NCR Corp., which operates Blockbuster Express DVD rental kiosks, has agreed to delay rentals of 20th Century Fox DVDs until 28 days after their release, in its second such deal with a studio.
NCR’s competitors, Coinstar Inc-owned kiosk company Redbox, and Netflix, have also agreed to 28-day delays from several studios.
But NCR said its agreement with News Corp.’s movie studio also allows the kiosk operator to test premium-pricing in select markets for renting out Fox DVDs the same day those titles hit stores.
The price for premium titles was not disclosed.
NCR, which has 7,000 DVD kiosks under a licensing agreement with Blockbuster Inc, reached a deal last month with General Electric Co’s Universal movie division that also mandated a 28-day delay on rentals of new DVD releases.
NCR could also test a premium model for renting Universal DVDs the same day they hit stores, an NCR spokesman said.
Redbox has more than 28,000 kiosks. NCR and Redbox rent their DVDs for $1 a day, a price that displeases studio officials who fear that people are less likely to buy a DVD if they can rent it so cheaply.
As a result, studios such as Fox and Universal have negotiated agreements with DVD rental operators that allow them access to DVDs at a lower cost than buying them at retail, in exchange for agreeing to a delay on renting the titles.
So glad that Fox has come to its senses about Blockbuster. Blockbuster is a lost cause and any company that helps give Blockbuster the upper hand is clearly wasting its resources.