Today more and more people are turning to the Internet for what used to be offline entertainment. Currently, more songs are sold online than albums bought in stores. Online gaming has soared into the forefront of the video game world and now even movie rentals have eeked their way online.
The two leaders of the online movie rental movement are Blockbuster and Netflix.
Netflix pioneered online movie rentals and at first decimated brick and mortar video giant Blockbuster. With no late fees for rentals, cheap rates and nearly unlimited assortment, Netflix seemed to be the new way people rented movies.
Netflix’s initial market gain was countered by Blockbuster’s “No Late Fee” campaign when the rental store chain noticed rentals beginning to dwindle. Soon after, Blockbuster launched “Blockbuster Total Access,” its answer to online rentals.
Blockbuster also had something Netflix didn’t – stores.
Blockbuster combined the best of online and store rentals. Pick your movies online, just like Netflix, and they’ll be shipped to you. Simply return them and more will be shipped. Only with Blockbuster, though, can you turn in your online rentals at a store and exchange them for movies from the store for free.
So, which is better?
First, using Netflix and choosing movies is fairly simple. Log in, pick your titles and they’re shipped to your address. The movies you pick are put on a list that you can organize. When you are finished watching a movie put it back in its pre-paid envelope and drop it in the mail. When its received back at Netflix the next title on your list is sent.
Netflix’s plans are fairly cheap for rentals. Prices range from one DVD at a time for $4.99 a month to four DVDs at a time for $23.99 a month unlimited. Also, Netflix has begun to offer movies online with the $4.99 a month plan you get five hours of online movie viewing, with the $23.99 plan you get 24 hours of online movies. Although, the online viewing selections are not as varied as the DVD selection, of which Netflix has 80,000 titles.
The downside to Netflix is the lag time between shipping your movie and getting the next one. Netflix claims that 90 percent of customers will receive their title within one business day of shipment. So, probably in real world time, figure about two to four days to wait for your movie.
Also, with the online movie viewing if your internet connection isn’t the greatest in the world it will take forever to watch a movie. I’ve not seen the quality of the video online, but who wants to sit at your computer desk or hold a laptop while watching a movie?
Blockbuster Online operates in pretty much the same way as Netflix. You simply sign up, log in, pick your movies and wait for them to come in. Blockbuster does not have any movies available online to view, but as soon as you sign up for the service you are given a printable coupon good for one free in store movie or game rental.
With Blockbuster instead of mailing your movies yourself you can drop them off at your local store and change your online movies out for in store movies, although, you have to be a Blockbuster store member to exchange movies. You can also trade online movies for discounted game rentals.
Another great feature of Blockbuster’s plan is if you trade in your selections at a store you’ll get your online movies faster. Because the store scans them they’re shown as “received” and Blockbuster online sends your next movies. This way you get your movies sooner without having to wait for your old ones to get back and new ones to be shipped.
Also, with some plans you get one of these a month.
Blockbuster plans are little pricier than Netflix. Plans range from $9.99 a month for one DVD at a time to $17.99 for the three DVD at a time option.
The downside to Blockbuster Online is price, but if you watch a lot of movies then it’s a definite bargain. If you exchange online movies for in-store there are late fees for the in store movies.
Both Netflix and Blockbuster are easy to use and both have great customer satisfaction ratings. They both have great selections too. Users of either service really can’t go wrong. Someone who is into both movies and video games may like Blockbuster for the ability to get discounted games at a store. Or if you don’t live near a Blockbuster, Netflix is an affordable alternative to driving to a store to rent.
Be sure to check them out, though. Renting movies has never been this easy.