Tesco offers on-line DVD rentals

09-03-2004

by The Register

Supermarket chain Tesco is to rent DVDs via a Web site.

The business will run along similar lines to Netflix -- the US company which has picked up over 2 million customers. The Tesco project is in partnership with Video Island.

Customers will have a choice of 15,000 titles. For a fixed monthly fee they can choose two, three or five DVDs. When they send back a DVD, Tesco will dispatch the next film from the wish list. Discs are returned in Freepost envelopes. Tesco refused to give prices for the service which launches at the end of the month.

"DVDs by post has revolutionised the way people watch film in the States and we're confident by moving into the market we can do the same in the UK," said Laura Weade-Gery, CEO at Tesco, in a statement.

"Getting anything on DVD from the High Street except for the latest releases is all but impossible," Saul Klein, CEO at Video Island, added. "If you want anything a bit more exotic or esoteric it is really hard." Tesco's brand will help it win customers, he adds.

Tesco's Web site will let customers rate and review films. Seven out of ten rentals from High Street stores are of new releases, while DVD-by-post customer tend to favour older films -- seven out of ten rentals are back catalogue titles.

Netflix has dominated the US market despite competition from the likes of Wal-Mart. Netflix made a profit of USD6.5 million last year on sales of USD270 million.

The Register and its contents are copyright 2003 Situation Publishing. Reprinted with permission.