# It's time for brick-and-mortar video rental stores to come back **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [January 20, 2019, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-time-for-brick-and-mortar-video-rental-stores-to-come-back/828127 "2019-01-20T22:43:30Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![MoonMoon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/moonmoon/32/2959_2.png) [@MoonMoon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MoonMoon)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2019, 8:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-time-for-brick-and-mortar-video-rental-stores-to-come-back/828127/41 "2019-01-21T20:47:52Z")
Ugh, count me in the group that hated going to the movie rental store. I also don’t want to own movies or series. I am not a re-watcher, so physical DVDs are just clutter. Plus, I don’t even own anything on which to play a DVD (nor do I want one). There is so much stuff to watch on the various streaming services that I’ll never get through it all. I’ve just never had the experience of wanting to watch something and not having it available…unless it was brand new and not out yet. In conclusion, you’re all a bunch of oldstufflovers. 🆒 ---
**Author:** ![control-z](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/eada6e/32.png) [@control-z](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/control-z)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2019, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-time-for-brick-and-mortar-video-rental-stores-to-come-back/828127/42 "2019-01-21T20:54:11Z")
I never enjoyed going to the rental stores. Streaming is what I want, but the price for new movies should be $1 or even 50 cents rather than $4 or more. And yeah there is more on Netflix and Hulu and Amazon Prime than I will ever watch, but most of it isn’t stuff I know I want to see, it’s more like prospecting for an occasional gold nugget in a field of mud. ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2019, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-time-for-brick-and-mortar-video-rental-stores-to-come-back/828127/43 "2019-01-21T21:03:27Z")
So what’s the difference between paying $5 to rent a streaming movie on iTunes or Amazon or Google/YouTube, and going to a DVD rental store and paying $5 to rent a movie there? You said you already do the former. Why would you prefer the latter? As far as I can tell, movies are available for rent on Amazon and iTunes as soon as they’re on DVD. ---
**Author:** ![HurricaneDitka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/96bed5/32.png) [@HurricaneDitka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HurricaneDitka)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2019, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-time-for-brick-and-mortar-video-rental-stores-to-come-back/828127/44 "2019-01-21T21:09:40Z")
> [@Acsenray](#): > > … Bring back the physical video rental place! Display those objects! Encourage browsing! Append a café! Have in-store movie festivals and lectures. Include video games and video game tournaments! > > Someone do this? All over the country? Please? No. Just imagine the carbon footprint of all those people driving their cars to and from video rental stores to rent and return videos. Won’t someone think of the children? ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2019, 9:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-time-for-brick-and-mortar-video-rental-stores-to-come-back/828127/45 "2019-01-21T21:12:00Z")
> [@control-z](#): > > Streaming is what I want, but the price for new movies should be $1 or even 50 cents rather than $4 or more. “Should be” based on what? ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2019, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-time-for-brick-and-mortar-video-rental-stores-to-come-back/828127/46 "2019-01-21T21:17:36Z")
> [@MoonMoon](#): > > Ugh, count me in the group that hated going to the movie rental store. > > I also don’t want to own movies or series. I am not a re-watcher, so physical DVDs are just clutter. Plus, I don’t even own anything on which to play a DVD (nor do I want one). > > There is so much stuff to watch on the various streaming services that I’ll never get through it all. I’ve just never had the experience of wanting to watch something and not having it available…unless it was brand new and not out yet. > > In conclusion, you’re all a bunch of oldstufflovers. Some of us haven’t yet attained the enlightenment that lets us realize that all great works of art were created by a major American media company within the last two years. And that therefore every great movie can be found among the two hundred choices offered by a Red Box. ---
**Author:** ![snoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/43a26b/32.png) [@snoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snoe)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2019, 9:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-time-for-brick-and-mortar-video-rental-stores-to-come-back/828127/47 "2019-01-21T21:19:23Z")
> [@romansperson](#): > > Even public libraries are going to streaming now. A couple of the ones I have access to offer movies and shows through services they have subscriptions to. One specific example for those looking for classic/arthouse movies: see if your library subscribes to **Kanopy**. Mine does – we get five free rentals per month per library card account. Buncha Criterion Collection-type stuff, documentaries, and some newer releases from smaller studios/distributors. ---
