Redbox does it again.

Redbox to Offer Movie Streaming Service, Compete with Netflix

from Inside Redbox

In a surprise move, Redbox has announced that they will start offering a movie streaming service later this month. In keeping with its current pricing structure, the cost to stream a movie will be just $1, and customers will be able to choose from any movie in the Redbox library, including new releases.

Since details were a little sparse on the new service, I decided to contact Redbox and see if they would like to share any more information with us and the Inside Redbox community. I was able to get a hold of April, a New Product Manager at the Redbox corporate office, and she had a few more details for us.

The first thing I asked April was what made Redbox decide to get into the streaming business. She said that they have seen the success Netflix has had with their service, and wanted to provide something similar for their customers. “We figured the $1 price point was working well already, so we decided to stick with that,” she said. “We think it is the best value anywhere, and we know consumers appreciate good value, especially in today’s economic climate.”

I have to agree with her, Netflix has done well with their service, so it only makes sense for Redbox to get into the game. Plus, $1 is a great value, and has already been working well for them. While it is different from the Netflix unlimited service, there are also no monthly fees to deal with, so you only pay for what you watch. A lot like pay-per-view from your cable/satellite service, only cheaper.

Next, I asked her exactly how they were going to make this happen. Netflix has partnered with several set-top box makers, and also streams movies directly from its website. Will Redbox do the same?

“Redbox will leverage the network we already have,” she said. “This way, there will be no need for our customers to buy a set-top box or use unreliable software on the website that doesn’t work for everyone. So, we decided that we will stream movies directly to our more than 13,000 Redbox kiosks already in place.”

I told her that it sounded very interesting, but how exactly would it work?

“It is quite simple really”, April told me. “Right now when a customer visits one of our kiosks and selects a movie, there is an ‘Add to Cart’ button. We will simply add a ‘Watch Now’ button, and after the customer swipes their card, the movie will begin playing immediately.”

But would Redbox customers really like this? What about bad weather? Long lines?

“We think our customers will love this new service,” she said, “and have already tested it out in a few areas with good results. While many of our kiosks are located outdoors, our customers are generally very smart and dress appropriately. A coat and gloves in the winter and a water bottle in the summer is all most will need, and they will likely already have that with them. If not, perhaps the store where their Redbox is located will be able to supply them with what they need, providing an additional revenue stream for our partners.

“As for long lines, that is rarely a problem. Our customers are already used to waiting 10-15 minutes to rent/return a movie, so another hour or so should not be a problem. Plus, they will be able to watch whatever movie the customer is streaming. It’s a lot like going to the drive-in for free, and you can’t beat free. If they really don’t want to wait, they can simply goto another Redbox kiosk, which is probably close by since we have so many of them.”

 

The Ninja Video Manifesto. I couldn’t agree more!

One of my favorite web site’s I visit daily for my entertainment needs, www.ninjavideo.net, recently published it’s manifesto, here it is, you be the judge!

