Redbox Instant streaming plan takes on Netflix

[Omaha Steve]

Source: AP-Excite

By RYAN NAKASHIMA

LOS ANGELES (AP) - DVD kiosk operator Redbox is launching a challenge to Netflix's streaming-video supremacy.

Later this month, Redbox will offer an unlimited streaming-video plan that includes movies from Warner Bros. and pay TV channel Epix, along with four nights of physical DVD rentals, for $8 a month, or $9 a month if customers want Blu-ray discs.

The offering is a direct attack on Netflix Inc. and is priced even lower than the $10-a-month DVD and streaming plan that Netflix abandoned a year ago. The lowest price plan from Netflix that combines DVDs-by-mail and streaming is now $16 a month.

The new service, called Redbox Instant by Verizon, is "targeted squarely at movie lovers," said Shawn Strickland, the chief executive of the joint venture between Redbox parent Coinstar Inc., which is based in Bellevue, Wash., and New York-based Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ)

FULL story at link.


Read more: http://apnews.excite.com/article/20121212/DA34104G0.html

[yends21012]

1. Capitalism at its finest

Assuming there isn't anything hidden underneath that undermines citizens or workers, this is what capitalism is supposed to do, pit business against business to obtain consumer spending and loyalty. Ultimately the consumer wins and the business with the best model survives and hopefully thrives.

"Capitalism", as it is practiced today seems to pit business against consumers and citizenry. In this situation nobody wins, except crooks which are usually heading up the businesses.

[CBGLuthier]

2. apple and orange comparision

There will never be as many discs in those boxes as Netflix has in their warehouses. I look for deep catalog, not the latest hits.

That said, it might be a decent supplement to Netflix but never a full replacement.

[Thor_MN]

7. Netflix streaming only does not have what I consider, a deep catalog.

And their search is annoying. I'll think of a movie and be not sure of the title. If they don't have it, it doesn't exist, no hint that it ever was made. I'd rather get a result that shows that my memory isn't faulty, but they don't have that movie. Doing that would also provide them with marketing information for older movies that people want to see.

[PatrynXX]

12. Netflix is confused mostly.

They seem to think they are competing with the physical disk. They really aren't. Not at the poor quality streams.

They are more or less competing with Cable. Course if they are competing with cable they they have some legal issues so they can't exactly say that. ie everyone rev up their Roku's and cancel cable. Even running HD DVD on spare parts thru the laptop gets better quality.

[CBGLuthier]

14. There are flaws, for sure.

Netflix is better for tv shows, amazon for older films and good prints, and Hulu plus for current stuff (The Daily Show mainly) and the Criterion collection. It all adds up to a hefty 20 bucks or so a month plus another 16 for two Blu ray at a time Netflix and it is still one fourth what cable cost.


Netflix may have interface issues but their interface beats Amazons by a mile. Hulu's has gotten interesting and more functional. Amazon sucks for discovering movies. Absolutely sucks.

I do look forward to Redbox's service and may give it a try. I might be able to come up with 4 movies a month from their boxes but it would probably be hard. I watch a lot of movies but most of them either were not made this century or in this country which decreases the chance they will be in any of the red boxes near my house. So it mainly depends upon their online offerings and how unique it is.

[ejpoeta]

3. we mostly have it for the kids who love to watch cartoons and mythbusters

and i like tv series. so not sure if redbox can compete with that. The problem I always have with redbox is that I never seem to get the movie back to the kiosk before it costs me another day rental. The thing is also that I get bored. So I will have the dvd part of netflix for a couple months and then drop it for awhile because I can't find anything else to rent. and they will keep my queue intact. It's easy. you just put the dvds in the mailbox and they go back.

[customerserviceguy]

4. Now if Verizon

would just get FIOS to my place, this would work. Right now, the best they can do for me is the lowest speed DSL, and it's tough to watch a whole news clip without interuption through my Roku box. And the cable company here is a joke, I cut them off a couple of months ago, going purely to antenna for my TV.

[sellitman]

5. When Netflix stops spamming me with pop unders etc. I will join.

Until then I look at them as nothing but annoying Spam. I hope these guys don't do the same.

[wyldwolf]

6. I'll check it out if it streams to Roku and Wii

[Atypical Liberal]

8. I hope they have a better library than Netflix.

The problem is, the content owners no longer want to play ball with these guys.

I'd bet that 80% of the time when I search for a movie on Netflix it is not available streaming.

Last night I had a hankering to watch Pirates of the Caribbean. Nope.

Unless Redbox is able to get content, they will be as weak as Netflix. It seems the content owners would rather force people to buy HBO and the like. We don't have cable, let alone HBO.

[PatrynXX]

13. well

they do have Epix HD which is a bit more on movies but that site is a bit buggy...

[Javaman]

9. good luck with that redbox

why the eye roll?

here's why...

Netflix: The Biggest Hog at the Bandwidth Trough
http://gamepolitics.com/2011/05/17/netflix-biggest-hog-bandwidth-trough

According to independent research from Sandvine Incorporated, Netflix represents nearly 30 percent of all internet downstream traffic in the United States and almost 25 percent of broadband traffic overall. Almost 20 percent of that internet traffic occurs during peak hours. Most of the Netflix downstream traffic comes from console devices such as the PS3, Xbox 360, and Wii, according to the research.

Netflix users watching media content on various console systems consumed 2.5 GB of bandwidth per day. Of the three consoles, the PS3 was used the most, with nearly 31 percent, followed closely by the Xbox 360 at nearly 25 percent, Windows PCs at almost 20 percent and the Wii at almost 11 percent.

Overall downstream percentages, according to Sandvine:

1.Netflix - 29.70 percent
2.HTTP - 18.36 percent
3.YouTube - 11.04 percent
4.BitTorrent - 10.37 percent
5.Flash video - 4.88 percent

With more and more users consuming media from places such as Hulu, Crackle, Netflix, various streaming music services, and even HBO online, cable companies face a serious problem. Not with bandwidth, but how they plan to treat customers that they consider "bandwidth hogs." If they decide to start capping users, we could see a full-scale consumer revolt. You know, the kind of uprising that usually has to be resolved in the courts or before lawmakers..

----------------------------------------------------

good luck redbox, you're going to need it.

[Orrex]

10. I for one am glad to learn of this development

NetFlix streaming has held a monopoly on streaming shit-grade Syfy original movies for far too long. It's well past time that the consumer had a second option for viewing ancient, unwatchable movies in the comfort of the home.

Bravo, RedBox! Bravo!

[AllyCat]

11. I would so do this. The Redboxes in our town are a joke

No selection. Nothing old. We rarely use them. But if they would offer more streaming content, it would be worth paying for.

We use VUDU sometimes now, but a rental is kinda pricey. Unless we really want to see it, we don't use it much.

[Blue Hen Buckeye]

15. Will you be able to see it with ROKU ?