Movie rental crash is ruining my browse

Published 3:42 pm Monday, March 15, 2010

I may just be in my mid-20s, but I’ve been around long enough to see at least one of my favorite past-times start to fade away: The movie rental browse.

Back when I was a kid, teenager and even college student — the local Blockbuster was a mainstay on the weekends.

As great as Cullman is, it can be somewhat lacking when it comes to weekend entertainment. So, when there was nothing better to do, friends and I would often get together and rent a movie to watch.

On some slow nights I could spend close to a half-hour making my way through the aisles, browsing new releases and old favorites on the discount racks. (I know. I’m boring). It was a great way to discover new movies, or find an old movie you used to love, but haven’t seen in years.

But, nowadays, the movie rental browse is on the verge of being lost for good.

Across the country, Blockbuster has suffered a fourth-quarter loss of $435 million, and is planning to close up to 545 of its U.S. stores this year. Rentals have dropped significantly, and it seems no one can find a way to stop the bleeding.

Even locally, the south side Movie Gallery on Cherokee Avenue has a huge “Going Out of Business” banner hanging up, and will shutter its doors sometime soon. That’s one less rental option in town.

So, who’s to blame for this shift? Convenience.

With everything from iTunes online movie rentals, mail-in rental services like Netflix and Redbox movie rental kiosks — there are just too many cheaper, convenient options out there (Not to mention the growing popularity of illegally downloading movies).

I’ll admit I’ve used Netflix in the past, and downloaded a movie or two from iTunes. Plus, every time I drive by a local Redbox kiosk on the weekend, there’s a line to get to it.

It’s obviously a major shift in the way people interact with media. Is this a bad thing? Maybe it’s just the direction things are moving?

Technology has already completely changed the way we purchase music (with more albums than ever now sold online, and even my mom has an iTunes account). It was only a matter of time until movie rentals were next on the chopping block.

So, will the next few years usher in the end of an era? No, I don’t believe things are that dire. But, I do think some of the major chains will buckle down and close a lot of stores in the next few years.

Here in Cullman County, though, I think we’ll be all right. With Movie Factory, and a  handful of other local shops, firmly entrenched in the community — I believe they’re here to stay.

But, I do believe we’re going to have less and less options as time goes by, which is not a good thing in the long run.

Netflix, Redbox and iTunes are great, don’t get me wrong. But, I’m really going to miss my browse.

* Trent Moore can be reached by e-mail at trentm@cullmantimes.com, or by telephone at 734-2131, ext. 225.