Blockbuster to rent movies on SD cards

Blockbuster to rent movies on SD cards
Blockbuster has begun testing a new movie-rental program that will allow renters to load the movies to SD cards and play them back on their phones or TVs.

Each rental will cost $1.99 USD.



The rentals have DRM that kills the video after a certain expiration date, removing the need for users to return a physical disc. Users can also download the videos "on demand" from the Blockbuster website, but at a higher premium, $3.99.

Although in theory the idea could work, you will be very hard pressed to find mobile phones with full SD card slots, as most use microSD.




Written by: Andre Yoskowitz @ 11 Nov 2009 15:30
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  • 23 comments
  • klassic

    Quote:Although in theory the idea could work, you will be very hard pressed to find mobile phones with full SD card slots, as most use microSD. Don't most microSD card come with an adapter to use them in SD card slots? I wonder how big the movie files are and if they are compressed? I am sure once this concept gets rolled out across the country it won't be long be for the DRM is cracked.

    11.11.2009 16:42 #1

  • slickwill

    You'd think it would be cheaper to get the movie online.....I don't seen any obvious reasons for the price hike.

    I wonder if the kiosk is pretty much self maintained. As in it's connected to the net and just downloads the movie to the kiosk's hdd when I new title is available.

    11.11.2009 18:50 #2

  • KSib

    I don't think DRM is really [edited]the[/edited] issue, actually. People rent movies and burn them quite often if they're into that kind of thing. Nothing has changed really in that area. One thing this does eliminate is the problem of having too few copies of a movie; which means you can theoretically make more money.

    Choosing an SD-card format for a mobile phone is kind of silly 'cuz like they said, most phones use microSD or miniSD. I also don't know of many people with TVs that have flash drive storage or flash drive input available. My Blu-Ray player MIGHT have an SD card slot, but defintely not my TV. Maybe it will catch on better than I think it will. It's certainly a viable option for desktops and notebooks (and netbooks?) though. Most computers now at least have a 5-in-1 card reader.

    11.11.2009 18:53 #3

  • Unlockneo

    Quote:Each rental will cost $1.99 USD.
    over price
    RedBox rental cost only $1

    11.11.2009 22:13 #4

  • mike.m

    I don't think that this will really catch on. To play it on a DVD/BD Player, the player has to have an SD slot, AND it needs to be able to read the format on the SD. Plus, I doubt that it will be Full HD resolution, or even close to Standard Def.

    11.11.2009 23:24 #5

  • windsong

    TVs have SD card slots now? Like, built in? Are they expensive? Last TV I got was 5 years ago. I spend all my money not on TVs, but on BIG monitors (i.e. 28 inch lcd).

    Anyway, 1.50 per movie is still too much.

    12.11.2009 00:38 #6

  • wiseguy0

    Every micro sd card I have came with a full size adapter, so i don't really get that point.

    12.11.2009 00:52 #7

  • LissenUp

    My idea dammit!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


    I called this out 2 years ago. I should have capitalized but unfortunately....................I have no capital.

    12.11.2009 01:22 #8

  • KSib

    Originally posted by wiseguy0: Every micro sd card I have came with a full size adapter, so i don't really get that point.You need to specify what "point" you're referring to. I don't know what you're getting at exactly.

    12.11.2009 01:34 #9

  • LissenUp

    Quote:Originally posted by wiseguy0: Every micro sd card I have came with a full size adapter, so i don't really get that point.You need to specify what "point" you're referring to. I don't know what you're getting at exactly.
    Agreed..............PLEASE CLARIFY. This article mentions nothing of Micro SD.

    This guy should have read his comment back to himself before posting.

    12.11.2009 01:44 #10

  • djgizmo

    I called this idea as well about 5 years ago shortly after DVD copying became popular.

    Good plan. I don't think the online version will do as hot as the in person version, but who knows. Good for them.

    Yes, Redbox is cheaper, but you have less than 1/10th the selection. Sometimes it's just good to watch an old movie, and no where online has it.

    12.11.2009 04:01 #11

  • KillerBug

    Originally posted by djgizmo: I called this idea as well about 5 years ago shortly after DVD copying became popular.
    -everyone did; they were even considering selling movies on "burned" SDHC cards that could not be overwriten, erased, or scratched...but that all fell apart when bluray took off.

