Blockbuster

Oct 06 2012

News - Dish Backs Off Plans for Blockbuster vs. Netflix Brawl

By Matthew Miller

Many folks were left scratching their heads when Dish Network bought up the crumbled shell of Blockbuster. The once mighty movie rental chain had been felled in large part by Netflix's DVD-by-mail rental service, with Netflix's streaming service and Redbox's kiosk rental model swooping in for the final kill. Not that Blockbuster didn't try to fight back. It was in Blockbuster's own DVD-by-mail rental service, brand recognition, and retail footprint that Dish thought it saw an opportunity to turn Blockbuster into a Netflix-killer and enter a new market competing with the likes of Verizon and AT&T. The retail locations, once trimmed of unprofitable locations, would become the retail outlets for new Dish devices that would tap into special sections of Dish's satellite spectrum for an LTE service for data and video streaming. Alas, that plan is unlikely to pass FCC muster, so Dish is scaling back its plans for Blockbuster, at least in the short-term. These details do go a long way toward explaining the limited roll-out of the Dish-exclusive Blockbuster Movie Pass streaming service. Without FCC approval for Dish's new devices and spectrum usage, there wasn't much reason for announcing the big picture plans that would bring Blockbuster Movie Pass to everyone. There do not seem to be any immediate plans for changes in what Blockbuster is doing or the services it's offering right now, though the Dish-specific Blockbuster services are being rebranded to Blockbuster@Home. The most interesting details revolve around how Dish's approach to handling Blockbuster has left Dish confident that the company will, at worst, break even on the purchase. 

Blockbuster and Dish

Dish planned to entice consumers to buy its wireless services by streaming Blockbuster movies on mobile devices. Without the wireless network, a nationwide streaming service would function a lot like Netflix, except Blockbuster would be starting from scratch against a big incumbent, Ergen said. Netflix has 24 million U.S. streaming-video customers.

Bloomberg

Feb 23 2012

News - Blockbuster Streaming Service Reportedly Coming to Samsung Devices

By Matthew Miller

Blockbuster and Samsung

Blockbuster caused quite a stir last September when rumors started swirling that the company would soon be launching a streaming service ala Netflix, but the end result was a decidedly more tepid offering limited to Dish Network subscribers. This wasn't necessarily a huge surprise given that Dish Network spent a couple hundred million dollars buying up the former industry giant, but there was definitely some disappointment that Blockbuster and Dish did not give any indication that the service would be more widely available at some point. That may be about to change as Samsung and Blockbuster have reportedly signed a deal to bring the Blockbuster streaming service to Samsung devices this year. The US and Europe are expected to receive access in the first half of 2012 with Australia following before the end of the year. The most interesting tidbit is a rumor that Samsung is in the process of developing a billing system to accompany the service, suggesting that Samsung, not Blockbuster, will be signing up customers. If this is the case, it would position Blockbuster to act more as a distribution middle-man than a service provider, a move that might, in the long-term, incentivize device manufacturers to promote their own Blockbuster-backed, revenue-generating app/service over competitors such as Hulu or Netlfix. 

Samsung has reportedly signed a new deal with Blockbuster that will see the company deliver thousands of movies to the Korean electronics giant’s Galaxy smartphone and tablet range, Blu-ray players and new connected Smart TVs.

The Next Web

Jan 06 2012

News - Warner Brothers Looking to Extend DVD Rental Window to 56 Days

By Matthew Miller

Warner Brothers was the first studio to push Netflix, Redbox, and Blockbuster into agreements requiring a 28 day window on rentals from the date that DVDs go on sale. When Netflix, the first domino to fall, signed on, Netflix claimed that Warner Brothers would be providing better streaming options in return. How well this worked out is debatable, but there won't be any such justifications this time as Warner Brothers is not planning on offering anyone anything in exchange for signing on to a new agreement except a 56 day rental window. Warner Brothers and the other studios have argued that the rental window is necessary to protect DVD sales. Given that the 28 day window hasn't done much to improve DVD sales, one has to wonder how doubling the window is going to help. As it is, I expect most people who rent rather than buy have long since stopped paying attention to the retail release date altogether.

