Ladies and gentlemen, it looks like the mysterious Project Zoetrope will soon be seeing the light of day. Verizon and Redbox owner Coinstar have just taken to the wires today to announce their new joint venture in video entertainment, with their subscription services poised to launch in the second half of this year.
Details are still light at the moment (though a 9:30 AM conference call should shed some light on things) but the new service certainly has Netflix in its sights. → Read More
Yesterday, it was reported that Verizon was planning a Netflix competitor and in talks with various content producers to provide the streams and downloads. TechCrunch has obtained additional information on this story that makes the concept a bit more realistic and should alleviate some of the concerns noted by critics and consumers yesterday.
Our source says that Verizon is in fact planning a major partnership with RedBox, whose fast-growing business of $1 (now $1.20) DVD-rental kiosks has made it a major player in the content distribution game. They aim to debut a TV and movie streaming and download service this coming May. → Read More
This will not end well. Redbox, in position to be the cheap, local, easy alternative to the confusing, troublesome Netflix, has decided to raise its rates to $1.20 per day. I guess they wanted a piece of Netflix’s humble pie.
Coinstar, the company that owns the Redbox brand and boxes, explained it this way: “The change is primarily due to the increase in operating expenses, including the recent increase in debit card interchange fees as a result of the Durbin Amendment.” And naturally, that cost should be passed right back onto their loyal customers. → Read More
Redbox already took down chain DVD rental outlets, and now Coinstar is expanding the popular DVD rental brand to the web with a movie streaming service. Netflix killer? Not likely, but the upcoming Redbox media service is reportedly with another company. Amazon is the popular choice, which will no doubt help boaster both content and credibility rather than going at it alone. That’s actually true for both companies as it’s been rumored for a while that Amazon had a movie streaming service in the works as well.
The company’s CEO stated that the service would do be subscription-based rather pay-to-play like its DVD rental business. No doubt the pricing would be competitive with Netflix, but the key would be the content available and supported platforms. → Read More
It’s come to this: the success of Netflix and Redbox in the United States have driven Blockbuster, as expected, to file for bankruptcy protection after failing to adequately and swiftly adapt its movie-rental model from physical storefronts to mail-order and online technology pioneered by its aforementioned competitors.
The company filed a voluntary Chapter 11 petition today in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in New York, listing assets of $1.02 billion and debt of $1.46 billion. The company’s largest trade creditor is Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment with a $21.6 million claim, according to today’s filing.
The news, first reported by Bloomberg, comes almost 25 years after Blockbuster opened its first store (Dallas, Texas on October 26, 1985). → Read More
Can someone please explain this Bloomberg Businessweek story to me? I’ve read it a few times and am still having a hard time understanding what is or what isn’t being implied, or not implied, about a partnership between Coinstar and Apple.
First of all, the title is awful because most people likely don’t know that Coinstar owns Redbox (they acquired them last year), the DVD rental kiosk company. Instead, most people know Coinstar as those machines in supermarkets where you turn in your loose change for cash or silly things, like Facebook Credits. So why on Earth would they be partnering with Apple on some online venture?
Well, again, it’s about Redbox, as they sort of note in the first paragraph. But what are they going to do with Apple? → Read More
Wait a second, what’s this? I must not be reading this correctly. An executive for a major Hollywood studio is actually making sense and speaking logically when talking about DVD rental windows and the web? This is a joke, right? A bargaining tactic?
If I’m correctly reading what Paramount Home Entertainment President Dennis Maguire told the LA Times, I don’t think so.
After rival studios Warner Bros., Universal Pictures, and 20th Century Fox all signed deals with both Netflix and Redbox to put a 28-day window on new DVD releases before they could be available for rent, Paramount is going the other way. They have signed a deal with Redbox to make the films available to rent same day they come out for purchase — you know, the way things have always been done. Why is Paramount taking such an old school stance? Because they actually did some tests and realized these stupid windows will do nothing to help them sell more DVDs. Imagine that. → Read More
When’s the last time you were at a Blockbuster?
For me, it’s been a few years. And it’s been several years since I was going regularly. And I was only doing that because the then-Viacom-backed-giant drove the mom and pop video stores out of business in my community. I have no desire to ever step into a Blockbuster store ever again. But Warner Bros. sure wants me to.
