Why rent the cow when you can borrow the milk for free? That seems to be the mindset of many Americans, as a new study claims that more DVDs are borrowed from libraries each day than are rented via Netflix, Redbox or Blockbuster.
According to the survey released by the Online Computer Library Center, public libraries in the U.S. lend an average 2.1 million videos/day, which edges out the 2 million discs shipped by Netflix and almost as much as the combined total of DVD rentals at Redbox (1.4 million) and Blockbuster (1.2 million).
Netflix shrugs off the idea of libraries as competition to their business. “I think of libraries as places for books,” explains a rep for the company. “It’s free, so it’s a whole different model.”
Another recent report says that libraries have doubled the size of their movie collections over the last decade — and library users have taken notice.
Says one librarian:
Friday nights, the hour before we close, it’s like a video store… People are running to get their movies before the weekend.
How many of you are scoring movies from your local library? Just remember to return the DVDs or you might be arrested.
Study: Libraries Top The Competition In Lending Movies [Courant.com]
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That’s true mine even has wii games for rent
Surprisingly, the library’s limited selection contains more movies I want to see than Netflix or Redbox. You actually get a nice mix of recent blockbusters and old classics, without all the filler
I didn’t know that you could rent DVD’s from the library, much less the type of DVD’s available on Netflix!
The rep that made the comment that they feel libraries are for books and not DVD’s may be one to eat their words in the near future. Much like Microsoft when they said the iPhone was just a phone. Never say never especially when the numbers don’t lie.
The libraries are trying really hard to get people in there, they have to justify the money that is being spent in them somehow. I can tell you from experience that my library stocks some good movies, can’t wait for them to start renting movies on Blu-ray…and then streaming movies to the net but I don’t know how they would make money from this.
Most large city libraries offer electronic books and journals via the internet (PDF files and audio books). I check out audio books from San Antonio Public Library and Houston Public Library. My principal residence is in San Antonio, but Houston Public offers cards to anyone with an in-state drivers license. Many libraries do so for people who live in-state (depends on the state, I think . . . Colorado and California are leaders in this). So, although small libraries may not be able to afford electronic collections, it may be possible for people in small towns or rural areas to access large city library electronic collections. I spend a lot of time in Mexico these days, and it’s wonderful to listen to books from there.
My library has a great selection of movies that you can check out – their selection is better than Redbox. The catch? You can’t reserve one. You have to just be there when one that is popular is returned. So I’ve been trying to get the Twilight movies and Sherlock Holmes for my grandkids to watch. I think it’s time to bite the bullet and just rent them.
Ultimately.. Netflix is a better deal, at least from the libraries that are local
it cost to rent DVDs (not blu-rays), and there is no streaming service.
oh and LATE charges!!!
You think queues are “very long wait” at Netflix try getting a popular movie from the library. Most libraries you can take video items out for two weeks or longer. For TV series that might be a problem but for regular films it works (that is unless you’re waiting for the 1st season of Glee) you might be waiting for more than a year.
I haven’t rented a movie from Netflix or Blockbuster in years. I haven’t even heard of Redbox. There’s no point when you have a system like ours in the San Francisco Bay Area, 30+ libraries sharing thousands of DVDs between branches. They are starting to hit the BluRay market too, which is great! The library is always looking out of the consumer.
/// Friday nights, the hour before we close, it’s like a video store… People are running to get their movies before the weekend. ///
This is true at my library. I’ve only recently started going to the library to rent DVDs and was stunned by how large their collection was. They had the latest movie releases, plus foreign movies, old classic movies, documentaries, TV shows, cartoons, music DVDs, health/exercise DVDs, and so forth. They have many movies on Blu-Ray, too.
So I’ve been renting DVDs from the library for the past three months now and love it. I see no reason to pay money (and exorbitant late fees) to rent movies from Netflix or Redbox.
The new york city public library is rather awesome. They have a video queue and everything. Only problem is, you have to wait forever!