Burn FilmStruck, spoil UltraViolet, but you can’t take my DVDs

I haven't watched a DVD in a while. Long enough that I've thought about donating all of my discs to goodwill. But when I Kondo'd my possessions, the bulk of my media remained in place as they kinda/sorta sparked joy. (That's a lie, I was deep into th...

UK digital video revenues beat out physical discs in 2016

It was only a matter of time before the convenience of video streaming services and digital download stores took its toll on sales of DVDs and Blu-rays. And according to a new report from the UK's Entertainment Retailers Association (ERA), the scales...

Dominos Tempts DVD Renters With Pizza Smell After Movie Is Done

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Some parts of the world still use spinning discs of plastic to enjoy their movies. Brazil is one of those places, and Dominos there decided to partner up with advertising firm Artplan for their latest campaign. They recruited 10 local DVD rental stores and replaced the labels on popular films with a special heat-activated one. It looks like a regular label when you pop it in the DVD player, but as it spins and heats up the label changes and is replaced with the image of a pizza, while simultaneously releasing the smell of a fresh pie, right out of the oven. Also printed on the new label is the following: “Did you enjoy the movie? The next one will be even better with a hot and delicious Domino’s Pizza.”

That’s as crude as advertising gets, but it’s also creative and probably effective. If we were the type of people that still pop discs in machines and someone dropped this on us, we just might pick up the phone for an order.

VIA [ DVice ]

Warner Bros. to ditch 28-day release delay for rental stores?

Warner Bros. to ditch 28-day release delay for rental stores?

Warner Bros. may have doubled its 28-day embargo on new releases for kiosk operators (even if they side-step it), but endangered bricks-and-mortar rental stores could be treated to the exact opposite. A rumor coming from Home Media Magazine's unnamed sources suggests the WB is going to ditch the embargo for these locations altogether, starting on October 30th. We have no idea why this break would be offered to the relic stores, although we doubt they care if it gets a few more bodies through the door. Warner Bros. has a recent habit of quiet implementation, but just to be sure, we've reached out for confirmation and will update you if-and-when we hear more.

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Warner Bros. to ditch 28-day release delay for rental stores? originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 25 Oct 2012 13:40:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Dish gives up effort to turn Blockbuster into a Netflix competitor

It's been an especially bumpy road for the Blockbuster brand these past few years, and things just got a bit more rough. In an interview with Bloomberg, Dish Network founder and CEO Charlie Ergen confirmed that the company is abandoning its current efforts to challenge Netflix with Blockbuster, saying that it no longer plans to use the brand as a video streaming or DVD-by-mail service in the US. Ergen did say that Dish had other plans for Blockbuster, but he didn't elaborate on what those may be. He also seems to be fairly resigned to the whole matter, saying "worst case, we'll take our money after having wasted some time, not much money, and life goes on."

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Dish gives up effort to turn Blockbuster into a Netflix competitor originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 05 Oct 2012 12:27:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Warner quietly extends the expiration dates of digital copies, discs remain ornamental

Warner quietly extends the expiration dates of digital copies, discs remain ornamentalMissed out on claiming digital copies of video included with your discs because the expiration dates have passed? Well, Warner Bros. wants to make such frustrations a mere memory, as Tech of the Hub has found it's silently updated the use-by dates of a significant portion of its catalogue. By browsing the WB digital copy support page, it's evident most titles are now available until May 17th 2017, although we did find several exceptions. Some may discover that despite the extension their original codes won't work, but Gabe at Tech of the Hub was swiftly provided with fresh and functional ones when he notified WB, so we assume you'll get the same treatment. With streaming support now available for many of these digital copies through iCloud and expiration dates a thing of the far future, there's never been a better time to pack those shelves with limited editions and classic re-releases.

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Warner quietly extends the expiration dates of digital copies, discs remain ornamental originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 20 Aug 2012 14:39:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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New DVD anti-piracy warning now packs double the nag

New DVD anti-piracy warning now packs double the nag

Starting this week, you'll find any newly-minted DVDs and Blu-ray discs will now include a similarly fresh anti-piracy message. Homeland Security's special agent badge now partners up with the FBI's own emblem on the new warning played before DVDs -- and it looks like it'll still be unskippable. If this dynamic duo isn't enough to scare into legitimate media consumption, how about another warning screen to really bring it on home? This one features the National Intellectual Property Center, which follows the same "piracy is bad" message, offering a helpful link as to why -- one we're sure you're going to investigate in the middle of movie night. Interestingly, these new screens themselves are still not in the public domain and only the major US movie studios are authorized to use them. No news yet on whether the authorities plan to include another screen explaining this, but you can check that second warning that you'll soon be yelling at right after the break.

Continue reading New DVD anti-piracy warning now packs double the nag

New DVD anti-piracy warning now packs double the nag originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 10 May 2012 16:46:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Netflix snags DVD.com domain, invests in the future of optical media

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Looking for a shortcut to Netflix's home on the web? Try hitting up DVD.com -- it'll take you there, for now. The latest address to join the family of Netflix redirects actually brings you to a subdomain -- dvd.netflix.com -- suggesting that the company could once again be planning to split its streaming and physical media services, at least from an access perspective. A shareholder letter lists the company's U.S. DVD subscriptions at 11.17 million at the end of Q4, bringing in a total of $370 million in revenue, with a profit of $194 million. Compare this to domestic streaming, which represents $476 million in revenue with a mere $52 million profit, and it's clear that the DVD rental market is still quite strong. So what could this latest domain acquisition mean for snail mail subscribers? DVD-only customers may soon have a new site to call home, with focused content and perhaps an upsell opportunity or two. At the very least, it certainly can't hurt when it comes to SEO.

Netflix snags DVD.com domain, invests in the future of optical media originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 30 Mar 2012 14:21:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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