This question is asked about a million times a day by all those movie offcionatos out there. "Can I Legally Download Movies That AREN'T In The Public Domain?"

The answer is a complicated "YES" and "NO".

While it is 100% possible to download movies onto your computer and actually have the right to own them, er, view them, it is not without restrictions however.

There are legitimate companies that offer "legal" movie downloads in every sense of the word, but there is a limit to what can be done with them. It is a process that is akin to purchasing physical DVD movies from traditional "brick-and-mortar" stores.

Think of it like venturing down to your local movie rental store. Inside, they offer you the option of either renting a top hit movie or purchasing a "previously viewed" title at a discounted rate. Or simply purchasing it new.

The process of movie downloading services is the same in many ways. With a few minor differences.

Services such as Vongo.com allow you to set up a monthly subscription with them to view as many movies as you like, that they have in their digital library, without actually "downloading" them in the sense that it would not be stored on your hard drive and only "viewable" from their software program you can freely download.

This downloading system is not without flaws however. Things such as picture quality, Operating System speed, titles available, and the like have an affect on your movie viewing pleasure.

Unlike the more well known P2P(Peer2Peer) illegal movie downloading option, digitally renting or purchasing your movies from a reputable, legal source will not get you into any trouble with the "Silver Screen" companies.

In fact, there are several motion picture studios that are finally embracing the download technology. Albeit limited in their offerings of movie titles and strict terms as to what one can do with the downloaded movies of course.

The hope of this writer is that one day, in the not-so-distant-future, that motion picture studios will relax some of their over-the-top restrictions on what one can do with a legally downloaded movie, such as burning them onto a DVD and making use of the movie as you would one that you actually walked down to the video store or local Wal-Mart to purchase, along with lowering the cost of such services due to the lack of "extras" you would get when performing a "physical" purchase, such as DVD boxes, covers, etc.

With the rapidly growing advances in technology, it is time for the "old boys" to jump into the future along with their consumers and get out of the ancient rules and regulations sector. It's Time To Get "Reel".