Redbox, Universal renew deal with 28-day delay

[March 02, 2012]  LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Cut-rate rental DVD kiosk operator Redbox said Thursday that it has renewed a deal to carry movies made by Universal Pictures 28 days after discs are made available for sale.

The deal extends through August 2014 a pact first made in April 2010.

Hollywood studios have differing views of how long Redbox, a subsidiary of Coinstar Inc., must wait after discs are released for sale. Some worry that consumers will rent instead of buying discs, which cuts into profits, while other studios don't see a negative impact from renting and selling at the same time.

Time Warner Inc.'s Warner Bros. said in January that it would not sell Redbox discs for rental until 56 days after they are released for sale, doubling the delay from a previous deal in a bid to encourage purchases.

But Redbox has been able get the discs through other sources, so now Warner Bros.' titles are available seven days after release.

Comcast Corp.'s Universal and News Corp.'s 20th Century Fox sell discs to Redbox at a discount as long as the kiosk operator waits 28 days after their release for sale.

Sony Corp., The Walt Disney Co., Viacom Inc.'s Paramount and Lions Gate Entertainment Corp. all provide Redbox with discs at a discount the same day they are released for sale.

Shares in Coinstar, which is based in Bellevue, Wash., rose $2.74, or 4.7 percent, to close at $60.97 on Thursday.

[Associated Press]

Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.