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New ways to rent, new competitors, more online activity; this is what every video store is facing today. We're ready for the challenge and have invested in a new model with new technology to keep you strong.

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Choices UK Entered Administration August 2007. Was the second largest UK rental group behind Blockbuster. In April 2010 re-launched as a small footprint model, rentithere.
Movie Gallery (US) Declared Bankruptcy, April 30, 2010. From a peak holding of 4,700 stores in North America, all stores are now closed and liquidated.
Blockbuster Inc. (US) Filed for bankruptcy protection in September 2010, and was sold to Dish Network in April 2011 for $320 million. Blockbuster previously sold to Viacom in 1994 for $8 billion, who then divested their holding (and debt liability) for $1.3 billion in 2004. From a height of around 4000 US stores, Dish Network will keep only 500 core stores operating.
Blockbuster Inc. (Canada) Placed into receivership in May 2011. The 400 stores across Canada will remain operating whilst the administrator decides on the company's fate.
Borders US
& Borders AU
Filed for bankruptcy protection and entered administration respectively February 2011. Whilst not video specialists per this review, they show the market forces and pressure that Internet models bring to bear on seemingly strong businesses.
Netflix Netflix in the US pioneered the model of DVD subscription by mail. The model has been copied worldwide, including in Australia by Quickflix and Bigpondmovies. Netflix has been trading since 1999 (12 years) and as of Jan 2011, have 20 million subscribers in the States. They offer a streaming model and are looking to grow streaming-only markets, having begun with a streaming-only service for Canada.
Redbox Redbox is the US market leader in DVD rental by vending machine. As of May 2010, they have 25,000 machines in circulation. They are currently looking to establish a streaming service to compete with the streaming offering from Netflix. In Australia, Oovie and RedroomDVD operate with the same vending machine model.

2010 was a tipping point for physical rental in the States, as reported in Jan 2011, traditional stores trail both mail-order and kiosks in rentals. For all DVD and Blu-ray, 41% of rental turns are done by subscription, 31% by kiosk and 27% by traditional.
iTunes Music Store The iTunes Music Store has been trading since 2003 (8 years) and now sells music and movies in 36 countries around the world. It is the dominant force in online media distribution. The Apple end-to-end stategy (source to experience) is more difficult to replicate in the movie business as movie playback (beyond the computer) relies on the AppleTV as a dedicated Apple device. This is the challenge with online delivery; becoming the preferred vendor from source to playback, in an environment where movies and equipment between services don't mix.
Facebook and Amazon Amazon and Facebook are the most recent entrants into the movie rental business, with both offering a streaming service. Amazon offers 'Prime Instant Video' as a free service to those in their premium subscription program, and Facebook is testing the waters with a pay-per-view offering. Both companies have tremendous reach and could become significant players in the future.
2009: US figures
CD 65%
Download 35%
The NPD market research group released results in August 2009 that showed for the first half of 2009 65% of all music sold in the US was on CD, with paid digital downloads comprising 35%. We're eagerly awaiting the follow up survey to see where the balance sits today.
2011: US figures
78% of home viewing budget goes to physical media
The NPD market research group released results in March 2011 that showed 78% of home viewing spend went to the purchase or rental of DVD and Blu-ray discs. 15% was spent on subscription services (eg Netflix) and 8% on pay-per-view digital offerings. Their conclusion: 'physical discs continue to lead overall engagement and spending by home video viewers... the primacy of DVD and Blu-ray in home video will continue for the foreseeable future.'
2011: Growth in Downloads Slows The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) released a report in January 2011 that showed global growth of digital downloads has slowed. 2008 saw growth of 25%, 2009 12% and 2010 6% in year-on figures.
2011: Australia prefers CD (72%) February 2011, The Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) released a report that showed 72% of all Australian music sales occurred via physical media. The remaining 28% is via digital download.