Hello and welcome to the NinjaVideo manifesto. This one is a bit different from the rest, in that I’m the only
person on the line. I’m Phara by the way – just in case you didn’t know, or you’re new to the NinjaVideo
podcasts – and I’ll be doing this one solo.
This is partially scripted, partially free thought. And I’m going to try and keep it as light-hearted as I can,
but at the end of the day this is probably the most serious podcast we’ve ever done.
This is our Mission Statement; it doesn’t really get much clearer than that.
We decided in light of our recent traffic spikes with the start of the fall season and the havoc it wreaked
with our system that maybe it was about time to explain who and what we are as an entity.
I think it’s become quite obvious that NinjaVideo is a bit of a monster to run, and a lot of you are probably
curious as to why we do it. So for this podcast I’m not only speaking to you as Phara but also as the voice
of the administrators, the moderators, the entire NinjaVideo community, and in a way as one of the
representatives of the on-line video world, and perhaps through this you’ll gain a better understanding of
why people like us spend such a giant amount of time doing what we do.
By the way, I take the title of representative of the on-line video world very loosely, nobody put me in this
position. I’m not quite sure if I want to be in it, but it’s a reality and though this might open me and my
website to a bit of unwanted scrutiny it’s something that we as a community felt needed to be done.
So, that’s me, that is Ninja.
And let me now explain who this is for.
This is for everyone.
To everyone that’s ever watched a video on-line, to anyone that’s ever viewed a clip on YouTube, to every
uploader and downloader, to those within the scene and the peer-to-peer, to the bootleggers that have
gotten locked up for selling their warez on the street corner, to the cammers that risk their freedom every
single night in movie theaters. That’s one side of it.
This is also for the other side. We’re doing this all encompassing. This is for the lawyers sending out
notices; this is to movie producers and studio heads; to all the scriptwriters and the actors.
This is for everyone.
I’m not going to go too much into what we do, as I think if you’re listening to this, you most likely know. But
in a sentence or two:
We are a high quality video site (probably the best one out there, and I say this as a user of my own site
and not just as the Admin). We provide TV primarily, as well as a significant documentary section, new
movie releases and sporting events in addition to a few other things. We’re loved by millions, but we’re
hated by quite a few, and as to how we started, most of us at the top were already members of this on-line
video community, and we just saw an emphasis on quality lacking, so we came together to create the
highest quality site on-line.
That said, let me explain a little bit about Ninja Main.
We’re realists. We know what brings people to NinjaVideo – Ninja Main in particular – it is zero hour
releases on TV and movies. But while they’re here they can learn – from our documentaries to the depth of
our forum we are a classroom in so many ways, as well as an outlet for your general entertainment. We
did this very consciously.
We could have a third of the videos that we do on the Mainsite and be equally as successful but we chose
not to. We wanted to educate. We wanted to be different from every other site out there by establishing a
community that revolves around the Mainsite.
Our community has its own rules and hierarchy but it’s one where people can shed the superficialities of
the physical world and discuss everything from good TV, to good music, to land reform in China, to recent
and upcoming elections. And they can do this with complete freedom – as long as it’s done in a respectful
manner. People have dedicated enormous chunks of their lives to creating this home of ours online and if
one was to skim through my boards they would see it in it’s full glory every day.
Though it may be argued that we – as an entity – are the ultimate leech for what we take from the film and
the TV industry, my community and those that helped build it are anything but. This is not an anonymous
place of fake thank-you’s and ignorant requests, but the closest that the Internet has ever come to an
extended family. There’s really no way for me to explain it and do it justice, but I suspect that if you were
to register and to lurk the boards for a few days you would understand what I was saying quite clearly.
So with all that being said, let’s get to some of the central points of this podcast:
Why do sites like NinjaVideo exist?
Why do people like us prefer this online world to theaters so much at a time?
What is our take on studios and Hollywood and the businesses that we are so closely tied to, but not quite
friendly with?
I’m just going to speak a bit broadly here and go into what is probably the whole point of this, the meat of
