Fox to strip extras from rental DVDs

The rental version of 'Slumdog Millionaire' will lack the deleted scenes and commentary tracks available on the retail version.

(Credit: Amazon)

A few days ago, we pointed out that more people seem to be renting DVDs rather than buying, which means the studios are making less money on their former cash cow. According to a recent report by Video Business, Fox is trying a new strategy to encourage DVD purchases, by releasing two different versions of the DVD: the standard retail version with deleted scenes and commentary tracks, and a stripped-down rental version including just the movie. Movies such as "Slumdog Millionaire," "The Day the Earth Stood Still," and "The Wrestler" are set to get the treatment, which means you can expect to see the bare-bones versions at your local rental store in a matter of weeks.

The Video Business story goes into more depth about how "rentailers" will try to get around Fox's new policy, but our biggest question is "What will Netflix do?" We've always thought one of the best parts of a Netflix subscription is you can enjoy the excellent Criterion Collection packages without shelling out $40--especially if you only plan to watch it once. Netflix subscribers are already used to giving up special features when using the Instant Streaming service, but there are definitely plenty of cinephiles who will be upset if Netflix goes with these bare-bones DVDs.

Do you care if your rentals lack special features and audio commentaries? And if so, will Fox's strategy make you more likely to buy the fully featured retail versions? Let us know in the comments.

[SanjayGolf]

I rent movies for the movie not for hearing a director tell me stuff i dont care about. Also I only rent Blu-ray so if this means the price to buy will now be cheaper, $35 is ridiculous, then i'm all for it

[sobishop]

Most studios already do this now. A blockbuster movie will have 3 different editions when it becomes available on DVD. You get the standalone, the 2 disc w/extras, and the 3 disc w/more extras and digital copy. Just eliminate the first two and sell the 3 disc for the price of the standalone. People will feel like they are getting their monies worth then.

[nicco007]

Don't mind those features being removed at all from the DVD'S, never cared much about the audio commentaries and deleted scenes are always in very poor quality.
Maybe the extra space on the disc will make the movie even sharper?
And while there at it, maybe they can trim down the time on the FBI warning and that screen in french and sometimes in other languages.

[Puhgete]

"Maybe the extra space on the disc will make the movie even sharper?". They're only removing the extras from the rental copy so I don't see them making a new master of the film, that looks better, for the rental copies.

[Cruton502]

Wow, must be tough times for Fox

[crescentdave]

Fox just doesn't get it. But that's ok. There's a lot of dinosaur media and media distribution companies which are dumber than dirt. So they can take away consumer benefits and try to "force" consumers to buy DVD's, but the writing is on the wall. They just don't want to accept it. Their reasoning is: "look, we made money hand over fist up until now. Why should we have to settle for less in this changing market?" It's called progress and competition Fox. Deal with it or die with the other dinosaurs.

[Eludium-Q36]

You're right, they still haven't learned what happens when the MAFIAA restricts content from the public have they ? Unbelievable. They have a monetized business model which has kept them in the lap of freakin' luxury for decades and they're going to f' with that ?! Are you TRYING to **** off the Volcano god ?! (Family Guy reference)

[RRosal]

Dead on reply. Fox is definitely showing its not up to the times, pretty much the same way the music industry did in regards to the impact that the Internet had on their former iron grip. Meh, it doesn't matter to me-I've never really thought very much of Fox's special features to begin with since they were seriously crappy anyways versus the other movie studios.

[7aji88]

Like I even cared for watching cell phone quality video clips after watching the movie.

[binarydragon]

This is stupid. Some people like the extras, hey some people have rented a film and liked it so much they actually buy it on DVD! When DVD first came around with the messages and warnings that you can't skip and that last FOREVER and the same with ads....hmmm......

I wonder if Fox are removing these features to make room for ads. That... is ....dumb...

[viper396]

"...some people have rented a film and liked it so much they actually buy it on DVD!:

The rational response to your statement would be, you still can and nothing has changed. Rent the movie only DVD and if you like it you can always buy the full DVD. Logically nothing has really changed for that situation.

Your assumption that they are doing this to make room for ads is completely groundless. Technically all the previews and coming attractions are the ads.

[stjohnob]

I love the extras. I remember when there used to be cast bios on dvds. I miss those, but I always have my laptop on hand for a quick imdb search.
I would however give up some of the extras if the studios started including the DTS audio tracks again. It is rare that you find a dvd out there with DTS anymore. :-(

[Tedders85]

I like watching the extras in some cases, but if Netflix sends out DVD's or Blu-Ray's without the extras, my heart wont be broken.

[shopkins82]

DVD had a good run and, for the first time in history, there was a period of a single format for both the consumer masses AND audio/videophiles. The fact that this synergy occurred during a time of economic prosper lead to a purchase market explosion. Before DVD it was VHS for the rental masses and LD for the audio/videophile collectors. Now we've reached a point where it's currently DVD for the rental masses and BD for the audio/videophile collectors and HT enthusiasts. This lack of synergy creates a disconnect which hurts both DVD and BD... with choice comes indecision and as less people buy, both become more expensive... and as both become more expensive, less people buy (and more people rent)... compound that with decreased consumer spending and the the outlook for purchased media is getting pretty bleak. These same forces are what push the costs of DVD and BD apart, with no convergence in sight until BD market share greatly surpasses DVD. Studios are trying to recapture DVD sales, but the demand and disposable income just isn't there. Why pay $15 for a DVD on release day when you can rent almost as many as you can watch in a whole month for the same price? And to an even greater extend, why buy a $35 BD when you can rent as many as you can watch in a whole month for nearly HALF the price?

