The online services that let movie fans watch the latest hits in their homes

Jenny Mitchell was enjoying The King’s Speech when another cinema-goer took exception to the noise she was making. ‘Someone shushed me for rustling my popcorn bag,’ she says. ‘It really put me off going to the cinema again.’ 

But now film buffs like Jenny can curl up on the sofa at home to watch new movies, thanks to faster internet speeds and a boom in services offering films for instant download.

But the choices and prices of such services are bewildering. As with music, films can either be downloaded – where they are effectively bought and thereafter owned by the customer – or streamed over the internet. With streaming, the movie can be viewed for only a limited period.

Movies can be bought or rented via cable TV providers Virgin Media and Sky. 

Increasingly though, they can also be accessed via broadband from providers such as LoveFilm, iTunes, Blinkbox or YouTube. 

American online film giant Netflix will join the competition next year after announcing expansion plans last week.

Jenny Mitchell, 25, of Finsbury Park, north London, started streaming movies off the internet via Blinkbox a few months ago.