Redbox vs. Blockbuster.
The entertainment powerhouse that was once Blockbuster is a perfect example of an industry that has fallen victim to disruptive technology in our economy. Many of us can remember having a blockbuster in virtually every town. Not to say that disruptive technology is a bad thing, it just changes the current marketplace to more efficiently meet consumer demands and standards of quality. I think that we live in an age where consumers expect everything to be like Burger King, you have it your way. Businesses and industries that can adapt to consumer expectations the fastest are the survivors. Information technology has leveled the playing field while Blockbuster for whatever reason may have thought they were safe behind the walls of the of brick and mortar stores they built in every single town. Now, Blockbuster is copying Redbox’s technology with Blockbuster Express. The idea is almost identical to Redbox movie kiosks. This is reminiscent of the narrative in our textbook of Citibank’s ATM. Once they introduced the ATM to the industry, every other bank copied their technology. It is obvious that Blockbuster has gone into survival mode. One must wonder, did they move too slowly to try and catch up with new technology, or has the damage already been done? J. Ishman
Blockbuster, unfortunately, was the late entry in the game. In my opinion, they fell victim to the thought that "people love movies and will continue to rent them". They, however, did not count on technology ramping up on them so quickly - to have RedBox conveniently at the grocery store and to have Netflix streamdown movies over the internet is quite the difference than going to a tradional brick and mortor store. Hopefully, Blockbuster will be able to get back their part of the market share.
ReplyDeleteBlockbuster, unfortunately, was the late comer in this game. How can a regular brick and mortor store compete against Redbox when they are located in convenient places and only charge a few dollars to rent a movie? Also, how can you compete against Netflix when you don't even have to leave your home to get the latest release? Now that Blockbuster has copied Redbox, maybe they can regain at least some of the market share that they lost.
ReplyDeleteWhile reading this, Netflix was in the back of mind. I think Netflix has the potential to be the RedBox of the future. Streaming instantly at the click of a remote is about as convenient as it comes. If they are able to effectively update their instant selection, while continuing to provide excellent mailbox service, I think they can overcome RedBox and become a dominating force in their industry. However, recent price changes puts Netflix at risk of being a "blockbuster". Raising prices is typically never a good things. Especially when the price increase doesn't really gain the consumer much in return. This brings me back to the point of significantly updating their instant selection.
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