Redbox, but that doesn't mean it can't (sort of) live in your living room. Redbox with . It also left more than 24,000 of its iconic red machines at various points of sale, .
The machines are heavy, cumbersome and difficult to remove, and a former RedBox executive suggests that removing one of the kiosks costs $500. Added to this is the fact that some of the machines are actually embedded in concrete. Retailers plan to take them back as scrap, at a loss, which has led collectors to take the initiative to collect some before they hit the scrap heap.
Jacob Helton, a 19-year-old from North Carolina, bought one at a drugstore because he “felt that Redbox is important in the history of American media.” He went on to note that “its collapse marks the end of the video rental era.” He now has a giant DVD rental machine in his garage.
Now, before you go to your local Walgreens and ask about the beat-up Redbox machine outside, there are a few caveats. First of all, these things are heavy and extremely difficult to transport. As mentioned above, some are even immersed in concrete.
Furthermore, these machines consume enormous amounts of energy during use. Walgreens told a judge that it costs the company $184,000 each month to power 5,400 kiosks. That translates to about $35 a month for a single machine. They must also receive regular maintenance. However, if you have a large DVD collection, each machine can hold around 500. You can pretend to rent them to friends and family and, well, that's it.
Redbox was on top of the world just ten years ago, boasting nearly $2 billion in annual revenue and installing more than 43,000 kiosks in the U.S. and Canada. It managed to hold on a little longer than Blockbuster, but now it's gone forever.
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