Blockbuster, Motorola team up for mobile movies

After inking a deal with Samsung last month to deliver movies directly to your home, Blockbuster announced on Tuesday that its OnDemand service is also coming to your mobile phone.

Blockbuster OnDemand, to be available on "select" Motorola mobile phones, will provide users with access to "thousands" of films, the company said in a statement. Users of the upcoming application, whose release date is yet to be announced, will also be able to choose films for home delivery or reserve titles for in-store pickup.

According to Blockbuster, the Motorola deal is yet another element in its strategy of providing consumers with options to get its movies anywhere, at any time.

For its part, Motorola believes that offering Blockbuster movies on its handsets will help it regain some of its appeal. The company once sat atop the mobile-phone industry. Today, it's a shadow of its former self. And it's trying desperately to regain some market share.

That might be coming through Android-based devices. Motorola has already signed on to deliver Android phones. Blockbuster's app might become a component in that strategy. But by competing with the iPhone and its many multimedia capabilities, Motorola and Blockbuster will be facing an uphill battle.

The iPhone features a YouTube app, providing users access to just about any video they want.

Apple's handset also has iTunes, through which users can download their favorite films or television shows, then watch them on the iPhone while they're away from home.

Rumors are also swirling that Netflix will be coming to the iPhone in the coming weeks. If that happens, the iPhone will become an even more attractive handset for those who want multimedia features. And both Motorola and Blockbuster would be facing an even more powerful juggernaut.

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