Redbox vs Redsleeve
A while back, I put up a post on Redbox, that oh-so-easy-but-inexpensive dvd rental kiosk that can be found at the local Albertsons. In the post, I commented on an article from Newteevee which reported that Netflix’s No.1 competitor would be the redbox dvd kiosks.
I laughed. Who would use redbox? The latest films available for only a buck a-piece? Here’s what I said:
As for the kiosks themselves, they sure have great profit potential. I’m not sure what their margins or start-up costs are, but I don’t see why they wouldn’t bring in a good return. As for the kiosks actually beating Netflix? Not a chance.
I was wrong. These guys will not only destroy what is left of brick-and-mortar dvd rentals, but will probably make Netflix move those discs out a little faster. What brought about this sudden epiphany? A long line of people standing in front of a Redbox kiosk … I was last in line. Let’s face it, when it comes to impulse buys and on-the-fly rentals, Netflix can’t hold a candle to Redbox, especially with new releases.
According to a recent article in the Chicago Tribune (which, unfortunately is no longer available, but can be found Google-cached :::sigh:::), Redbox has around 15,400 kiosks. That’s a lot of coverage. The article also mentioned that Blockbuster plans to roll-out 10,000 of its own kiosks by 2010. A little late to the game?
Some might say Netflix’s free “watch instantly” streaming-video is more than a match for redbox’s grab n’ go rental service, but when I wanted to watch Taken, Netflix lost.
Both services are phenomenal entertainment deals. Thousands of movies and 1-at-a-time unlimited DVDs still puts Netflix in the lead for me, but by no means is this battle of disc-rentals been settled. Maybe there will be a place for both to exist. Netflix certainly does a marvelous job serving up television box-sets for rent. One thing is for sure: these two services will probably deliver the finishing-move to Blockbuster. Fatality, flawless victory.
