Up to 50 Percent of Redbox Customers Buy Game After Renting

Esmeralda Portillo

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Up to 50 Percent of Redbox Customers Buy Game After Renting



About 20 to 50 percent Redbox customers will buy a video game after renting it.

Redbox, the automated kiosk that provides movie and video game rentals at over 35,000 locations, plays an important role in the expansion of the video game industry, according to Redbox director of video games Ryan Calnan.

Consulting firm Interpret recently conducted a study on behalf of Redbox to record user engagement, and Calnan was surprised-- but happy--by the results. It turns out that they tracked a 20 to 50 percent conversation rate of Redbox customers buying a game after renting it. In fact, 50 percent of Redbox customers have stated that they will only buy a game if they can play it first, "We've been talking to our customers for the last couple of years, and that's the aggregate result that we got."

That figure is significant enough for publishers to take notice, and Calnan says they are doing so already, "So what we're seeing is publishers supporting the notion of the recreational gamer bringing incremental revenue to the publishers and that this trial is leading to a conversion."

Additionally, Calnan explains that publishers are recognizing the reach potential Redbox has, given that its consumer base is a mix of both movie watchers and gamers (who we predict has a large chunk of casual gamers). Companies like Deep Silver and Square Enix are honing in on that demographic. For the release of Saints Row IV, Redbox worked with Deep Silver with an e-mail marketing campaign and by placing promotional stickers on kiosks, helping Saints Row IV reach an audience it might not had access to previously. The same was done with Thief.

When Calnan was asked about his thoughts on streaming services like PlayStation Now he seemed confident, "I think that both can live side-by-side. We're expanding the edges of gaming, and I think that customer is very much attached to that physical product still."

Source: GameSpot [http://www.gamespot.com/articles/redbox-publishers-now-understand-importance-of-rentals/1100-6420830/]

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StriderShinryu

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Dec 8, 2009
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I know that when I was younger and video stores actually existed, I would rent games all the time before I made any decisions on what games I really wanted. This seems like a nice step back in that direction. Of course, I also can't say that I've ever personally seen anyone using these machines when I've been in the area of one. 50% is an impressive conversion rate but 50% of a small number is still small.
 

Souplex

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Jul 29, 2008
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As a New Yorker I just have to say; What the hell is a red box?
 

Nooners

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Souplex said:
As a New Yorker I just have to say; What the hell is a red box?
Blockbuster Video in a vending machine.

You use a touchscreen to pick a selection, pay $1, and get that game/movie for 24 hours. Not a bad little gizmo, TBH,
 

Strazdas

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May 28, 2011
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"look games inside"
Oh, good, gaming piniata.

But yeah, a lot of people want to try the game before they buy it. there is a whole section of pirates that pirate solely for the reason to try it out before buying it. this is no news, thought i guess its good that we have more hard statistics to prove this.
 

JET1971

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At one time in history we had things called demo's. They came from various sources such as a CD stuck inside a magazine to downloadable from the publisher's website and even being in another games CD to be installed along with the game you bought if you choose to. These usually had the first up to third level or 1 to 3 zones to check out. They were great because they were advertisements that players would pick up and try out because "Hey! free game even if it's just a small chunk of the game.". Those demo's sold many a game many a player would not have touched because of the title sounding lame or the genre wasn't a favorite. Those demo's also had the added benefit when released into the wilds before the game hit store shelves because players would play them, get excited about the game, and tell everyone they knew about them.

But then again they also had the added detriment of a shit game losing customers and today every publisher is afraid that the underhanded bullshit they pull will be called out in the demo and lose customers before they spend a single penny. For players demo's are good.

Oh Redbox wasn't the first video rental company to rent games, and back then shops like Blockbuster rented console games that could be considered demo's for consoles. I had a console gamer friend who rented new titles just to see if he wanted to buy them, now he gets a Walmart clerk to swap the game in the console. So they are not expanding shit, but they certainly are shoveling it.
 
Sep 24, 2008
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Souplex said:
As a New Yorker I just have to say; What the hell is a red box?
As a fellow New Yorker, I ask you to throw a rock. You'll hit one. You don't shop at Stop and Shop?

Wait, I'm a Southern New Yorker, close to Manhattan. Are you in the North or West? That might explain it.
 

Souplex

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Nooners said:
Souplex said:
As a New Yorker I just have to say; What the hell is a red box?
So a bloated mess that can't compete with local video stores?
ObsidianJones said:
Souplex said:
As a New Yorker I just have to say; What the hell is a red box?
As a fellow New Yorker, I ask you to throw a rock. You'll hit one. You don't shop at Stop and Shop?

Wait, I'm a Southern New Yorker, close to Manhattan. Are you in the North or West? That might explain it.
As southern as you can get. Brooklyn. (Staten Island isn't really New York, it's New Jersey pretending to be New York)
 

Nowhere Man

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This doesn't surprise me. Back in the good ol' days of gaming I used to rent games from physical rental stores all the time as it was a great way to try a game out and see if it was worth spending the full amount for a purchase. One memorable example - I never heard of Fallout before then, but when Fallout 3 first came out the Blockbuster video down my street had a huge banner of it's cover art in it's front window for promotion and for a couple weeks I drove by it intrigued by what it was about. So I finally rented it was hooked and the rest is history. I bought a brand new copy immediately upon returning it.

I did a similar thing with Dead Island only from Redbox. I hope they expand on their game selection though because every one I've been to only ever have like the same 7 or 8 games in it's library with the top one always being out. I never reserve games because I usually do the Redbox thing on a whim.
 

WhiteTigerShiro

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Sep 26, 2008
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Esmeralda Portillo said:
That figure is significant enough for publishers to take notice, and Calnan says they are doing so already, "So what we're seeing is publishers supporting the notion of the recreational gamer bringing incremental revenue to the publishers and that this trial is leading to a conversion."
WHAT?! After how long of several people saying they want to try games before playing them, only now do developers support the idea because there's supposed "proof" of it?
 

DrOswald

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Apr 22, 2011
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This is good news. The current $60 and a lot of misplaced faith model is the exact reason I never buy games at full price. I cannot afford to spend $60 on something that might be good and previewing a game before hand is something that has been lacking since video stores disappeared. It would be nice if developers took notice.
 
Sep 24, 2008
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Souplex said:
ObsidianJones said:
Souplex said:
As a New Yorker I just have to say; What the hell is a red box?
As a fellow New Yorker, I ask you to throw a rock. You'll hit one. You don't shop at Stop and Shop?

Wait, I'm a Southern New Yorker, close to Manhattan. Are you in the North or West? That might explain it.
As southern as you can get. Brooklyn. (Staten Island isn't really New York, it's New Jersey pretending to be New York)
Fucking THANK YOU. God, I don't even know what bet the people of Staten Island lost against God, the Devil, Fate, or Pure Science, but you think they'd understand and move...

It costs 15 dollars to go over the verrazano once. Meaning a 30 dollar trip in total. It's like paying to get into civilization for a day.

... Sorry. Staten Island pisses me off. Bad memories.

Yeah, just google Redbox Brooklyn. There's literally like five near the Rockaways (but after Sandy I'll never trust that place again), and two around the Verrazno.