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Netflix Will Delay Renting New WB Releases

DesertBlade tips the news that Netflix will delay renting new releases from Warner Brothers for 28 days, and adds "Luckily I am so far behind in my movie watching that I will probably never catch up anyway." "It's part of a strategy by several studios to create staggered releases of DVDs so that the most profitable transactions are available first and cheaper rental options take effect further down the road. The move could be copied by other studios, forcing consumers to wait nearly a month if they want to rent popular movies from Netflix. ... The studio is hoping that the four-week window will push consumers interested in watching movies at home to buy the DVDs or pay a premium to rent them from stores like Blockbuster or from Internet and cable video-on-demand services. Warner Bros. already imposes a 28-day window on $1-a-night kiosk firm Redbox."

4 of 418 comments (clear)

  1. Re:Something tells me BT sites won't do this by MWoody · · Score: 0, Troll

    Really? So you're saying pirates are patiently waiting for the DVD or Bluray to come out before watching films? How polite.

  2. Re:What a great idea! by DerekLyons · · Score: 0, Troll

    It's not like pirates need any excuse to pirate, they'll do so no matter what.

  3. Re:What a great idea! by bartwol · · Score: 0, Troll

    Artificial scarcity doesn't work. Period. If only they could learn this.

    The scarcity is not artificial. It's real. The studio, as the sole licensor of the content, can and does restrict supply. The scarcity is only artificial for people who practice piracy. For the rest of us, it's quite real, and for some of us, it's worth paying the additional premium for immediate gratification. The studios will only exploit this to the point that it *does* increase profit.

    The studios are simply exploiting a profit opportunity that you incorrectly dismiss out of hand.

  4. Re:What a great idea! by iris-n · · Score: 0, Troll

    The fact that people are taking you seriously just proves that the US is a country of uncivilised savages. These things would be unthinkable here in Brasil. I go to the movies weekly, the worst I've faced was a black guy with huge hair sitting in front of me.

    Of course, I don't go to films where there will be kids present.

    --
    entropy happens