Warner Bros. Slaps Blockbuster With 28-Day Movie Rental Delay

Along with several other major movie studios, Warner Bros. restricts Netflix and Redbox from offering its movies for rent until 28 days after they go on sale. For months, Blockbuster has been immune to such restrictions, trumpeting early access to films as one of the few reasons to still bother visiting a rental store. But now Warner has taken that meager advantage away.

The Financial Times reports the studio will now only let Blockbuster sell its films on their DVD release dates. They’ll now have to wait four weeks to rent them, just like everyone else.

The move coincides with Warner’s introduction of its controversial digital copy streaming service that comes with new movies in an effort to make disc ownership more appealing. Analysts expect Warner Bros. to attempt to stretch the 28-day delays even longer when the current agreements expire.

Warner stops giving Blockbuster latest films [Financial Times via L.A. Times]

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