It doesn’t seem as if Disney’s restrictions will be as harsh as Warner Bros. Warner Bros. wants rental services to wait 56 days before renting movies for customers. Of course, no company is obligated to abide by Warner Bros.’ wishes, but they won’t get bundles of movies at discounted prices if they refuse to play ball.

Via [New York Times]

The deal is worth up to $100 million. For its money, Redbox is getting DVD kiosks, DVD inventory and contracts with unspecified retail partners. Redbox’s parent company Coinstar will be obligated to purchase products and services from NCR once the transaction is finalized during the third quarter of 2012.

The obvious question here is what will happen to the Blockbuster Express kiosks. We’ve asked the folks at Blockbuster that very question and will update you when we learn more.

Read [Engadget]

Both companies are keeping specific details under wraps for now. We do know Redbox and Verizon will showcase its offerings in the “second half of 2012″ according to its press release. We also know the streaming video service will be accessible on a range of devices that are currently in homes across America.

Some potential customers may be concerned with the requirements to access Verizon’s and Redbox’s streaming service. With alternatives such as the Blockbuster Movie Pass, an existing membership with Dish Network is required. It sounds like that won’t be the case with Verizon’s venture. The press release says “all consumers across the U.S.” will be able to take part in viewing new and popular video entertainment.

Via [Verizon]

Warner Bros. could not convince Redbox to go along with its plan that delays rentals of its films by 56 days. In addition to that, the deal that required Redbox customers to wait 28 days before renting Warner Bros. films after they are released on DVD has expired. This means Redbox can offer new Warner Bros. movies as soon as they release on DVD, but it won’t receive discounts from Warner Bros.

Redbox now has to find other outlets to purchase DVDs and Blu-rays. The company will likely have to pay more to purchase these films, but the customers stand to benefit the most from Redbox’s stance. The worst case scenario involves Redbox slightly raising rental prices to make up for the extra money it has to spend to acquire Warner Bros. movies.

Both Redbox and Warner Bros. are still expressing an interest in coming to some kind of agreement on this matter.

Via [L.A. Times]

Warner Bros. has been making some unpopular decisions lately. Besides locking all the Harry Potter films away in a vault, Warner also recently struck a deal with Netflix, Redbox and Blockbuster that forces their customers to wait 56 days before renting one of Warner Bros’. new releases. The fun doesn’t stop there though. Warner Bros. will also make sure Netflix customers won’t have the option of queuing up those rentals either.

According to the L.A. Times, Netflix customers that get DVDs and Blu-ray discs in the mail will have to wait 28 days before they can add new Warner Bros. movies to their DVD queue. This restriction will go into effect on February 1.

Warner Bros. is doing this because it wants more people to start buying its movies instead of renting them once and forgetting about them. By effectively blacking out its new releases from Netflix, Warner Bros. is eliminating the chance of customers going anywhere else but a retail store to buy its films.

Think about it for a second. Let’s say a normal, non-tech person with no knowledge of Warner Bros’. recent business deals wants to check out one of the company’s latest films. They search for it on Netflix and nothing is there. They drive to their local Blockbuster and Redbox, but it’s not there either. Where are they going to go to see this movie? Looks like they’re making a trip to Best Buy, Target or Walmart instead.

Via [L.A. Times]

Redbox is offering its customers a chance to save a little money on their next rental. Redbox is currently hosting a movie trivia game that knocks $0.10 off the cost of a rental for every question you answer correctly. There are only five questions to answer, so that gives you the opportunity to get up to $0.50 off on your next movie (DVD or Blu-ray) or videogame.

After completing the 60 second trivia game, Redbox will supply you with a discount code that can only be used at a kiosk. You can only acquire one code per day which will expire five days after Redbox sends it.

This promotion will end on February 5, 2012.

Via [Redbox]

A two-day rental for Abduction costs $3.99 and doesn’t require the use of Facebook Credits.

Lionsgate is likely testing the waters to see if releasing rentals on Facebook will be lucrative. Facebook has over 800 million users, so it’s certainly a good place to start. Right now, Facebook isn’t known as a movie-watching destination, but the social network is evolving every day to become a one-stop-shop for media consumption. Facebook’s Open Graph platform could also push movie rentals since our friend’s activities will be automatically published to the live ticker.

If Facebook were to allow friends to gather and watch a single movie together at the same time, rentals have a chance at really taking off. For now, movie rentals on Facebook are restricted to the few that are aware of its existence.

Via [Facebook]

This decision leaves customers with fewer options to get their hands on new releases. Warner Bros. wants to sell more DVDs and figures a 56-day waiting period will convince more people to head into a retail store instead of renting movies. AllThingsD reports Warner Bros. will sell its discs to companies such as Netflix at a discount in exchange for holding off on rental options for nearly two months.

Somehow I think this will all just lead to more piracy.

Via [AllThingsD]

A common theme for retailers this year is to show their hands early. The economy is in the toilet, and spending isn’t expected to be stellar this year. That’s one of the reasons why stores such as Walmart are pushing out their deals early. If customers are going to spend money this holiday season, Walmart wants to make sure you hear about their deals well ahead of Black Friday. Walmart has placed a number of items on sale through its website. We’ve combed through the products to bring you some of the best deals.

Keep in mind a lot of these deals aren’t as good as the ones you may find on Black Friday. This is really more of an appetizer. There are also several pages of discounted items that we haven’t included here. If you’re willing to spend a little more to avoid the crowds, Walmart’s online specials is something you should check out. Otherwise, hold off until Cyber Monday.

• HP Sweet Purple 15.6″ Pavilion g6-1c45wm laptop – $428
• Nintendo Wii Dance Bundle with Mario Kart Wii, racing wheel, Just Dance 2 and The Black Eyed Peas Experience – $209
• RCA 32-inch 1080p HDTV – $279
• Curtis 24-inch 1080p HDTV with built-in DVD player – $179
• Sceptre 40-inch 1080p HDTV – $319.98
• LG 42-inch Class 3D 1080p HDTV with Blu-ray player and four pairs of 3D glasses – $727
• LG 47-inch Class 3D LED 1080p HDTV with Blu-ray player and four pairs of 3D glasses – $899.98
• Sceptre 32-inch 720p HDTV – $229.98
• Nintendo 3DS bundle with Power A Ultimate Travel Case and Ghost Recon: Shadow Wars – $199
• Canon PowerShot SX30-IS 14.1 megapixel camera – $339
• 160GB PlayStation 3 Starter Bundle with choice of free game and Dreamgear wireless controller – $269
• Kinect with Child of Eden download code and Kinect Adventures – $129

Via [Walmart]

The price for renting movies at a Blockbuster Express kiosk is about change starting on November 8, 2011. Blockbuster Express will use what it is calling a $3-$2-$1 pricing structure. If you want to rent a new movie within the first 28 days of its release, you’ll have to pay $3 for the first night plus tax. If you want to rent a movie 28 days after it releases, the price will be $2 plus tax, and if you want to rent a movie after the first 90 days of its release, you’ll have to pay $1. An additional $1 fee will also be accessed for Blu-rays and movies that are kept for additional nights.

This announcement came shortly after Redbox started raising prices for its DVDs from $1 night to a dollar $1.20 a night. Redbox said it rose prices due to an increase in debit card fees it has to pay for every transaction.

The price increase at the Blockbuster Express kiosk will not affect prices and Blockbuster stores. Last month, Blockbuster decided to purchase new movies from Warner Bros. instead of waiting 28 days before it could begin renting them. This move helps Blockbuster stay competitive with Netflix, Redbox, another streaming video services.

Via [Blockbuster Express]