this.
When did the American pastime of going to the movies become a luxury? Honestly– when? When did
family night at the movies start costing fifty dollars without popcorn? As a wise moderator of mine once
said, “When did leisure get taken hostage?”
Look around you… the world is in crisis, economic as well as social. Why was one of the few escapes
available to us as a society taken out of the layman’s reach? I want to point something out. Your
numbers– they’re so wrong. You break record numbers every season. $200 million opening weekends.
Every year, those at the top of your business get richer and richer. And we, your loyal fans, pay more and
more to view two hours of regurgitated plot. You say that piracy is killing you. But do you honestly think
that the thousand people who watched a movie online would be the same thousand that would go to the
theaters if that option were taken from them?
Your Statistics Are Lies.
If nothing else, it is through Internet word of mouth that so many otherwise obscure films succeed.
I’d like to ask you a question sometimes. Perhaps I’m being naive, but honestly, why can an actor be paid
$20 million for a movie? Why are there doctors out there paying off student loans for fifty years, but
someone who essentially “lies” for a living makes millions? And this is for the entire entertainment
industry. Sports players are very much included in this, mainstream musicians…
And if the comparison to doctors is a bit off, why do you make so much more than your writers? Why was
there a writers’ strike last year that halted TV production for the first time in years when someone like
Jennifer Aniston or Jerry Seinfeld was making a million dollars per episode for a twenty-two minute
sitcom?
And why – and this is probably more important – Why have we as a society accepted this? Why do we race
to newsstands for glorified tabloids mimicking news? Why is CNN reporting on Britney Spears rather than
the Congo? Why am I supposed to care that Angelina Jolie had or adopted another child? Why (this is so
upsetting) why are we so obsessed with this disgusting celebrity culture where someone like Paris Hilton is
a heroine and children don’t know who Mahatma Gandhi is? Why in a world where for the first time true
knowledge is accessible to us via a few keystrokes are test scores plummeting? Please explain to me why
college in the United States is utterly unaffordable. This pains me. This pains me so much.
My generation, we’re a generation of cynics, apathetic to all around us, indifferent to all around us. But
when did being those things mean that we had to become ignorant? When did that happen? There are
times when I find myself bewildered at my own inability to feel compassion but at the same time I’m
plagued by these overarching ideals.
I care not for the man standing next to me, but I sob for humanity. I weep for these ideals that I feel are
being lost. I fail at paying my own rent on time, but I can stare aghast at someone who doesn’t know
there’s a conflict between Israel and Palestine, or that there’s still war going on in the world.
There are giant issues out there. Enormous issues that are so much greater than generic media
consumption. Issues requiring attention far greater, far more attention in general than I could ever bring to
it. And yet I see millions being spent squashing a minority like mine. One that at its core espouses the
kind of groupthink necessary to enact change. One made of leaders that want to reach out across the
world and help each other – even if its via something so small as uploading a newscast, or even a TV
show.
But we’re labeled pirates. We’re called thieves. We’re raided and arrested and we’re forced to hide behind
aliases while we weave and we bob through these grey areas of laws not yet written. We’re this
amorphous Internet scum looking to rob your industry. Right? We are so far from.
You… YOU have done this. You… The studios with your inflated budgets and your ridiculous salaries.
You have fed the mob insignificant tidbits about celebrity antics in order for them to pay out their retirement
funds in popcorn prices. But not all amongst this mob are sheep.
There are those that refuse to cater to such condescending pandering. And at heart that’s what it is. It’s
condescending. It’s patronizing. It’s insulting to us as a generation. Sites like NinjaVideo force innovation
upon you. This entire community does. The record profits that you have been making prove that people
still go to the movies. Ad spots starting a $250,000 for thirty seconds prove that people still watch TV.
How will you keep your audience? Why should they pay you any longer when it is clear that you care
nothing for them? Will you continue to repackage the same story lines? Will you continue to shun
independence? Will you continue to force us to read publicist drivel on high school dropouts with the
Mickey Mouse club on their resumes? Honestly, it’s time to stop.
Just stop.