Today, Blockbuster announced it has reached a deal with Warner Bros. to ensure the studio’s new titles would be available in Blockbuster stores and by mail the day they are released on DVD. This is significant because Warner recently negotiated deals with Blockbuster rivals Netflix and Redbox to give them such access only after the movies have been available to purchase on DVD for 28 days. In other words, Warner just screwed Netflix and Redbox. → Read More
Warner Bros. has agreed a new deal with Redbox that will give Redbox access to its DVDs, but only 28 days after the retail release. The move is designed to encourage people to actually buy the shiny, new DVDs when they come out. Why is that a problem? → Read More
As some of you know, I’ve been bitching up a storm about Netflix’s decision to give in to Warner Bros. demand that they not rent new release DVDs until after a 28-day window has expired. Today, Redbox, has announced they’ll do the exact same thing. Simply put, this is another blow to consumers and a big potential win for piracy.
Naturally, Warner is playing this up as a win for everybody. With this 28-day window, Warner now has the opportunity to try to sell more DVDs, while at the same time offering more video-on-demand options. Meanwhile Redbox ensures that it will be able to keep offering Warner content and be granted more access to it. In exchange, Redbox simply has to agree not to rent Warner movies until 28 days after they’re released — oh, and drop that pesky lawsuit again Warner for trying to prevent them access to their movies. Hugs all around, right? Wrong. → Read More
Proving once again you can find a study to prove almost anything, a report came out today showing that Redbox will bring down the movie industry by continuing with their $1 a night business model. Sounds like some sour grapes to me. → Read More
Do you have any idea how effen cool it will be if Redbox kiosks start spitting out video games? Think about this: you would be able to get your beer, Funyuns, and rent the latest gaming titles at one location. The future is near, friends and Redbox is still pursuing the game rental market.
Actually, Redbox is experiencing some technical difficulties. You see, Warner Bros, Twentieth Century Fox, and NBC Universal have cut off access to their collective libraries because they do not get any revenue from the rental kiosks. Plus, Redbox is stating that 20th Century Fox and Warner Home Video are somehow stopping the company from purchasing movies at retail from Target and Wal-Mart.
Welcome to the jungle, Redbox. The movie industry makes it worse here everyday. → Read More
Look out, NYC. Blockbuster is getting ready to roll out 200 Blockbuster Express DVD rental kiosks in New York City. Why you ask? Well, according to the WSJ report, NYC is a Redbox weak spot with only three kiosks in the entire city while there are more than 20,000 nationwide. But just like the original DVD rental kiosk, Redbox, Blockbuster Express offers first run movies (which the movie studio’s don’t get any rental revenue from) for only $1. → Read More
Back in August, we wrote about the Hollywood movie studios conspiring to keep new release DVDs away from services like Netflix and Redbox for as many as 30 days after their release. The idea behind this from Hollywood’s perspective is simple: If people can’t rent movies right away, they’ll buy more. Sorry, did I say the idea was “simple”? I meant, “idiotic”.
At the time, it was reported that Blockbuster, the former video giant that is aging anything but gracefully, was also backing this 30-day window idea (where it might see a 30-day rental exclusive on some titles). With the company bleeding money, it shouldn’t be surprising that they’re aligning themselves with the studios. But more recently, there has been some very disheartening news: Netflix seems to be willing to back this idea too. Yes, the poster child for much of what is right about the consumer movie business these days may be on the verge of making a deal with the devil. → Read More
Movie piracy is a problem, but it’s not as huge of a problem as music piracy was this past decade. While certainly the size of the movie files and the need for fast broadband connections to get them in a reasonable amount of time plays into it somewhat, also helping is the fact that there are some fairly decent ways to get movies quickly, for a pretty fair price these days. And now Hollywood is apparently trying to change that.
The studios are starting to rally around a horrible new idea: Keeping new releases out of Redbox and more importantly, Netflix for 30 days. Let me repeat that: They think Netflix shouldn’t be able to ship many new movies to you until 30 days after they’re released on DVD. → Read More
Redbox, the wonderful dollar-a-day DVD rental kiosk company, is currently owned by a number of parties, including Coinstar and GetAMovie, a subsidiary of McDonalds. Coinstar, Redbox’s majority owner, announced last week that they’ll be buying up the remaining shares. No price changes are planned for normal DVDs. Although we previously reported that Redbox would rent Blu-Ray discs for $1, indications now are that Blu-Ray rentals will cost a little more. → Read More
