Redbox Instant's streaming video service shuts down on October 7th
![](https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/_HSrulvrRDaNiYI9M6Kd6Q--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTk2MDtoPTU0MA--/https://s.yimg.com/uu/api/res/1.2/cEaCZwUuIsRcbk7oHWjdzw--~B/aD0zNDk7dz02MjA7YXBwaWQ9eXRhY2h5b24-/https://www.blogcdn.com/www.engadget.com/media/2013/06/redboxinstant-gtv.jpg)
If you thought that Redbox Instant would have trouble competing against a streaming video behemoth like Netflix, you were right. The Verizon-backed service is telling customers that Instant will shut down just before midnight on October 7th, roughly a year and a half after it got off the ground. Should you be a customer, you'll get a notice about any relevant refunds on October 10th. The closure isn't entirely surprising -- Outerwall (Redbox's parent company) wasn't happy with Instant's subscriber numbers, and a credit card fraud incident prevented it from taking new customers for three months. Still, this isn't good news if you liked Redbox's unique hybrid of online and kiosk-based rentals.
[Thanks, Mike]