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Universal, NCR agree to 28-day delay for DVDs at BLOCKBUSTER Express kiosks

October 6, 2010

NCR Corp. and Universal Studios Home Entertainment announced that Universal’s new release titles will be available at NCR's BLOCKBUSTER Express DVD-rental kiosks 28 days after initial release. The agreement meets Universal's established window for its physical and digital offerings.

NCR and Universal also agreed to test a premium rental offer on select Universal titles at the kiosks the same day they are released for sale (day-and-date). NCR plans to test the availability of these select Universal titles at kiosks in designated markets, giving consumers the option of renting new titles nearly a month earlier. The two companies also will test DVD sell-through at BLOCKBUSTER Express kiosks.

As part of the arrangement, Universal will directly supply NCR with new release DVD and Blu-ray titles effective immediately, beginning with "Robin Hood" and "Get Him to the Greek."

The agreement provides NCR with a more efficient means for acquiring and packaging media for its nearly 7,000 BLOCKBUSTER Express kiosks, while maintaining access for customers, NCR says. The agreement also gives NCR and Universal the opportunity to clearly define the consumer interest in day-and-date DVD rentals.

Each BLOCKBUSTER Express kiosk has a capacity for 950 DVDs, and NCR says it is the only DVD-kiosk operator also delivering movies digitally to consumers. Movies can then be converted for movie and music download to portable memory devices, such as SD or flash memory cards.