Nerd Rant: DVD and Blu-Ray Rental Nazis Say, "No Extra Features For YOU!"



Something odd happened to my wife and me the other day. We were watching a DVD movie from Netflix and after we watched the movie, we liked it enough to want to see the extra features that were listed on the DVD's menu--the deleted scenes, the production features, and so on. All of the menu links appeared on the screen, so there was no reason to assume that we could not access these extra features. Yet no matter what feature we selected, a black screen would appear with a message that said that the DVD we rented was for rental purposes ONLY and that we'd actually have to buy the movie we watched to see the extra features.

This is the first time that I've encountered this problem, and I don't think that it's all-encompassing (yet). After all, we later watched another DVD from Netflix and we could access the extras on that disc with no problems whatsoever. Yet to have a rented DVD forbid us from watching the extras and explicitly tell us to buy the movie if we wanted to learn more about it was a bit of a shock after almost a decade of renting DVDs and the extra features that came with them without a single hassle. Read on ...

As a film fan, the extra features on DVDs and Blu-rays have been pure bliss. The extras were one of the welcome attributes that set DVDs and Blu-rays apart from VHS tapes and by extension they also enriched the movie rental experience. Some discs have had too few features while others had too many, and some features have been complete wastes of time. Nevertheless, the features shed a lot of light on movies--how they were made, how they were received by the public and the critical community when they were first released, what was left out of the movie's final cut, etc.--so I'd much rather have them than not.

I can see why Netflix and possibly other DVD/Blu-ray rental companies are getting rid of the extra features on their discs. We're currently in the middle of a major transition in how movies are distributed to the public, so I'm sure that all sorts of business models are being tossed around as to how to make movies both convenient to watch and profitable for Hollywood. DVD and Blu-ray rentals have been on the decline for years now, and this strategy was probably cooked up by some movie company executive as a way to boost sales.

As a means to increase movie sales, I doubt that this strategy will work. I think that the most likely outcomes are that casual viewers will just shrug it off while more curious viewers will find the information they seek for free on the Internet about the movie they just rented; either way, neither group will buy the movie on DVD or Blu-ray. On the other hand, given how many damaged discs are sent back to DVD/Blu-ray rental companies, I can see the financial logic behind sending out basic, no-frills discs--even if the discs still include the user interface menu that lists the extra features as accessible options.

Sadly, I think that the omission of extra features is an inevitable part of the next stage of movie rentals. Movies that can be rented via on-demand download do not have extra features included, and I could see in the future companies charging extra for downloadable rentals that include extra features. If this trend continues, then it will indeed be a sad day for movie lovers who enjoy having the option of learning more about the films they rent, not just the ones they bought for their collections. Oh, well ... it was fun while it lasted, wasn't it?




Comments

  1. AnonymousJuly 5, 2011 at 1:05 AM

    It is frustrating to be told that the money you hand over from a rental is not as good as the money you hand over when buying. But, just fyi, the deletion of extras is not something Netflix is doing. Rather, certain motion picture studios are pressing "rental" versions for the purpose of making sure that Netflix and Blockbuster only get the "rental" versions. Currently it is mostly just two studios doing this -- 20th Century Fox, and Warner Bros. Oh, and also Disney. But it seems to be a trend.

    ReplyDelete
  2. TimJuly 5, 2011 at 5:07 PM

    Thanks for the update and for clarifying who-is-doing-what, anonymous. I figured that the studios had to be involved somehow, but I didn't know how much Netflix and other rental outlets were a part of this.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Art of Tron: Uprising (Part 1 of 4): Characters

Image
This month marks the one year anniversary of the cancellation of Tron: Uprising , which aired on Disney XD for 19 episodes. Set between the events of Tron and Tron: Legacy , Uprising chronicled the events shortly after Clu’s rise to power within the stand-alone Grid created by Kevin Flynn. Personally, I think that Tron: Uprising got a raw deal from Disney. It’s a fantastic addition to the Tron saga that went on to win both Emmy and Annie Awards , yet Disney clearly had other priorities and was willing to toss Uprising aside without so much as an official cancellation notice. Even to this day, Uprising has yet to be released on DVD or Blu-ray and I’m wondering if it ever will. In honor of this amazing animated series that was cut down in its prime, I have decided to do something that Disney won’t. Since there will never be an official Tron: Uprising art book, I have searched across the Internet to find a selection of art from Uprising that I can share here on my blog with
Read more

FOUND: Mechanical Shark from Universal Jaws Theme Park Ride

Image
When the Universal Studios Theme Park in Florida shut down its Jaws ride back in January 2012, Jaws fans everywhere were devastated. Yet even though this part of the Jaws franchise is no longer operational, some of its sharks are swimming around out there … including places such as Frederick, Maryland. A few days ago, I was contacted by a fellow Jaws fan named John Ryan, asking me if I knew anything specific regarding the sharks from the Universal Jaws ride. He was asking because he thought he found one and is trying to verify its authenticity. We spoke on the phone and exchanged a few emails, and here’s what he told me about his find: “I've been collecting Jaws memorabilia for decades and when I found this incredibly rare gem sitting in a backyard in Frederick, Maryland, I wondered about its connection to the state. The current homeowners said the shark was already there when they purchased the property. They also told me it had been the subject of neighborhood rumor for y
Read more

Machine Robo's Magnificent Robot Combiners

Image
I don't collect Transformers merchandise, but I see articles and advertisements about it when I browse through Japanese robot toy sites. From what I can gather, one of the latest product lines for Transformers is called "Combiner Wars" , a line that consists of five or six transforming robot toys that combine into one bigger robot. Combiner robot toys have been around for a long time, and Transformers had quite a few of them even back in the '80s. Yet of the many combiner robot toys I've seen over the years, the ones that have consistently impressed me were the ones released by Bandai under the Machine Robo line. Whereas other robot toy lines are stuck in the novelty of combining smaller toys into a bigger toy, Machine Robo has used the concept of combination to promote creative play. Read on for a review of how Machine Robo has built upon its combiner toys throughout the years.
Read more