Wal-Mart Enters NetFlix's Business

wcbrown writes "AP reports that Wal-Mart is entering into the online DVD rental arena, currently dominated by Netflix. Wal-Mart is starting out with 13,000 titles, six distribution centers, and competitive pricing. With a seriously tremendous infrastructure and expansive will, Wal-Mart stands poised to overtake Netflix. To say the least, that's not going to be good for business."

Patent

[ihummel]

Quick Jeff Bezos, patent DVD rentals and save us from Walmart!

Family fun!

[mao che minh]

Oh boy! Now I can watch the entire Jersey Trilogy [viewaskew.com] without the elaborate strings of curses and insults! Thanks Walmart. We may even be able to get a family-friendly "Pulp Fiction" available for rent soon. Junior will love it.

Finally

[stanmann]

Walmart announced this service 6 months ago, Oh, wait. Not news, Just expanding their service... Of course Considering that walmart tends to bury the competition... and that their "free" trial is 30 days. Buh-by netflix.

Re:Competition

[st0rmshad0w]

"Competition is good for the consumer."

But not for the consumed.

Re:asda

[Lu Xun]

Asda? Did someone just fiddle with their left hand at the business name registration office??

You want to make some SERIOUS money?

[WndrBr3d]

Rent DVD porn. I'm serious, the porn market on the internet already makes insane amounts of money. All you need to do is start up a NetFlix service that rents out DVD porn.

Both NetFlix and the new Wal-Mart service will not carry such titles.

And if anyone out there knows of a service like this already, please, let me know :-D

Let's me see here...

[Dutchmaan]

Wlamart has food, clothing, gasoline, and domestic services all in one handy area..

I guess as soon as they offer housing and, then the dream of corporate feudalism will be complete. ;)

Exactly

[Anonymous Coward]

To say the least, that's not going to be good for business

As a Wal-mart stockholder with no stock in NetFlix, I think this will be very good for business.

Poem from Lord of the Rings applies ...

[peter303]

One STORE to rule them all,
One STORE to find them,
One STORE to take them all,
And in the Darkness bind them.

In Arkansas* where shadows lie.

(*HQ of WalMart)

Re:You want to make some SERIOUS money?

[Dielectric]

OK, the funniest thing is that 5 people (probably more by now) have replied with helpful comments. God bless the internet, and god bless pornography!

Re:Maybe not such bad news for NetFlix

[Computer!]

how do you beat that kind of war chest?

With a reasonable online presence, which Wal-Mart doesn't have. With an established internet brand, which Wal-Mart doesn't have.

Every buy anything from Wal-Mart? OK, Ever buy anything from Wal-Mart online?

Re:You want to make some SERIOUS money?

[ryanvm]

Rent DVD porn. I'm serious, the porn market on the internet already makes insane amounts of money.

Ugh. I can't think of anything more disgusting than handling something that is guaranteed to have been in the possession of someone clutching their own genitals.

Re:You want to make some SERIOUS money?

[Loki_1929]

"I can't think of anything more disgusting than handling something that is guaranteed to have been in the possession of someone clutching their own genitals."

How about eating something that is guaranteed to have been in the possession of someone clutching someone else's genitals?

Come on now, we've all been served by a slutty chick at a diner before. :)

Re:Maybe not such bad news for NetFlix

[netsharc]

They sell Lindows computers online. Argh, conflict, they sell Linux-based system, that's good, but they're attacking NetFlix, that's bad. But Lindows is dumb and Michael Robertson is just like Gates (exploits others' technology to make money), so it's down with Wal-Mart! Down with Wal-Mart!

Re:Maybe not such bad news for NetFlix

[outsider007]

I was in walmart the other day and I asked the woman at the cashier for directions to the monkey porn section. she just gave me a dirty look. I'll take my business elsewhere, thank you.

Re:Family fun!

[dr_dank]

We may even be able to get a family-friendly "Pulp Fiction" available for rent soon

Ving Rhames: "..and wait for the Wolf, who will be arriving directly"

Samuel L. Jackson: "Golly attractive and successful African-American, thats all you had to say!"

Not good so far

[Anonymous Coward]

I signed up today. The first movie I choose (Waiting for Goofman) is listed as "Very long wait", which means more than 30 days.

I think I won't be staying after the 30 day trial period.

Re:Competition

[MushMouth]

Porn would kill their business model. The truth is that netflix make more money when people don't return their DVD's. Porn users have a tendancy to be insatiable.

I forsee many copies of...

[Rai]

'Deliverance' and 'Hee-Haw's Greatest Moments'

WalFart is evil

[Anonymous Coward]

I will never rent/buy/steal/accept anything free from Walfart.
I will never park my car in their parking lot.
I avoid letting their advertising graze my eyeballs.
Walfart is evil.
Walfart is the retail incarnation of M$.
If Walfart drives Netflix out of business, I will never rent a DVD online again.
If I were starving and Walfart had the last box of jelly donuts on the planet, . . .

Re:Maybe not such bad news for NetFlix

[Surak]

last year their revenues were $200 billion us. that's more than the gdp of israel

And more 6 times the revenue of Microsoft Corp. last year. And the average MSFT employee makes *quite* a bit more than $15K a year. ;)

Yeah, Walmart makes Microsoft look like a pussycat.