Weinsteins Say No to Netflix
Submitted by jim on Mon, 11/20/2006 - 10:13
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For the next four years the only place you'll be able to rent movies produced by The Weinstein Co. is Blockbuster. Bastards. Guess I won't be catching Bobby, The Nanny Diaries any new Tarantino movies any time soon (it's silly to say "new Tarantino movie" and "soon" in the same sentence anyway). Check the list of affected movies. Looks like it screws with movies they distribute in addition to those they produce, based on the inclusion of Bobby in the hstory.
You know, now that they've started their Total Access program, Blockbuster isn't all that bad anymore...
*huddles in corner, waiting to be stoned*
But to take advantage, I would have to leave my house. Pffffttt!
*Polishes rock...*
Actually, I saw a coupon for that, and it did sound pretty nice. The ability to get movies in the mail like Netflix, but to also be able to exchange any given movie in your local store if you don't feel like suffering the postal latency is very cool. If they pull it off, the mail/store hybrid model is killer. I think Netflix still has 'em on selection (although I'm not sure of that) and for me, at least, they've instilled some brand loyalty. That, and I'm so busy these days, and my local Blockbuster isn't on my way, that I wouldn't take advantage of the in-store option. But I bet other folks look at the matchup on paper and opt for Blockbuster. I'd be curious to hear if Total Access works as advertised.
Blockbuster's and Netflix's selection are virtually identical nowadays, which surprised me, since I checked out the Blockbuster site around the same time that I joined up with Netflix, and Netflix killed them entirely on that front at the time.
I actually dropped Netflix for Blockbuster's Total Access program; so far, I've been swamped with movies, and on non-busy days, this is a very good thing. Blockbuster ships their movies timely and efficiently, which I heard is the exact opposite of how they did things when they first started their online service.
The only complaint I'm having is that their definition of "Available" when it comes to movies in your queue is a bit half-assed; I have the first two seasons of Battlestar Galactica both at the top of my queue...and today I got an e-mail saying that discs 2 and 3 of season 2 have just been shipped.
That pisses me off, but that's the only time I've been frustrated with the service.
It surprises me that neither service has figured out that they shouldn't ship TV series discs out of order. "Oh sure, I'll watch disc 3 of Lost instead of 2 if that's what you happen to have on hand at the moment." Sheesh.
You'd better make sure to see My Blueberry Nights in the theatres.
Sigh. Bastards, I tell you!
If it truly turns out that the only place you'll be able to rent a Weinstein Co film then I think both Blockbuster and the Brothers Weinstein are in for a rude surprise. Surprise on the part of Blockbuster that they'll probably end up paying for this exclusivity but not see any noticeable increase in business. And surprise on the part the Brothers Weinstein because no one is watching their movies in the rental market because everyone hates Blockbuster so much.
That being said I bet you'll still be able to rent these movies at other places besides Blockbuster. They may keep Netflix out but just as the library can buy the movies and rent them so can any other video store.
I also don't know how exactly these exclusivity deals work but I don't see how Netflix couldn't buy a bunch of copies of each DVD and rent them anyway. Would that be illegal?
I'm not sure, but I don't think rental places buy regular consumer editions. They are technically the same, of course, but they pay extra for the right to rent. I've very not sure, though. Just a vague hunch, which is next-to-worthless. So I think (if I'm right), if a video store wanted to buy their stock through legit channels, they'd be out of luck. Very hard to police though.
Well, I used to work at a video store (15 years ago). And a Mom and Pop video store at that so this may not apply to the Blockbuster's and Netflix's of the world.
But we used to buy all of our movies (on VHS) from a regular video distributor. And we actually paid a little less, not more, for movies to put on our shelves to rent. For example a VHS movie that was $14.99 retail we might get for $12.49 or something like that. But new releases of almost every new film (unless they were priced to sell) were jacked up to $59.95-$89.95 and we would pay a price slightly reduced from that as well.
I also distinctly remember putting movies for rent on the shelf that we didn't get through our distributor, i.e. bought from the local retail outlet. But that could've been "illegal".
I think the whole rental aftermarket has changed however because now everything is priced to sell, i.e. $19.99 or less.
I can't imagine it would be cost-effective for anyone to buy the movies for rental at retail.
Your local library might be a good alternative place to get them :) Since libraries just buy them and then loan out I doubt they'll be affected by this.
Good call, thanks! Although I'm still resentful. Those guys have pissed me off enough over the years I'd consider a boycott if it weren't for the fact that one of the reasons they are able to piss me off is because they snap up distribution rights to movies I like.