Quality is a big issue. For the convenience of having your video content made available to a variety of devices via the cloud, you might find that the best quality isnt always available. That Blu-ray might come with an iTunes, Amazon or UltraViolet digital redemption code, but that doesnt mean youll get a digital copy equal to your Blu-rays quality. Even if you do, some devices might be restricted to only getting standard definition quality.

As with Roku, I like Apple TV for how it makes it to stream video from places like Netflix and Hulu to my TV. But if you want to watch purchased video, your choice is unsurprisingly only iTunes. None of the other providers is an option. Yes, you can get YouTube, but your purchased videos from Google Play wont be listed. Even if you add them using your computer to your YouTube Watch Later or Favorites lists, they wont be listed at all on Apple TV.

Kindle

The trapped video matrix

In this column, I look at how trapped video content purchased from iTunes, Amazon, Vudu, Xbox and Google Play may be. The first four video marketplaces were listed yesterday by NPD as among the top ways people purchase digital video. Google Play is probably still in the Other category. But with Android devices growing and Google continuing to push its own Google Play marketplace, it seemed well worth including in this survey.

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And yes, I know, technically discs are a digital video format. But Im using digital in the same way that Hollywood itself does, as a term to mean an alternative to physical media.

The first viewing option listed is browser, which covers whether you can watch your purchased video within a web browser on a computer. If so, thats probably the most open and device-independent option out there, though its less useful on phones, where smaller screen sizes can make logging-in and navigating to your purchased video a pain -- or where the lack of Flash or other plug-in support may make viewing impossible.

None of the other providers supports the Kindle. I even tried to get Google Play and Vudu content to work through the Kindles browser but had no luck.

Amazon also has a restriction that you can only download to two devices. Except it might really be four devices, when you actually start playing with the download options. And theres no way to deauthorize those devices, other than contacting Amazon support -- which I did through chat. It only took a few minutes, but the whole situation feels confused, and Amazons page about it isnt much help.

What I really want is to buy a movie from any provider and have it work on any device, so that I never have to make or update a chart like this again.

If you have several Apple devices, iTunes can make a lot of sense. Sure, you could buy from Vudu and download to your Mac, like iTunes allows. But Vudu support for iOS is pretty limited. Sure, you could buy from Amazon on iOS as an alternative to iTunes. But then you wont have an option to download to your Mac. On the flipside, you do have more alternatives compared with Xbox and Google. And those alternatives potentially give you options should you one day leave Apple behind.

Apple TV

Sadly, while browser-based viewing may sound irly open, it can also come with unexpected drawbacks. Amazon streams HD movies you own in 480p SD-quality, rather than 720p or 1080p HD-quality. Nothing in the browser playback window tells you this. But its in the small print of the help pages, if you hunt around.

Can you get your video on an Android device? Not if you buy through iTunes. Not if you buy from Amazon. Even if you try to use your browser to stream Amazon video, a Flash requirement will likely stop you in your tracks. Xbox Video is out, too.

The trapped video matrix

As youd expect, Microsofts Xbox Video supports Microsofts Windows Phone. No one else does, not even if you try to go to Amazon, Vudu or Google through the phones browser.

So whos the winner in all this, the provider that if you buy from allows you the most choice?

Kindle download options

The Roku box is one of my vorite gadgets. I use it almost every night to stream content directly from places like Netflix and Hulu to my TV. It also offers great support for Amazon and Vudu, up to 1080p quality, if you have a higher-end model.

The digital trade-offs

Roku

Finally, content you buy on Google Play is made available nicely through the Googles YouTube app, under the Purchased area. But theres no download option.

Yes, if you have a physical disc, there are ways to rip the movie, strip it of copy protection and get it into various devices. Im not including that option because my assumption is that most people arent wanting to spend the time and effort involved in doing that. Rather, I think theyd like to purchase movies from providers that give them as much native freedom and control as possible.

On to the chart:

There are many other devices that I havent covered, perhaps most notably the Wii and the PS3. I dont own either, so I couldnt test them. Amazon and Vudu say they both support the PS3; Amazon supports the Wii. YouTube is available on both the Wii and PS3, but Im irly certain that as with Apple TV and the Xbox, purchased videos wouldnt be accessible.

Have you decided to ditch DVDs and Blu-rays to instead buy movies and TV shows only in a pure digital format?

Why would anyone give up on physical discs? My last column, Keep your Blu-rays and DVDs, Hollywood -- Ive gone digital, covered some of the reasons I want to abandon them. Digital means I dont have to get off my couch, find a movie disc and shove it into my Blu-ray player. My Roku player can just pull a movie I own down from the cloud. Digital also means if Im on a trip, and away from my physical movie collection, I can pull the movie down to my laptop or tablet.

FYI, 720p shows as the maximum rather than 1080p because the Kindle Fire HD I own can only do 720p. The bigger Kindle Fire HD 8.9 can do 1080p.

Browser

Android

PC Download

Next up: can you download content to your Windows PC? Sure -- in ct, all but Google allow this.

Google also may seem a pretty poor choice, when you consider that you cant download to anything but an Android device, Gadgets, and that streaming through the browser is only in SD. But if youre consuming video primarily through Android devices, Google is going to give you the quality edge over the only alternative, Vudu.

As for the alternatives, both Amazon and Vudu are compelling in their own ways. Amazons lack of Android support is a drawback,new york asian escort but if you like Kindle, youre covered there. Going with devices that support Amazon also means you perhaps may get drawn into Amazons Prime Video, a huge selection of free content -- free for a relatively low annual fee that comes with other major perks.

There are certainly advantages to that. But one of the biggest downsides of going all digital is that how you can view your content is largely dependent on the service you purchased it from.

