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"We think (this) is a go...
"We think (this) is a good way to address one of the last rental barriers out there," Raskopf added.
Blockbuster is testing the waters of new rental models at a time when momentum for change in movie distribution and consumption is accelerating. With the advent of the Internet, digital formats and a greater push for video-on-demand service, consumers have more choices than ever to view films and programming.
The Internet, for example, helped spawn the simplicity and service of Netflix, a 4-year-old company that became popular as DVD home rentals took off.
For most subscribers, Netflix sends off three DVD movies at a time in thinly packaged envelopes with a postage-paid return sleeve inside. For big-time movie buffs, Netflix charges higher rates for more films. Netflix picks up the postage costs.
The company's subscribers total 670,000, according to a recent filing, and it expects to have more than 800,000 by the end of the year. Though that's just a drop in the bucket for Blockbuster, whose U.S. customers total about 96 million, the threat of Netflix's DVD service and other new, inventive models, which often capture the most lucrative segment of customers, is too dangerous to ignore.
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