Digital Home Thoughts: Is it Lights Out for Blockbuster?

"Instead, it's (once again) Netflix realizing that the future of the the rental business isn't in the brick-and-mortar and probably not even in the mail sector. It's Netflix that's adapting to the changing times by streaming movies and TV shows to its Roku box and, now, the Xbox 360. And in one fell swoop, Netflix has once again made Blockbuster irrelevant. What other recourse does Blockbuster have now other than to keep plugging away with its brick-and-mortar business and hope to stay afloat long enough to sell it off to the highest bidder? It's not only the loser in the rental business, but now that it's slow to the streaming game, how can it capitalize on the market?"

Blockbuster could of course team up with Sony, but I find that unlikely. Blockbuster may very well be snuffed out of existence in the next few years. Netflix may well own the streaming market which greatly diminishes the top end of the market. Meanwhile they can always go for the low end of the market that is years, if not decades away, from really being ready to stream. But on that end, they are going to get squeezed by kiosks like the ones going in Wal-mart that rent movies for $1 per day.