Reincarnate yourselves. Utilize us. Don’t shut us down. Make a stand. You’ve made your money. Why
don’t you make your statement now? Now that the networks and the MPAA stand together, why don’t you
embrace the Internet? And I know that you have too a degree, but it’s lacking. Sorely lacking. Why not let
those well-versed in this scene help. You must set aside the status quo. For it is being set aside for you.
Your screeners are being leaked by your own insiders. Let me repeat that for you:
Your screeners are being leaked by your own insiders.
Embrace the peer to peer. Embrace the crowd at your door that would help you acclimate to today’s
technological revolution before they blast through your bureaucratic ineptitude. Your very own structuring
inhibits your growth. You have generations at the top that know nothing of this new world and cannot
grasp the fluidity of the Internet and its rapid-fire growth. Your industry is an industry made up of
connections and cronyism and casting couches.
This is the time ripe for change. Be that change.
Once upon a time, visual media was heralded for the positive impacts it made upon society. Once upon a
time a cold war was destroyed at the hands of reporters who showed millions that life was different outside
the communist bloc. Once upon a time I cared to listen to what CNN had to say to me. Once upon a time,
copyright law favored the small, and not the hidden vaults underneath a 500-acre studio. And isn’t that the
ugliest part, honestly… that your writers are forced into the cold with picket signs, while these glorified
Barbie and Ken dolls prance around the world for more money than most countries make in a year.
Please, please understand this anger. You must. It’s enough. You have become complacent through
your success. You have taken an industry barely one hundred years old and destroyed its public integrity.
You have made fools of us and forced a discontent that is exponentially swelling through the ranks of the
computer literate.
You and only you opened the door for NinjaVideo. Sites like mine are a direct manifestation of your
apathy. You can’t hold entertainment hostage any more. You can’t hold news hostage.
If Rupert Murdoch wants to play FOX news on five different channels, then I’ll build an Al Jazeera category
and give it love on Ninja Main. If a documentary maker is saddened that his work will only be seen by a
few thousand via a public broadcasting channel, then I’ll give him an audience millions strong.
If you want to take advantage of the fact that the youth of my generation, some of them adults now, are
lazy, we will make that youth a force to be reckoned with and give them a home on-line to gather and think.
And that’s it. That is the point of all this, of NinjaVideo in particular. I truly, truly hope that this did not
come off as a rant. I guess what I want, what we all want, is to be left alone. I don’t want to go to jail… or
court. None of us do. And if we can’t be accepted, how about we’re acknowledged? Not as pirates but as
a generation you can learn from. Work with us. Learn from us.
This is what we do. It’s part of who we are. Instead of sending a takedown notice, how about sending an
introductory letter? Conference with us about what the evolution of this game should be about, because I
assure you – whether or not you ever take NinjaVideo down, there will be more of us. This game can’t be
stopped: so how about it’s understood?
We’re a community, made up of millions. We come from every country, every walk of life, and every
economic level. And we’re smart. We’re young. We’re articulate. And we’re your audience.
But we’re tired, and we can fight back.
And this is by no means a challenge; it’s just the reality.
Can I afford lawyers? No. Not at all. But will there be a hundred people to take my place if I step down?
Yes… believe me there will be.
So if the moves towards peace could ever be made between our worlds then I would suggest that you take
us, NinjaVideo, up on such a reconciliation. We’re grown, we’re educated, and we – more than most – are
willing to listen. Perhaps if you are one of those lawyers or studio heads or actors, and for some odd
reason you’re listening to this right now, take a moment before you pick up that phone and truly think about
what I said.
There is an opportunity here that has never been laid out before.
This has been the NinjaVideo Manifesto and it’s time to wrap this thing up.
We’re your future. We’re here and we’re strong and we’re not moving.
I’ll leave you all with a quote. I tried searching for a few choice ones on piracy and I found myself much
more attracted to the ones I found on revolution:
Samuel Adams once said:
“It does not require a majority to prevail, but rather an irate, tireless minority keen to set brushfires in
people’s minds.”
We have lit that flame and it can’t be put out. Will you help us harness its power, or will you let us all burn
with you alongside?
Thank you for listening to the NinjaVideo Manifesto.

