Redbox announced that, beginning December 2, it will raise its DVD rental price by 25%. So if you rent a DVD from a Redbox at your grocery store it will cost $1.50 compared to the current $1.20. Blue-ray disc rents will see a 33% increase (from $1.50 to $2) and video games are going from $2 to $3 (although video games account for less than 5% of Redbox’s business).
What’s with the price increases? Redbox tried to compete with Netflix by partnering with Verizon Communications (Redbox Instant) to offer movies online but that was a bust. The price increases are to allow Redbox to stock more titles albeit it in fewer kiosks. Keep in mind, the Redbox fee is still about one-third of video-on-demand rentals which go for about $5 for new releases.