**Author:** ![filmore](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/7993a0/32.png) [@filmore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/filmore)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2019, 9:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-time-for-brick-and-mortar-video-rental-stores-to-come-back/828127/48 "2019-01-21T21:29:06Z")
I really miss the early days of streaming when Netflix had acquired the rights to a lot of stuff for cheap. They had lots of great choices. Now it’s all split up or only available with on-demand rentals. One thing I like about my Roku is I can do a search in the Roku Search area and it will find the show in whichever streaming services offer it that I have installed. Sometimes I think I’ll have to rent the movie and then Roku will find it for free on Netflix or Amazon Prime. ---
**Author:** ![begbert2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/begbert2/32/3357_2.png) [@begbert2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/begbert2)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2019, 9:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-time-for-brick-and-mortar-video-rental-stores-to-come-back/828127/49 "2019-01-21T21:36:19Z")
We don’t need brick and mortal rental stores, with their limited selection and travel time and such. We need a digital rental store that all content providers license their stuff for rent through at standard prices, like they did through the physical stores. And by “we”, I mean all you guys, because I’m gonna keep buying my stuff on physical media forever! Bwahahaha! ---
**Author:** ![filmore](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/7993a0/32.png) [@filmore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/filmore)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2019, 9:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-time-for-brick-and-mortar-video-rental-stores-to-come-back/828127/50 "2019-01-21T21:53:43Z")
> [@begbert2](#): > > We don’t need brick and mortal rental stores, with their limited selection and travel time and such. We need a digital rental store that all content providers license their stuff for rent through at standard prices, like they did through the physical stores. If you’re looking to rent over streaming, don’t we kind of have this today? Maybe not from one provider, but if you’re renting it shouldn’t matter. Add the free apps for RedBox, Amazon, Vudu, Fandango, Google Play, iTunes, etc to your streaming device and then rent from whichever one has the movie you want. The exception would be if a subscription provider has exclusive rights to some content it might not be available for rent on other providers. One benefit to the streaming apps is that they often recommend other movies based around the one you picked. They can show what other customers also rented or other movies you may like. It can be a way to help you discover movies you might not have otherwise found. ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2019, 10:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-time-for-brick-and-mortar-video-rental-stores-to-come-back/828127/51 "2019-01-21T22:01:12Z")
> [@Lemur866](#): > > Don’t you guys have phones? Can’t watch a tape on a phone, pal. So I use a player to play an old tape for video capture. ---
**Author:** ![begbert2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/begbert2/32/3357_2.png) [@begbert2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/begbert2)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2019, 10:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-time-for-brick-and-mortar-video-rental-stores-to-come-back/828127/52 "2019-01-21T22:05:56Z")
> [@filmore](#): > > If you’re looking to rent over streaming, don’t we kind of have this today? Maybe not from one provider, but if you’re renting it shouldn’t matter. Add the free apps for RedBox, Amazon, Vudu, Fandango, Google Play, iTunes, etc to your streaming device and then rent from whichever one has the movie you want. The exception would be if a subscription provider has exclusive rights to some content it might not be available for rent on other providers. Well, _ **I** _ find renting to be psychologically reprehensible (moreso than I find streaming, oddly), so you won’t find _me_ looking for that. As for people who are willing to rent content, I can only assume they don’t like such services because they think they’re too expensive, maybe? We’ve all been conditioned to want to pay less for content when it’s downloaded, because it weighs less than physical media. > [@filmore](#): > > One benefit to the streaming apps is that they often recommend other movies based around the one you picked. They can show what other customers also rented or other movies you may like. It can be a way to help you discover movies you might not have otherwise found. Sure. A unified rental app could do the same. A dozen separate ones not so much, of course. ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2019, 10:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-time-for-brick-and-mortar-video-rental-stores-to-come-back/828127/53 "2019-01-21T22:46:22Z")
> [@Lemur866](#): > > Don’t you guys have phones? Sure. I have a flip phone. ---