    Originally posted by djgizmo: Yes, Redbox is cheaper, but you have less than 1/10th the selection. Sometimes it's just good to watch an old movie, and no where online has it.
    -Your math does not work...redbox has maybe 200 movies in their biggest boxes. Ten times that would be just 2000 movies. Netflix has over 10,000 movies online. If you can't find a movie in an archive of 10,000 titles, why would you expect to find it in 2,000 titles?


    Quote:Although in theory the idea could work, you will be very hard pressed to find mobile phones with full SD card slots, as most use microSD. The reason they are using SD and not microSD is because of compatability. This works with SD or microSD with adapter...there is no adapter to use SD with a microSD or minisd slot. Also, SD slots can be built to be more robust than microsd or minisd slots, and thus allow for more insert/remove cycles before replacment is needed.

    DRM has not worked anywhere where it has been tried. If it isn't cracked, then sales are nearly non-existant...if it is cracked, then it is nothing but a bother to the customer and a licensing charge paid to the DRM developer (or sometimes, a lawsuit from the DRM developer when the DRM using company steals the DRM!). It's biggest supporters essentialy declaired DRM dead just a couple days ago. They might as well announce that they have just opened a new asbestos manufacuring plant...no one wants it.

    12.11.2009 04:51 #12

  • glassd

    I think wiseguy is talking about microSD to SD card adaptors. I would assume that you have to take your own SD card to BlockBuster and Copy to your SD card from their burner. Insert your MicroSD/SD card and copy movie. Remove MicroSD from SD adaptor and insert into Cell phone.

    12.11.2009 12:25 #13

  • bomber991

    I'd hope that whoever designed this machine was smart enough to simply have a micro and mini sd port. It seems like they would, but you never know. Sometimes stuff gets built that's just missing simple features and options.

    12.11.2009 16:23 #14

  • KSib

    Originally posted by glassd: I think wiseguy is talking about microSD to SD card adaptors. I would assume that you have to take your own SD card to BlockBuster and Copy to your SD card from their burner. Insert your MicroSD/SD card and copy movie. Remove MicroSD from SD adaptor and insert into Cell phone.I still don't follow how that ties into anything that was stated previously. Anyway, It will be interesting to see how well this works out. I'm for another way of renting movies.

    12.11.2009 16:31 #15

  • glassd

    The article says that it will only do SD cards. The last sentence of the article says that you will be hard pressed to find a mobil phone that will take a SD as most take microSD cards. Thats what he was refering to. Get a microSD and put in a SD. Copy to it, then remove the micro and put in the phone.

    12.11.2009 16:42 #16

  • KSib

    Gotcha, all is clear now :)

    12.11.2009 17:06 #17

  • rockjckey

    I saw this coming 10 years ago but also had no capital. Great idea because there are no moving parts to wear out and you don't even need to return the movie to the kiosk. DVD players, including Blue ray, will soon be obsolete. This is the future of home/mobile movie viewing. BTW; this system can also be used for music instead of CD's. However, you will not see the price of albums or singles decrease even though there is no more packaging, printing or shipping expenses to the music provider due to corporate greed. Why should they lower the price when you were happy to pay it in the past? This is why I don't pay for music or movies.

    12.11.2009 19:09 #18

  • Mez

    Their corporate is loaded with garbage. They have not had a smart original idea yet. The only way they made their money is putting mom and pop video stores out of business. How hard is that?

    13.11.2009 18:59 #19

  • KSib

    Wait... what? How is that related to a non-original idea being put into practice? or the comment before yours? Maybe I missed something again... it's quite possible.

    13.11.2009 19:17 #20

  • Mez

    KSib, no my statement was not a responce to anyone. I despise BB for their stupidity.

    14.11.2009 00:02 #21

  • elflaco91

    good idea... all i want to know is Size, format and resolution of each movie!!!

    16.11.2009 17:29 #22

  • KillerBug

    Originally posted by elflaco91: good idea... all i want to know is Size, format and resolution of each movie!!!I wonder if they will have multiple versions for different card sizes...dvd quality on 8GB cards, bluray quality on 32GB cards, iphone quality on 2GB cards, etc...

    For their sake, I hope that it supports SDHC cards and not just SD cards...a lot of devices that have SD support do not have SDHC support, and Blockbuster's execs have their heads so far up their butts that they need windows in their stomachs to see anything.

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    17.11.2009 05:05 #23

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