20th Century Fox fans don’t have to worry about the studio’s movies disappearing from their local Redbox kiosks anytime soon. The companies have renewed their partnership, reaching a new two-year distribution deal that maintains a 28-day window on new Blu-Ray and DVD releases through June 30, 2017. In essence, Redbox will continue to offer Fox titles, but they must still wait 28 days from a film’s release on disc until they make it available for rental.
By working with Redbox, 20th Century Fox has given discs a nod. Mike Dunn, worldwide president of 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment, shared that packaged media rentals are still a valuable part of home entertainment. “This arrangement with Redbox upholds our retail and rental strategy, while allowing us to continue to deliver the best available movies and TV shows in the market to our customers,” he said in a statement. “We aggressively seek out ways to provide the greatest access to all our content while ensuring it makes the best sense for our business.”
The 28-day embargo Redbox has agreed to has become commonplace. It’s one included in the company’s agreements with various other studios, including a deal with Warner Home Video that was renewed in March. By delaying the availability of inexpensive rentals, the studios anticipate that many fans will elect to purchase new releases during the 28-day period. Of course, viewers who don’t want to commit to a purchase can simply wait out the window for rental.
While it’s very rare to find a video rental shop to wander the aisles of anymore, 20th Century Fox’s decision helps ensure that we can still select our evening’s entertainment in disc form, courtesy of Redbox. In spite of the fact that digital content’s popularity is rapidly increasing, the renewed deal indicates that discs are keeping a tight grip on their relevance.