**Author:** ![begbert2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/begbert2/32/3357_2.png) [@begbert2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/begbert2)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2019, 10:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-time-for-brick-and-mortar-video-rental-stores-to-come-back/828127/54 "2019-01-21T22:48:08Z")
> [@Broomstick](#): > > Sure. > > I have a flip phone. I’ve got a landline. Works great. Does everything I could possibly want a phone to do. ---
**Author:** ![AlsoNamedBort](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alsonamedbort/32/3213_2.png) [@AlsoNamedBort](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AlsoNamedBort)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2019, 10:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-time-for-brick-and-mortar-video-rental-stores-to-come-back/828127/55 "2019-01-21T22:53:12Z")
> [@begbert2](#): > > Well, _ **I** _ find renting to be psychologically reprehensible (moreso than I find streaming, oddly), so you won’t find _me_ looking for that. As for people who are willing to rent content, I can only assume they don’t like such services because they think they’re too expensive, maybe? We’ve all been conditioned to want to pay less for content when it’s downloaded, because it weighs less than physical media. > > Sure. A unified rental app could do the same. A dozen separate ones not so much, of course. When it comes to renting (as opposed to subscription based streaming), pretty much all the services have all the same movies for the same price (outside of occasional sales). So the service you want to use is really dependent on your own preferences. Like I normally use Google Play because it plays well with Chromecast and I usually have Google Play credit. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2019, 11:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-time-for-brick-and-mortar-video-rental-stores-to-come-back/828127/56 "2019-01-21T23:13:46Z")
> [@Lemur866](#): > > Don’t you guys have phones? I’m trying to imagine watching a movie on a tiny little screen that’s the size of this reply window. It would be horrible. ---
**Author:** ![dorvann](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/df705f/32.png) [@dorvann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dorvann)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2019, 11:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-time-for-brick-and-mortar-video-rental-stores-to-come-back/828127/57 "2019-01-21T23:32:47Z")
> [@Lemur866](#): > > Don’t you guys have phones? Do you mean one of these? [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Model\_500\_telephone#/media/File:Model500Telephone1951.jpg](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Model_500_telephone#/media/File:Model500Telephone1951.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![Lucas\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lucas_jackson/32/303_2.png) [@Lucas\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lucas_Jackson)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2019, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-time-for-brick-and-mortar-video-rental-stores-to-come-back/828127/58 "2019-01-22T02:38:44Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > Some of us haven’t yet attained the enlightenment that lets us realize that all great works of art were created by a major American media company within the last two years. And that therefore every great movie can be found among the two hundred choices offered by a Red Box. This makes no sense at all. I love documentaries, old movies, art films etc. Netflix was a godsend when it came out. They have a very long tale regarding those kinds of things. It was Blockbuster that only carried the current offerings, save maybe a small foreign film shelf. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2019, 4:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-time-for-brick-and-mortar-video-rental-stores-to-come-back/828127/59 "2019-01-22T04:23:54Z")
These descriptions of video stores having only the latest hits is foreign to me. Blockbuster didn’t end to have more hits, but they had a lot more. And if you went to a rival like Hollywood Video, the variety was great. There used to be a lot of independent places with their own quirks. And the Hollywood Video I went to was huge. The physical act of browsing through physical objects in the company of other people was a very fertile ground for discovery and learning. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2019, 6:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-time-for-brick-and-mortar-video-rental-stores-to-come-back/828127/60 "2019-01-22T06:50:11Z")
> [@Lucas\_Jackson](#): > > This makes no sense at all. I love documentaries, old movies, art films etc. Netflix was a godsend when it came out. They have a very long tale regarding those kinds of things. It was Blockbuster that only carried the current offerings, save maybe a small foreign film shelf. Netflix may have had a great selection when it started out but its choices have been diminishing year by year. They’re putting most of their money into producing their own series now. The average Blockbuster had ten thousand movies in its inventory. Netflix currently has less than four thousand. Hell, I have more movies than that. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-time-for-brick-and-mortar-video-rental-stores-to-come-back/828127.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-time-for-brick-and-mortar-video-rental-stores-to-come-back/828127.md?page=4)