This has been Phara, with all of NinjaVideo behind me.

 

Battlestar Galactica Series Finale! End of a Frakking Superb Show!

A few years ago I was noticing all this buzz about a great new show on the Sci-Fi channel called Battlestar Galactica.  I assumed it was just another one of those mediocre, dime a dozen, nerdy Science Fiction shows we quickly dismiss when surfing the channels late at night.  Turns out,  I was very wrong, this series in my opinion is one of the finest written and produced shows ever on television.  Best show ever?  That’s debatable, but certainly a contender.  First of all, the biggest problem for this show was it’s network, simply by being on the Sci-Fi channel average viewers stayed away, which is a shame, because Science Fiction is just the setting of the show, not the substance.  This is no B movie monster comic book story, or some far fetched space cowboy adventure, but a real reflection of our world today, and explores the core dilemmas of our society as we know it.  If this show had aired on NBC it would have been far more popular with a much greater following.  But even so, the cult following it has received is nothing less than astonishing.  It delves into every aspect of society from politics, religion, and human rites.  The casting is top notch, and the writing is simply amazing.  It has a gritty, real feel to it, almost like watching a documentary.  The Special affects are as good as any top shelf Hollywood blockbuster, and not over done.  If I had to fault the show in any way, it would be they almost went too far outside the box with the story in the last couple of seasons, trying too create these huge twists in the story when it really wasn’t necessary.  The two hour series finale that aired last Friday really did a great job wrapping up many questions, I scratched my head on a few, but overall very satisfying, though maybe a little rushed at the end.  For those that have never seen an episode, you really owe it to yourself to watch one episode.  Again, Sci-Fi fan or not, if you like compelling story telling, you will enjoy this show.  I cannot recommend it enough.  You can watch a a handful of free episodes on www.hulu.com or the entire series on www.ninjavideo.net.  Go Frakkin watch it.

 

Updating this blog daily dammit!

Okay, enough is enough.  Look for daily updates.  Haven’t posted in months and still getting hundreds of hits.  Someone must want me too!

 

Curved shower curtain rod. The most dangerous thing in your home?

I think about the weirdest random crap when taking a shower.  Today for instance I was thinking what was the single most dangerous thing in the home.  And for me, without a doubt would be these damn new curved shower curtain rods everyone is installing.  I cannot tell you how many times I have almost slipped over the side of the tub due to the perception of more foot room.  You see these curtain rods that curve out make you feel like you have all this room to move around, and if you are not paying attention it is real easy to slip rite out of the tub.  I came dang close to biting it a number of times.  Guess I better start wearing a helmet in the shower.  So much for washing my hair.

Is it just me or are Fruit Roll-Ups not nearly as good as they use to be?

Later. 

 

Band of Brothers!

I will be the first to tell you that I have been terrible at keeping up on this blig, to be honest it has been shamefull.  I have an amazing story to share, and it is comming, but all I want to say at this moment is, thank you my Band of Brothers.

 

This made me LMAO!

A West Virginia man may be the first defendant to ever be charged with passing gas in the face of a law enforcement officer. Cruz, 34, was driving with his car’s headlights off Monday night when he was pulled over by West Charleston cops, who noted that Cruz appeared to be intoxicated. After failing a series of field sobriety tests, Cruz was arrested and transported to police headquarters, where he allegedly committed another offense, according to a September 23 criminal complaint (a copy of which you can find here). While being fingerprinted, Cruz allegedly “lifted his leg and passed gas loudly on Ptlm. Parsons. The defendant then fanned the air with his hand in front of his rear onto” the cop. “The gas,” the complaint notes, “was very odorous and created contact of an insulting or provoking nature with Ptlm. Parsons.” In addition to the DUI count, Cruz was also charged with battery on a police officer for the farting incident. In a TSG interview, Cruz said that while he “farted multiple times,” it “wasn’t directly in [the cop's] face.” Asked if he fanned the fetid air toward the officer, Cruz admitted that he did, but said it was in retaliation for the cop insisting he take a breath test while he was having an asthma attack. “I said, ‘Here, put that in your Breathalyzer,” he recalled. Cruz, who works as a boilermaker, said that he has been arrested more than a dozen times, including twice previously for drunk driving. After posting $500 bond, Cruz was released this morning from a Charleston jail where he had been held on the misdemeanor charges.

