wade moore
12-06-2006, 11:26 AM
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20061205-8360.html
Blockbuster gives free rentals to Netflix users
12/5/2006 3:14:03 PM, by Nate Anderson
Blockbuster has launched a new promotion to attract Netflix users to its DVDs-by-mail service: give them free in-store movies. Through December 21, Netflix users can bring in the address flaps off their mailers and exchange them for a free rental at any local Blockbuster store.
Blockbuster wants to get the word out about its Total Access program, which allows online subscribers to bring rentals they received in the mail to a local store and exchange them for free rentals. In addition, the next movie in the customer's queue is shipped immediately, rather than being delayed until the fulfillment center receives the first disk in the mail.
Blockbuster sees Total Access as a competitive advantage over Netflix, as it allows people to get immediate gratification when they want a different title. "Many movie rental decisions are made within a few hours of the actual viewing experience, and Blockbuster Total Access is the only online rental service that can respond spontaneous rental needs through a retail network as broad as the 5000 participating Blockbuster stores nationwide," said John Antioco, the company's CEO.
Blockbuster has been looking for something to do with its local stores as business has declined. The local stores were beginning to look like a liability, but Blockbuster hopes to convert them back into an asset by integrating them into the online rental program. Will it work?
Netflix owners in search of an evening movie over the holidays might be tempted to take advantage, but many of them already have "multiple movies out at once" plans and so have several choices lying around the house at any given time. People presumably sign up for services like Netflix because they aren't interested in driving to the video store, and it's not clear that this offer will change many minds. Still, the promotion indicates that Blockbuster is getting more aggressive with its movie-by-mail service, which should ultimately be good for customers of both services.
Blockbuster gives free rentals to Netflix users
12/5/2006 3:14:03 PM, by Nate Anderson
Blockbuster has launched a new promotion to attract Netflix users to its DVDs-by-mail service: give them free in-store movies. Through December 21, Netflix users can bring in the address flaps off their mailers and exchange them for a free rental at any local Blockbuster store.
Blockbuster wants to get the word out about its Total Access program, which allows online subscribers to bring rentals they received in the mail to a local store and exchange them for free rentals. In addition, the next movie in the customer's queue is shipped immediately, rather than being delayed until the fulfillment center receives the first disk in the mail.
Blockbuster sees Total Access as a competitive advantage over Netflix, as it allows people to get immediate gratification when they want a different title. "Many movie rental decisions are made within a few hours of the actual viewing experience, and Blockbuster Total Access is the only online rental service that can respond spontaneous rental needs through a retail network as broad as the 5000 participating Blockbuster stores nationwide," said John Antioco, the company's CEO.
Blockbuster has been looking for something to do with its local stores as business has declined. The local stores were beginning to look like a liability, but Blockbuster hopes to convert them back into an asset by integrating them into the online rental program. Will it work?
Netflix owners in search of an evening movie over the holidays might be tempted to take advantage, but many of them already have "multiple movies out at once" plans and so have several choices lying around the house at any given time. People presumably sign up for services like Netflix because they aren't interested in driving to the video store, and it's not clear that this offer will change many minds. Still, the promotion indicates that Blockbuster is getting more aggressive with its movie-by-mail service, which should ultimately be good for customers of both services.