[tetsuo13]

This paragraph summed it all up:

If the studios are allowing some places like Blockbuster stores to rent movies on day one, but limit Netflix from doing the same, how many of the millions of Netflix users are going to drive to a Blockbuster store to get that movie? Some certainly will, but a lot will also turn to the web and simply download the movie. And some who have never done that before will learn how to get around such a ridiculous restriction.

Not sure if it's a scheme to grant Blockbuster exclusive rights to DVD rentals for the first 30 days but it sure seems that way.

In the war on "piracy" it always seems that the studios make things increasingly more difficult for their customers and driving them toward other means. It seems they won't be happy until no one can have their product but must pay for it anyway.

[chrischen]

If the person is willing to download the movie from the internet (illegally), why would they even pay for Netflix in the first place. And once they do start downloading they'll start questioning why they have to pay. It seems like this 30 day thing wouldn't really change things, or that it would screw Netflix too.

[sofal]

For some people (not sure how many) there is just a small barrier to downloading movies illegally. You have to dip just below the 'honesty' layer and search for links in slightly questionable places. There's that feeling of being subversive and opening up yourself to a little risk (however minimal). This barrier can be just big enough in order to prefer things like Redbox or Netflix over it, but not big enough to make people go back to spending $5 to watch a movie at home.

[lutorm]

Netflix might be convenient enough to make people not bother trying to find torrents (and worrying about getting sued). I think in many cases it's not the price that's the deterrent, it's the hassle of having to actually go to the store.

[chris11]

Yeah, I agree with you. I don't really see much personal benefit in using brick and mortar video rental stores. Going to one means that I have to take a half hour or an hour out of my day to get a movie. And I can't check the inventory of a store online, so if I'm looking for an older or a more obscure movie, I'm not really guaranteed that it would be available. Plus I would not go to Blockbuster because I wanted to get a brilliant recommendation from a staff member. But I would be more willing to watch something recommended to me by a recommendation engine. And most video rental stores usually charge more than I want to pay.

So I really don't see brick and mortar stores competing with kiosks and rental services like netflix. The single benefit a store has is that it is probably one of the fastest ways to get a physical copy of a movie because it is not mailed. But I would not be the least bit perturbed about waiting a day or two to see a movie.

[missile]

It's a fallacy to say that people are either illegal downloaders or not. There's a large segment of the population that won't download media illegally if they feel that they're being well served by the marketplace. If on the other hand, the industry conspires to limit consumer options out of greed and stupidity, that same segment of the population will feel that it has a right to seek redress, and won't feel bad about illegal downloads.

[cschep]

Maybe Netflix with all the latest content is good enough, but 30 day delayed Netflix isn't. This is such bullshit. The only thing unhappy Netflix users can do is cancel their membership, which is (I'm sure) nothing but good news to the movie studios. Boo!