The company that runs Blockbuster Express kiosks is testing whether people will pay more to rent DVDs and Blu-ray discs of new movies 28 days before they are available from other vending machines. Get the full story »
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Fox wins delay on rentals at Blockbuster kiosks
NCR Corp., which operates Blockbuster Express DVD rental kiosks, has agreed to delay rentals of 20th Century Fox DVDs until 28 days after their release, in its second such deal with a studio.
NCR’s competitors, Coinstar Inc-owned kiosk company Redbox, and Netflix, have also agreed to 28-day delays from several studios.
But NCR said its agreement with News Corp.’s movie studio also allows the kiosk operator to test premium-pricing in select markets for renting out Fox DVDs the same day those titles hit stores. Get the full story »
Redbox adding video games in Chicago
(AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)
Oakbrook Terrace-based Redbox is adding video games to its $1 a night DVD-rental kiosks in Chicago this month as part of an expanded video game test pilot.
Kiosks will be stocked with games for Wii, Playstation and Xbox 360, the company said, in select markets in the West, Midwest and Atlantic coast regions and are available for $2 per night.
Get the full story »
Blockbuster files Chapter 11 bankruptcy
Blockbuster's existing stores will remain open. (AP)
Blockbuster Inc. announced early Thursday that the company and its U.S. subsidiaries have filed voluntary Chapter 11 petitions with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York, hurt by major shifts in the way consumers view movies and media. Get the full story »
Netflix launches streaming video in Canada
Netflix launched an online video-streaming service in Canada for films and television Wednesday, its first foray outside the United States and a direct threat to established cable companies. Get the full story »
Blockbuster nears awaited bankruptcy
Blockbuster Inc. is in the final stages of preparing a long-awaited bankruptcy filing, marking a milestone in consumers’ shift away from brick-and-mortar video stores to films delivered by mail and the Internet.
Blockbuster, struggling amid more than $900 million in debt, could file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the next few days, said people familiar with the matter. The filing could come as soon as Wednesday, they said, and is likely to come by Friday or sometime next week. Get the full story »
Redbox signs convenience store deal
Redbox is hoping more people will grab a movie at the convenience store, along with that lottery ticket.
The dollar-a-night movie rental kiosks are expanding into EZ Mart Stores, Inc., Fastrac Markets, Murphy Express and VPS Convenience Store Group, thanks to a deal signed this week that will add locations in the Northeast, Southeast and Midwest. Get the full story »
Redbox rents 1 billionth movie
Fast-growing DVD rental provider Redbox said it reached a milestone this weekend with the rental of its 1 billionth movie — “Clash of the Titans,” at a kiosk in Tampa, Fla.
The rental milestone occurred six years after the first kiosk appeared in Denver. Get the full story »
Blockbuster preparing to file bankruptcy
A customer looks at films at a Blockbuster Video store in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Kevork Djansezian)
After dominating the home video rental business for more than a decade and struggling to survive in recent years against upstarts Netflix and Redbox, Blockbuster Inc. is preparing to file for bankruptcy next month, according to people who have been briefed on the matter.
Executives from Blockbuster and its senior debt holders last week held meetings with the six major movie studios to discuss their intention to enter a “pre-planned” bankruptcy in mid-September, said several people familiar with the situation who requested anonymity due to the sensitivity of ongoing talks. Get the full story »
Redbox strikes deal with CVS
(AP Photo/Elaine Thompson)
Oakbrook Terrace-based Redbox announced Thursday that it has reached a deal with CVS/pharmacy to roll out DVD rental kiosks at CVS and Longs Drugs locations nationwide and in Puerto Rico.
The $1-per-night DVD vendor, a subsidiary of Coinstar Inc., said about 700 kiosks will arrive at CVS locations by the end of 2010, and expand to thousands of locations by the end of 2011. Get the full story »
Redbox pondering online rentals
Mitch Lowe, president of Red Box, in Oakbrook Terrace. (Chuck Berman/Chicago Tribune)
From Bloomberg News | Oak Brook-based Redbox Redbox, known for $1-a-day DVD rental vending machines, may launch a Web based service to offer more movies beyond the 200 stored in its dispensers, President Mitch Lowe said. Get the full story >>
Blockbuster delisted but dodges bankruptcy
Blockbuster Inc stayed a step ahead of bankruptcy after winning a crucial one-month reprieve on debt payments, but was forced to begin the process of delisting from the New York stock exchange. Get the full story »
