direct competition with another development with similar goals, the Digital Entertainment Content Ecosystem, or DECE, the development of which is being spearheaded by Mitch Singer, chief technology officer of Sony Corp.’s Sony Pictures Entertainment. DECE was announced just over a year ago.

Of course, there is speculation that this development will spell the end of DVD and Blue Ray.

May the best technology win.

(Image Credit: Sergej Razvodovskij | Dreamstime.com)

Story provided by the Dish Information Corporation