There was a time, in the not too distant past, when a trip to the local video store with the family was a weekly or monthly treat. If you were lucky enough to have a larger video rental store that had multiple copies of new releases and thousands of DVDs on hand, there was a good chance you could find movies for everyone. But a few things have happened since those days that have made video rental stores all but obsolete.
For starters, big outlets like Blockbuster have been pushed out of the traditional video rental business to seek salvation online. For most of us, our video stores are nothing more than corner convenience stores with a few hundred movies available at any given time. Space is at a premium for these guys, so they can only afford to have a few copies of new releases along with a handful of older movie rental titles available at any one time. It’s a little frustrating to go out only to find out that the movie you had your heart set on is always out.
Plus, overnight returns and the inconvenience that comes with them often rack up late fees that often would have been cheaper if we had bought the DVD. And what if you’re going on a road trip or heading to the country house for a weekend: 24-hour rental periods just aren’t enough for many of us. And what about the actual rental rate? $3 or more for movie rental? Everyone with a cable or satellite subscription has access to pay-per-view movie rentals, and the concept is pretty solid. The downside is that typical pay-per-view rentals cost $5 or more. I’m not sure convenience is worth much more.
Maybe it’s time for you to rent movies online!
Why? Well, instead of talking about online movie rental and why it’s the right choice for you, let me make my case with the following list of 10 reasons why it’s time for you to rent movies online.
1. Selection. If you rent movies online from instant movie streaming or DVDs by mail-in providers, you’ll generally have access to anywhere from a few thousand to over 80,000 movie and TV titles to choose from. Your local video store probably can’t find a match for that kind of selection.
2.Availability. With few exceptions, the movie you want is always available. Most DVD-by-mail services have hundreds of copies of individual movie titles on hand. Instant movie streaming services like Netflix have no limits on the number of subscribers who watch individual movie titles. If you rent movies online, your favorites are almost always available.
3. Savings. When you rent online DVD movies by mail order services, they usually have subscription plans that allow multiple, some even unlimited, DVD rentals per month for monthly rates as low as $5.95. Even if you only rent movies online just twice a month, you’re already ahead of the curve. With instant video streaming services, typical plans cost around $8 or more per month or, if you go with a rental provider like iTunes or YouTube, you’ll typically pay $0.99 – $3.99 per online movie rental. Although the latter may be priced close to what you’re currently paying at your local video store, you need to consider points 1 and 2 (Selection, Availability), and more importantly point 4, which is “Convenience”. “.
4. Comfort. Your local video outlet or convenience store will never be easier for you than when you rent movies online. Bottom line: Buying a movie rental online from your computer, tablet, or TV means you never have to leave home for movie night again. And online movie rental providers are open 24/7, which means you can rent movies online anytime you want, day or night, from just about anywhere. Instant video streaming services allow you to choose a movie and start watching it right away. DVD by mail services will deliver movies to your mailbox, free of charge, within 1-3 days.
5. No late fees, ever! This is important to me and maybe to you too. When you rent movies online from instant video streaming services, you generally have up to 30 days to start watching your movie and 24 to 48 hours to watch as often as you like. After that period has elapsed, the rental is automatically removed from your rental library. If you rent movies from an unlimited subscription provider like Netflix, then there is no limit to the number of times you watch a movie and you never have to remember to return it. On the DVD by mail side, they have no expiration dates and no late fees. Instead, they often put a limit on the number of DVD movies you can rent at one time. You can keep them for days, weeks, or months and return them when you’re done. This is especially helpful when renting movies for kids, as we all know that they can watch the same movie multiple times a day for days on end.
6. Navigation. Your local video store will usually have a wall or section dedicated to new releases. The rest of your catalog will be organized alphabetically or by genre or not at all. Searching for movie titles can take hours if you are undecided. When you rent movies online, all providers offer easy-to-use websites that allow you to search for movies alphabetically, by genre, by year, by director, by actor, by rating, and more. Choosing a movie to watch online is a piece of cake.
7. TV shows and special genres. I know this is listed under “Selection” but the fact is most smaller video stores just don’t have seasons of your favorite TV shows. And they usually don’t have much to do with foreign language movies, documentaries, or more obscure movies.
8. Interactive Features. One nice thing about online movie rentals when browsing their provider’s website is the ability to view trailers, read viewer reviews, and many also offer a suggestion feature that will provide similar titles for you to check out.
9. Flexibility. When you rent movies online for download or instant viewing, you have a wide variety of choices when it comes to devices. You can watch on Internet-enabled TVs, BluRay players, game consoles like Wii – Xbox – PS3, PC, Mac, tablets and other portable devices. Of course, not all services allow you to stream on all of these devices, but you’re definitely not limited to just watching on your TV.
10.Options. Most small towns or neighborhoods may only have a few video rental stores for you to choose from, and most with more or less the same selection and prices. When you rent movies online, you have more options at your disposal. You can choose a DVD by mail or instant movie streaming provider, and if you don’t like their selection or service, you can try a host of other providers. None of them have long-term contracts to bind you to their service.
And while this is supposed to be a list of 10 reasons to rent movies online, here’s one more. Many online movie rental services offer free trial periods from 2 weeks to 1 month so you can check if you like the service or not.