Story take from “The Smoking Gun”.

 

Can you say “BURN”! I love this guy.

You got to love this guy…

This is a true story about a recent
wedding that took place at Clemson University .

It was in the local newspaper and even
Jay Leno mentioned it.

It was a huge wedding with about 300 guests.

After the wedding, at the reception, the groom got up on stage

with a microphone to talk to the crowd.
He said he wanted to thank
everyone for coming, many from
long distances, to support them
at their wedding.

He especially wanted to thank the bride’s and his family

and to thank his new father-in-law for providing such a lavish reception.

As a token of his deep appreciation
he said he wanted to give everyone
a special gift just from him.

So taped to the bottom of
everyone’s chair, including the wedding party, was an envelope.

He said this was his gift to
everyone, and asked them to
open their envelope.

Inside each manila envelope was an 8×10 glossy

of his bride having sex with the best man.

The groom had gotten suspicious
of them weeks earlier and had
hired a private detective to tail
them.

After just standing there, just watching the guests’ reactions
for a couple of minutes, he
turned to the best man and
said, ‘F—you!’ Then he turned
to his bride and said, ‘F— you!’

Then he turned to the
dumbfounded crowd and said,
‘I’m outta here.’

He had the marriage annulled
first thing in the morning.

While most people would have canceled the wedding
immediately after finding out
about the affair, this
guy goes through with the
charade, as if nothing were wrong.

His revenge–making the bride’s parents pay over $32,000 for a
300-guest wedding and reception, and trashing the
bride’s and best man’s reputations
in front of 300 friends and family members.

This guy has balls the size of church bells.

 

Is this possible? Has hell frozen over? Favre to Vikings?

A sports radio station out of Milwaukee, WSSP, is reporting on its website that the Vikings “already have inquired about signing [Brett] Favre, pending his release from the Packers.” (Technically, the Vikings would have had to call the Packers because Favre is under contract to the team.)

While Minnesota certainly could have interest in Favre the problem is that there is no indication the Packers are going to grant Favre his wish and release him. That means the only option for Favre to get to the Vikings would be via a trade and Packers General Manager Ted Thompson isn’t about to deal the future Hall of Fame quarterback to an arch-rival in the same division.

All of that being said, there are a couple reasons why Favre might want to end up in Minnesota. He remains very close to Vikings offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell, who served as his quarterbacks coach at one point in Green Bay. Favre also would be stepping into a version of the West Coast offense that is very similar to what the Packers ran under former coach Mike Sherman.

This means if the Vikings could get Favre — and, to repeat, that appears to be a huge long shot — they could plug him into the offense very quickly and the fact he missed all of the offseason workouts wouldn’t be that big of deal.

 

My first home away from home.

As I was sitting here in my room the other day, I couldn’t help think about our very first apartment when I first left the nest at the ripe old age of eighteen.  Maybe it has to do with the fact my living area is still fairly sparse, and, well, so was our first apartment.  It was a very small 375 square foot efficiency apartment, at the time it really didn’t seem that bad, but thinking back, it was no bigger than a large walk-in closet.  There were four of us living in this mousetrap, the bed was directly behind the couch, the kitchen sink was a few feet from the bed, and your knees overlapped into the toilet when you used the privy.  But it was cheap, and it was home.  I remember when we had a few guests over, there would be people sleeping on nearly every square inch of floor space, and that’s only a hand full of people mind you.  We had a TV from the 70’s, the VCR was state of the art at the time, and coming from a small town, I had never heard of these strange things called “Dollar Stores”, boy what a godsend those were when your just starting out.  If we would have had garage sale with everything we had in that apartment, including the furniture, we would have made a grand total of about nine bucks, Oh, the glory days.  If I remember correctly, the rent was $375 or so, and split a few ways was almost like living for free, but it felt like allot then, and it was.  I found these old photos in a shoebox, yea, just about how I remember it.