Blockbuster “is developing a set-top device for streaming films directly to TV sets and is expected to announce the offering sometime this month,” Andrew Wallenstein reports for The Hollywood Reporter.
Wallenstein reports, “Blockbuster declined comment, but a spokeswoman for the company said: ‘We’re talking to numerous companies and vendors about products, services, alliances and initiatives that can help us achieve our mission to transform Blockbuster into a company that provides access to media content across multiple channels — from our stores, by mail, through kiosks, through downloading, through portable content-enabled devices– so it’s not surprising that there are rumors out there.’
“The device would join a growing roster of devices that aim to bring broadband video to the living room, including Apple TV,” Wallenstein reports.
“Blockbuster knows all too well the importance of online film rentals. When Apple said in January that iTunes would adopt a rental model, it sent Blockbuster’s stock plummeting 17% to an all-time closing low,” Wallenstein reports.
Full article here.
Very little chance of success at this late date; not with Apple’s iTunes, iPod and iPhone so firmly established. Apple TV is awesome, by the way – and you can buy it today!
Yawn.
Good luck with that, Lackluster.
Should Apple TV include Safari?
It’ll be interesting to see if Apple can establish itself within the movie rental market. I think right now, everyone and their dog thinks of iTunes when it comes to music.
But Blockbuster and Netlfix both have tons more name recognition today when it comes to movie rentals, and they could possibly do better sales than Apple even with far inferior hardware and software delivering it as we all roll our eyes.
What would be kind of cool in my view is if Apple TV could be made to work with Blockbuster and Netflix’s offerings somehow. We all know that Apple doesn’t make much money off of iTunes in proportion to its hardware sales anyway. A partnership like this would be the best of both worlds — Blockbuster and Hollywood get the revenue from rentals and Apple sell millions upon millions of Apple TVs.
Just a thought . . .
Hope this makes it to Canada
The only way it might work is if they give the box out for free, or with some type of subscription model. They do face a problem. Apple TV is already hear, so I don’t know how much this could work if they plan to sell the thing.
@MidWest Mac. Good Idea. Keep everyone working. It’s not a zero sum game.
Being able to rent movies over Apple TV is terrific but their selection (non-HD) is incredibly poor. They need at least 10 times the quantity they have now including a lot more of the lesser known titles.
If Netflix shows up with a Box Top device, they might have the branding to pull it off. But unless Blockbuster found a way to stream 1080p, they’re still CTD!
(Circling the Drain)
That is a great joke. I bet it will be like a Kindle!
@JEYGEE “Should Apple TV include Safari?”
No. It should include an SDK. We don’t know what great uses people will put their living room to!
This company is toast, we have stores closing all over. Too liitle, too late
Agree with you Joe, Apple TV’s selection is pathetic, for example we get the turd-like Superman 3 yet no 1 and 2.
Typical of the choices you get.
Hopefully the studios will open up their movies to Apple. It seems like they are holding back on a large scale to punish Apple for being successful.
have to agree with Joe. if apple had as much selection in movies as they do in music, AppleTV would be near perfect.
Could I just get a Mac Mini with an internal slot for a cable card so I could discard that crappy Scientific Atlanta crapfest that Comcast has forced upon me?
This just in:
Blockbuster set to market ‘shadows on the wall’ product. Includes candle and shadow puppet instructions. (Stories not included.)
@shen: AppleTV will never achieve anything close to perfection until it starts removing boxes from my TV sets.
Oh no, an Apple TV killer…
Let the flow of blood to begin. More blood on AppleTV’s (fill in the blank)
Content providers are preventing content from getting on TV until others can catch up to it. They’re playing hardball.
“We’re talking to numerous companies and vendors about products, services, alliances and initiatives that can help us achieve our mission to transform Blockbuster into a company that provides access to media content across multiple channels –“
If they weren’t doing this two years ago they’re already way late.
@Tommy Boy
No. No you can’t.
Signed, Steve Jobs.
you said “developing”
you mean frantically calling up media hardware / software / internet companies
they should just call Apple and start selling AppleTVs in every Blockbuster..
they could call it the AppleMoVie
for real tho; I am surprised it took them this long to smack themselves in the head
I think that Blockbuster actually DOES have a chance against Apple hardware. It doesn’t have to be a better product that Blockbuster comes up with.. they could just sit on their name recognition on the video rental front as MidWest Mac stated.
History does repeat itself.. remember the end marketshare results of BETAMAX/VHS (and Mac/IBM). I think it can go in both directions and can’t decide what the dim public will end up doing here.
I personally deal with people daily that are entrenched in PC’s for the cheap price. They don’t care that Macs are better; they only know price. They don’t seem to appreciate having a better user interface, safer computing, and the great well being in general you feel when you don’t get problems and snags. They get PC’s because they can’t fathom a difference that justifies $600 Walmart computers and $1,200 iMacs. Rather than try to win them over I say screw them. Youngin’ computer literates of the future will be able to appreciate the Mac design and of course it’s UI.
I personally appreciate what Apple brings to the table and can see multitudes of differences in quality and craftsmanship between products I see coming from them and their dare I say “competition”.
BLOCKBUSTER?
Are those idiots still around?
Hope the box works better than their employees!
We’re talking to numerous companies and vendors about products, services, alliances and initiatives that can help us achieve our mission…. from our stores, by mail, through kiosks, through downloading, through portable content-enabled devices
When all else fails, use the shotgun approach.
“One of these ideas has gotta work…”