• by Mark Walsh  @markfwal, November 10, 2006

Video-sharing site Grouper, acquired by Sony Pictures Entertainment in August, has started offering clips from 100 Sony films and TV shows for viewing online and embedding in blogs and social networking sites such as MySpace and Facebook.

Through Grouper's ScreenBites channel, fans can watch famous scenes from movies including Cuba Gooding, Jr. screaming "Show me the money!" in "Jerry Maguire" and Robert De Niro's "You talkin' to me?" monologue in "Taxi Driver." A link below each scene allows viewers to click to purchase a DVD or digitally download the entire film.

By offering only Sony film and TV titles, Grouper also avoids the copyright issues that threaten to curb the free-for-all of online video. Last month, Universal Music Group sued Grouper and video site Bolt for allowing users to post UMG's copyrighted clips on their sites. The lawsuit seeks $150,000 for each piece of infringing content. Grouper President Josh Felser has said the suit is without merit.

Sony is betting the clips will encourage consumers to buy the entire film. "This is an innovative way to give fans a choice to watch great moments in entertainment and conveniently buy the DVD of the movie or television show that includes their favorite scene," said David Bishop, president of Sony Pictures Home Entertainment, in a prepared statement.

Other films and TV shows available on ScreenBites include "A Few Good Men," "Groundhog Day," "Men in Black," "Spiderman," "Good Times," and "The Three Stooges." More Sony titles are expected to follow the 100 that launched the new Grouper service.