Blockbuster Drops Boycott

Warner Bros films stocked once more


by empire |
Published on

To all those who have recently returned home empty handed after toddling off to their local Blockbusters in search of Ocean's Eleven or Training Day, Empire Online is happy to announce that no longer will you remain unhappily bereft or frustrated. For after steadfastly refusing to stock new Warner Bros films for eight months, Blockbusters have managed to strike a deal with the studio and will start buying new titles from the studio with immediate effect. When Warner announced last July that it would no longer maintain a 'window' between releasing their video and DVD titles to the rental market and putting them on the shelves for customers to buy, Blockbusters understandably were more than a little peeved. Forced to buy titles at prices two to three times higher than recommended retail prices to consumers, Blockbusters - together with other independent video rental chains - saw their period of exclusivity vanish and subsequently boycotted any new Warner titles from their shelves. Having now made friends again, the two companies will work together after striking the deal, the terms of which have not been disclosed. Alex Sparks, senior vice president and managing director for Blockbuster UK, said "We are pleased with this agreement which we believe protects the long term interests of our customers and most importantly, will enable us to satisfy customer demand by giving them the best choice, selection and availability for their home entertainment needs." Fine and dandy for the short term, but this agreement could have wide-ranging effects on how your local video store will survive. With DVD sales rocketing, studios are looking away from the rental market to the pay-per-view and video-on-demand sectors to bring in bigger profits. And while big chains like Blockbuster may be able to strike favourable deals with their industry equals, smaller, independent shops could have a hard time staying in business.

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