Big blue movie box

Blockbuster Express's big blue movie box has arrived in local supermarkets, along with signage promoting its $1 per night DVD rentals. I took a moment to explore the touch-screen interface and found everything easy to use. The rental kiosk is co-branded by Blockbuster and NCR, by the way.

I noticed the prominent statement (at the kiosk and on the website) that no membership is needed to rent a DVD. That's reassuring to consumers who aren't Blockbuster members: They won't have any problem making impulse rentals and they don't need to register or make an ongoing commitment. Just choose a movie, swipe a credit card, and pick up the DVD from the kiosk's slot. Go home, watch the DVD, return it, and repeat as often as possible.

Or you can rent DVDs by mail from Blockbuster ("cancel anytime--we mean it!") or download from Blockbuster for immediate viewing. That is, unless you're a Netflix customer or you prefer renting from a Redbox kiosk closer to home. Let the movie rental wars begin. And the winner is . . . the consumer!