As for Xbox Video, confusingly, its help page says to use the Zune software to download video, with no mention that if you have Windows 8 or Windows RT, this seems unnecessary. You can download Xbox Video content from within the Video application thats native to those operating systems. Also, be warned. Once you start that download in Windows 8, there seems to be no pause option.

Google also doesnt stream HD content -- either movies or TV shows -- in actual HD quality. Youll be stuck at 480p, and youll only know this if you go to the video quality option to check. Google does note this when you purchase a video, but that might get overlooked by some. It also has a help page that explains more.

Buying films or TV episodes from a digital media outlet may be great if you watch though one particular device. But what happens if you change from iOS to Android? From a PC to a Mac? From a Roku to Apple TV? We chart it out.

Want to view your video content on a Kindle? Amazon supports it, of course. It also makes it very clear exactly what your download quality options are, which I like:

Given that Microsoft is pushing its Suce tablet hard, I wanted to include it in the roundup. I looked at Suce with Windows RT, the less expensive model and still the only Suce model shipping at the moment. The more expensive Suce Pro, which launches next week, is really just a full-fledged Windows 8 computer in a nice package. Whatever a PC can do, it can do. But Suce RT -- and any Windows RT computer -- is more limited.

Digital video providers

Vudu claims to support the iPad, but thats really just supporting playback in the Sari browser . Theres no download option for offline viewing. Some videos are even restricted from playing on iOS.

Vudu perhaps stands out as the unique player without hardware to pitch. Theres no Vudu phone, tablet, or computer. Vudus future is being integrated into all these other devices. That perhaps makes it one of the best hopes for being a provider who traps your content the least. But then again, its potentially in the riskiest position of being cut off.

It can be nice to download your video content for offline Gadgets How trapped are your digital movies and TV showsviewing. My next category on the chart is whether you can do this on a Mac. iTunes, of course, makes it easy for Apple content. Vudu is the only other major platform supporting Mac downloads. Just dont try doing it with Chrome. Vudu will ask you to use another browser. I used Firefox; Sari would probably be fine, too.

Suce

I dont know the answer. Its ultimately going to be up to each person. I hope the chart above helps some in those choices. I do wish that every box had a yes in it. Id certainly feel less trapped if that were the case.

Danny SullivanDanny Sullivan is a journalist who has covered the search and internet marketing space for over 15 years. Hes editor-in-chief of Search Engine Land and Marketing Land, writes a personal blog called Daggle (and maintains his disclosures page there).

You cant install the Amazon Unbox player, so you cant download Amazon video for offline viewing. There are no apps from others beyond Microsoft that allow for playing or downloading video. However, its Internet Explorer browser will allow for streaming video from Amazon, Vudu, and Google.

Xbox

But as many people who commented in response to my last column note, giving up on discs means giving up control. Theyre entirely correct, too. Youre giving up the ability to absolutely, positively know that the movie or TV show you own is available to watch in the highest possible quality, without some terms of service down the road possibly taking it away.

Vudu comes out seeming the big winner with full HD streaming in your browser. But then again, this kind of sucked:

Mac Download

That worked for my Lumia 900 Windows 7.5 phone, using a Windows 8 laptop. But Zune wouldnt recognize my HTC 8X Windows Phone 8. I tried using the Windows Phone app for Windows 8 as an alternative, but it kept giving an error that my video couldnt be shared. Maybe thats why the Xbox Video download instructions dont mention the app, because it doesnt work. Too bad -- I was left with no way to get my purchased video onto my phone.

Google Play, unsurprisingly, has the best support for Android. Indeed, having an Android device is the only way to get HD content from Google Play and to have it offline.

Other devices

Windows Phone

Vudu has an app which is nice, and unlike the iPad, allows for downloading video for offline viewing. However, youll be limited to SD quality.

Can you get your video on an iPad, iPhone or iOS device, through an app? No surprise, thats not an issue for those who own Apple devices. They all support this. However, what quality are you getting? Id never thought to look before doing this testing. When I downloaded from the cloud, nothing on my iPad Retina prompted me about what quality I wanted or indicated what quality I received. Its probably HD, but it would be nice to easily know that.

I was trying to watch one of my videos on an external monitor hooked to my laptop. Vudu wanted me to use a cable that supports HDCP copy protection. Without that cable, it would only give me SD quality. Maybe I have the right cable somewhere, but given I had indeed paid for my content, getting treated like a pirate and not being able to watch my content in HD on the monitor of my choosing didnt make me happy.

iOS

As for Xbox Video, the support is pretty poor. Forget downloading your purchases from the cloud, as Apple, Amazon and Google all allow for their mobile devices. You need to download to your computer, then get a cable, then connect your phone to the computer and transfer using the Zune software.

And the winner is...

Enough preamble. Below is a chart of how trapped your video might be, followed by explanations. Ive tried to cover the major ways people might try to view their digital films, and Ive actually tested all of these to see if they work as promised.

The Amazon Instant Video app for iOS was surprisingly good, but as with Apple, its hard to know what the download quality is.

While Xbox Video has no real support outside devices using Microsofts own operating systems, Xbox itself is pretty open to other providers. You can buy and view your purchased content from Xbox Video, of course. But you can also access Amazon and Vudu. While the YouTube app is offered, purchased videos you have available in YouTube from Google Play arent listed. If you try to access them by saving them as a vorite or to your Watch Later list, they still wont play.

Thats a pretty tough call. Its easy to look at all the nos in the Xbox Video column and perhaps think thats the wrong choice to make. But if you own an Xbox and a PC, youll get better quality downloads than Amazon currently allows, despite also being on the Xbox and the PC.

But theres a gotcha again with Amazon, where when using its Unbox player, HD movies will only be downloaded in SD quality. TV content, however, can be downloaded in HD quality.