DVD Rentals

Written by Clair Andropov

Tuesday, 20 June 2006

I have always been a staunch fan of film. Given the time and the opportunity, I would like to spend most of my time watching movies at home. The DVD technology has also made the quality of home viewing incomparable. I can get the effects that were so long only possible only in movie theatres. But there continues to remain one big problem. The DVDs available in the market are undoubtedly better than the VCDs of old. But they are also prohibitively expensive. As an individual, I cannot afford to buy more than a DVD or two a month. And bartering DVDs does not provide me with the wide choice I would like. Most of my friends have not so similar taste. And often, I don’t like the DVDs they have in their personal libraries. So I turned to the internet for help and discovered the fascinating world of DVD rental. Imagine an online listing of all the best movies you have ever heard about, in DVD version, filed alphabetically. And the best part is that they are made affordable as they are rented out, as opposed to being sold. Think of it as an extension of the old video library, but in DVD versions. In fact, this is how the older DVD rental services operated. You browsed through their catalogue to find the movie you wanted, called or mailed them with the details of your order and walked to the store at your convenience to pick up the DVD to watch and enjoy at home. Paying a small monthly membership ensured that you got the DVDs for as little as a dollar a view. As opposed to the prohibitive cost you would have to pay to buy them. Again, technology made things even better. When video and DVD rental firms started putting-up websites, a whole world of possibilities emerged. Now, you no longer had to go personally to the DVD rental store to pick up the movie of your choice. You could order on the website and the DVD rental service would send across the DVD by physical mail. The packet usually contained a return paid envelope which you could use to send back the DVD after having viewed it And your next DVD would soon arrive. Most DVD rental services offer some variation of this basic premise as far as DVD rentals go. Some operators will allow you to retain the DVD for as long as you like for no extra charge except the monthly service charge while other DVD rental services have a two or three day period before which you have to return the DVD, or pay more as a late fee. Even with all these additional charges, a DVD rental service still beats buying DVDs hands down. www.blockbuster.com and www.netflix.com are probably some of the best known DVD rental services in America. Suffice it to say, DVDs and their new variations will be the key entertainment source for years to come With a considerable online library of thousands of quality DVDs and a member base that includes nearly a million individuals, they have proven beyond a doubt that DVD rental is a lucrative online business and a real one at that.

Last Updated ( Friday, 30 June 2006 )

 

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