Blockbuster getting out of the online DVD rental game?

Is Blockbuster getting ready to ditch out of the online DVD rental business? Hard as it is to imagine them simply abdicating the market to Netflix and Wal-Mart (and whoever else might be jumping in soon), there actually has been some talk about this lately, most of it inspired by the news that Blockbuster shareholder/Billionaire corporate raider Carl Icahn has been riding CEO John Antico for spending too much time and money on online DVD rentals at the expense of the chain's regular rental business (Icahn actually attempted to oust Antico during a shareholder meeting on Wednesday). Too bad they should be focusing their energies on the real online movie rental business, i.e. selling digital downloads and video-on-demand. It might take a few more years, but sooner or later the idea of delivering a movie through the mail is going to seem positively archaic.

[Via TechDirt]

[zainali @ Dec 19th 2005 12:14AM]

his name is "Antioco".
"The new board of Blockbuster Inc., including billionaire financier Carl Icahn, added a seat Friday for CEO John F. Antioco and restored him to the chairmanship that he lost in a shareholder vote this week."

http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/050513/blockbuster_ceo.html?.v=2

does'nt seem like the online business or antioco are going anywhere

[Jeff @ Dec 19th 2005 12:14AM]

"It might take a few more years, but sooner or later the idea of delivering a movie through the mail is going to seem positively archaic."

Except for all that DRM they're going to be ladeling on top of those digital downloads. You'll take away my DVD's by mail when you pry them out of my cold, dead hands. I can do whatever I want with my DVD rentals - I can watch them on my TV, on my desktop, I can take them with me on my laptop, they never expire, and I *can* rip them to my PC if I want (though I generally don't because I know I can just rent them again if I ever want them). None of this will be possible with downloaded movies.

Go take a look at Movielink and then tell me DVD's by mail is or ever will be archaic. Because you know it's only going to get worse from here, not better.

[Urban @ Dec 19th 2005 12:14AM]

bt :P

[bazald @ Dec 19th 2005 12:14AM]

Jeff - I disagree with all your complaints.
Your soon-to-be-mandatory media center will be able to play anything your computer will be able to play.
Why wouldn't you be able to take the movies with you on your laptop?
I'm sure they could find a way to give you DRM that doesn't expire (provided you have no more than X movies in your possession or whatever arbitrary restriction they come up with).
And lastly (and most importantly) no DRM that actually lets you access the content is ever truly foolproof.

*My* biggest concern would be the quality of the downloadable movies. Essentially all music download services that I know of offer only music that has been encoded using lossy codecs.

[Brian @ Dec 19th 2005 12:14AM]

My friends ripped about fifty movies using this Blockbuster's service. But it's the industry's fault for fining and arresting people, trying to scare the masses into giving them more money, and believing that the corporation is working to give the consumer the best price they can. When Internet2 rolls out, the DISK itself will become obsolete for these sorts of purposes. Why /leave your home/ to buy media when you have a 5+ Terabyte hard drive and nearly infinite broadband to download said media with? As for DRM, I suppose technology will need to be developed that allows a file to be sent and used univerally, but in no way copied. If someone wants to crack this, then fine, because a small percentage of a very specific group take advantage of cracks of that nature anyway. Besides, does anyone really want to deprive seedy curbside vendors of selling movie bootlegs before the films even get to theatre?

[Z @ Dec 19th 2005 12:14AM]

We were with Netflix, and then switched to Blockbuster to try them out, and then went back to Netflix.

The vast majority of movies that Blockbuster offers online has a wait time of two weeks or more, which is stupid. With Netflix, every movie they offer is available immediately. Big difference.

If Blockbuster gets out of the online movie rental business, it won't be a surprise - they're losing a lot of business (people leaving for Netflix, switching back to Netflix, or avoiding BB to begin with due to negative word of mouth) because they stink as it is due to the fact that once again, they have so few copies of movies in stock that it takes weeks to receive them. If they do throw in the towel, they'll do it knowing that they never got their act together in the first place. Pathetic.

If what Engadget is saying about Icahn is true, then what he should be doing is spending less time with his head up his butt and more time supporting his people in getting BB's online rental business in order, which is where the money is and will continue to be before downloadable movies become the norm.

The problem with these dinosaurs like Icahn, is that they can't see the future. Their vision only takes them so far and then they go blind. Brick and mortars are a joke.

[Zanfir @ Dec 19th 2005 12:14AM]

You keep forgetting about the majority of people that don't even have Internet access.

It's been a while since I've been to Blockbuster to rent a movie. As I recall, the wall full of New Releases are usually gone. I think the B&M stores are doing just fine at 4-5 bucks a pop.

[Captain Kirk @ Dec 19th 2005 12:14AM]

Why don't Blockbuster get out of the whole rental business or at least employ some roaches instead of high school drop outs. I bet the service would improve...green light means smile, red lights means frown...see simple.

[Z @ Dec 19th 2005 12:14AM]

Yes, I'm aware not everyone has internet access. And not everyone has a membership to Blockbuster either.

The point is, for those that do have internet access, online rentals are the only way to go. This is evident by the success of Netflix and the fact that other companies have entered the market. Online rentals are valuable to millions of people.

You say the new rentals in your local store are gone... well it isn't hard to rid the wall of those copies - they don't have many to begin with... just like their online service.

[Robert @ Dec 19th 2005 12:14AM]

Personally, I prefer the online model. Hoofing it down to my local Blockbuster store is a pain in the butt. I use NetFlix. However, I really wish NetFlix sold movies as well as rented them. I would love to log in and say: "Hey, I liked that movie so much I�d like to buy the DVD." NetFlix has been around for almost eight years now. Given how many DVDs are bought each year in this country, it shocks me NetFlix doesn�t offer this service. Oh well. Maybe Wal-Mart will. Lord knows they�ve got the infrastructure in place to do it.

[Tiffani @ Dec 19th 2005 12:14AM]

I would like to know what happens to the "previously viewed" copies for Netflix. 90% of my DVD library comes from Hollywood Video's Pre-View sales. One year guarantee tracked by membership and usually less than 10 bucks sometimes as low as 5 each.