Company Loans DVDs Via ATM-like Kiosks

"Places like Blockbuster make a majority of their money from late fees," explains Olivier Delouise, president and CEO of MoviebankUSA. "At Moviebank, the customer is king... You decide when you want to return it."

No Clerk Perks

To make the rental process even more appealing — and hopefully gain a loyal base of local users — Delouise says the company will also offer free membership with some added perks.

By signing up, members get their own account that is protected with a personal ID number, or PIN, just like a bank account. The account then tracks which movies or video game disks a member already has rented, so members can avoid taking out the same title by accident. And since sign-up is free, parents can set up accounts for their kids that restrict what they can rent — say, to only PG-rated movies and non-violent video games.

More importantly, since MoviebankUSA units are basically just PCs, Delouise says each dispenser can be given a unique Internet address, allowing the dispensers to be networked together. That would then allow members to access the service online over any Web browser and search what disks are available at machines closest to their home or work. They can even instruct a particular dispenser to "hold" a movie — say the latest blockbuster hit — and it will be reserved just for them for 24-hours.

"It's a fun and friendly experience to renting movies," says Delouise. "People — especially kids now — prefer to be in front of screens and seeing things virtually rather than roaming through aisles and aisle looking through racks for movies."

While the service may be convenient for busy urban dwellers, Delouise thinks the pricing will also get others to try out the service. Members get a personal magnetic membership card that offers special rental rates: 99-cents for six hours or $2 for 24-hours. They can also get $50 pre-paid rental cards that offer up to $70 worth of rentals or $100 card that would be good for $150 worth of rentals.