The move is part of Hollywood’s ongoing campaign to bolster flagging DVD sales, and sources tell me the new deal is supposed to be announced at next week’s Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. Warner Brothers executives have already talked publicly about extending the current window.

AllThingsD

Oct 27 2011

News - Warner Bros. Takes 28 Day Banhammer to Blockbuster

By Matthew Miller

About two years ago, Warner Bros. decided that declining DVD sales were the result of ubiquitous, inexpensive rentals and pushed Redbox into a 28 day delay on new movie rentals. Netflix came next, then Blockbuster Express. Blockbuster had managed avoid a similar agreement, presumably because the company's bankruptcy proceedings had made the company too weak to push into signing on. Well, congrats to Dish Network on turning Blockbuster's fortunes around. I honestly don't understand how the 28 day delay is supposed to improve DVD sales. If I was waiting to rent the DVD instead of going to the theater, am I really going to care about an extra couple of weeks when my queue is already full of movies and TV shows. Has the 28 day delay prompted you to buy more movies?

While Blockbuster has had delays at its kiosks already, being first to get new flicks in stores has been a part of its marketing for a while. The LA Times reports Blockbuster so far is turning to simply buying the copies it needs at retail to rent them out immediately, but we'll see how long that lasts. 

Engadget

Sep 23 2011

News - Dish Reveals Some of its Blockbuster Plan

By Aaron Ledger

We've all been wondering what Dish Network's plans were for Blockbuster ever since the acquisition earlier this year. Just a few minutes ago, details were unveiled for the Blockbuster Movie Pass subscription which will include DVD, Blu-ray, Games, in-store exchanges and on-demand streaming for $10 a month. The catch is that this plan is only available to Dish subscribers, some of whom will also receive the service free for one year with certain packages. The company asks non-Dish subscribers to "stay tuned."

With Blockbuster's major competitor, Netflix, losing a bit of its lustre recently, Dish Network's reveal certainly seems timely. While the impact will likely be limited so long as the Blockbuster service offering is only available to Dish subscribers, the service could possibly offer a compelling value to non-Dish subscribers if it becomes more widely available. Presumably, subscribing to Dish offers a subsidized pricing scheme and the Blockbuster Movie Pass subscription will either cost more or have fewer features for non-Dish subscribers. For all you Netflix and Qwickster subscribers, is the Blockbuster Movie Pass intriguing you?

At its "a stream come true" event today, Dish Network finally revealed its plans for a subscription video service called Blockbuster Movie Pass. That includes access to discs (movies and games) by mail, streaming video to the TV and PC and linear TV service from Dish, all in one package. Check back for more information "the most comprehensive entertainment package ever" as it becomes available or just peep the live video stream of the announcement embedded after the break.

Engadget HD

Sep 02 2011

News - Dish Network Planning It's Next Blockbuster Move

By Matthew Miller

File this one firmly in the rumor category for now, but with a strong dash of it's only a matter of time. Evidently Dish Network is preparing to unveil a Netflix-style streaming service under the Blockbuster brand.

Dish bought up Blockbuster's assets earlier this year. At the time, I was skeptical about Dish being able to do anything with the Blockbuster brand, and the jury is definitely still out on the financial success of the purchase, but Dish has not let the Blockbuster assets languish. Dish has been changing the layout of the stores to add Dish Network salespeople and demos, pushing hard with the Blockbuster mail-order service to capitalize on the Netflix price increases, and the Blockbuster Blog has dropped some not-too-subtle hints that some sort of streaming service was in the works.

Now rumor has it that Blockbuster's streaming service will be formally announced next month, and to add insult to injury for Netflix, with Starz in tow. Question is, can Dish get the pricing right and get the device adoption that has helped turn Netflix into such a juggernaut?

The new service may also include on-demand Blockbuster movies that Dish satellite customers can watch on television sets, the person said. Blockbuster may offer the streaming service in conjunction with its mail-order and in-store DVD rentals.

 Bloomberg

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