I was a major DVD purchaser... I have around 800 discs in my collection, most of which have only been watched once, and only a handful that have been watched more than 5 times. I was also an early adopter of both HD-DVD and BD (my household currently has 2 HD-DVD player, 2 BD players, and a Duo player as the reference source in my dedicated theater)... but in those formats, I only own about a dozen discs, 5 of which were free with rebate and two that are calibration discs. This leaves 5 discs, 2 HD and 3 BD, that I've felt were important enough to merit purchase... and all of these were purchased either used or at major discount. If a prior DVD collector and Home Theater enthusiast like myself has transitioned to rentals, I'm surprised the larger consumer DVD purchase market hasn't faded even further.

[emarkhasin]

I dont care about DVDs because I'm renting Blu-rays for most part, and there is nothing about Blu-rays in the story. Its nice to have this staff on a disk, sometimes its interesting to watch how the film was made.

[ricklabanca]

it does talk about blu ray specifically, they will differ also.

[RRosal]

Ricklabanca: I'm trying to find your Blu-Ray reference in both this piece and the original Video Business article but I believe your statement is incorrect. This only applies to DVD's since the sales of those have plummeted. Of course, no one seems to be watching the numbers on the Blu-Ray sales, which have gone up since the Blu-Ray/HD-DVD format war has died down and is probably the largest reason DVD sales have dropped.

[friscoG]

Meh....I never really watch the extra content anyways. I would rather see less ads and movies that start quickly. The one thing that I really despise are dvd's that force you to watch previews by making it so that the disc cannot be skipped or fast forwarded to the title menu.

[Renegade Knight]

I'll watch deleted scenes. Most times I learn they were deleted for a reason.

[Puhgete]

I wonder how many renters actually watch the extras on the disc now. When I rent something I almost always watch the movie and that's it.

Also, I wonder how Fox will let renters know they aren't getting all of the extras. Are they going to put something on the disc that tells renters that they need to purchase the film in order to view any extras? When I say this I'm thinking about my experience with renting King Kong on DVD when it first came out. The only thing on the DVD was the movie and no extras. I didn't think "hey maybe I need to buy the movie to get the extras" I only thought "hey I can't believe the DVD only comes with the movie. I can see renters thinking the same thing if Fox doesn't point it out in some way.

[lmanlo09]

If this drops the renting price on blockbuster then go for it. $5 for renting is too much, I've been using amazon from my computer connected to the tv to watch movies and usually wait some months to watch or usually go watch free premiers. Been doing that for a while but would have liked to rent dvds to be able to use my home theatre than the regular speakers of the tv. If it lowers it back down to 3 or 4 than I am clad.

[hameiri]

As you can see from some of the comments, some prefer to have only the movie. I think Fox will be surprised when people no longer wait for the DVD to come out, and instead wait for the renter to sell the used one with no extras!

Oops. Those crazy recording industry guys did it again!

[That-Addams-Girl]

I am a fan of most audio commentaries, deleted scenes, bloopers, making-of featurettes, and even the extras that allow you to view the script, storyboards and bios. You never know what could be interesting or informative until you watch it. I often rent more titles by the director or writer from hearing the commentaries because I find what they have to say to be innovative and then I'd be aware of them to watch something else they do on the big screen further down the road.

I rent before buying DVDs. For example, I watched the entire series of "Arrested Development" before I found the entire set at a price I could afford. The commentaries and extras are great and worth seeing/hearing more than once, but just how would I know this if those items were not on the rental discs?

[tcr071]

And these idiot companies wonder why people just go ahead and decide to download them online for free?

[JoeD1979]

I never watch the extras on rentals. If I like the movie enough I buy it to watch the extra stuff. I don't really care.

I have noticed that a lot of people are complaining about blu-ray disc prices. Where you are looking? Amazon and Sam's Club have great prices on blu-ray discs. New releases are usually 24.99 which is only $5 more then DVD's. Many are even less then that. I got Wall-E 3 disc edition on Amazon for $19.99 during a sale. Just have to look at more places then Best Buy. I got a 2-pack blu-ray at Sam's Club for $22.99. They were Payback and We Were Soldiers, pretty good price and looks great. I know on DVD it would be a little less, but $11 blu-ray disc isn't bad. Blu-ray is already as cheap as DVD's, you just have to know where to look.

[AnthonyNYC]

Well, you are saying that BluRay is already as low as DVD was, you mean.
Since now most DVD discs are even less than the $20 they sold for years ago. Most are $12.99 and many stores sell them for $5 on sale. So.... I wouldn't excactly go around saying they are the same price now.
DVD will always be less unless the studios officially start selling them for exact same price to retailers.

[Microgates]

I don't care about crappy extras that are on dvd's, They can take out whatever they want. This will make me be more likely to be spitefull and not buy there dvd's at all! It just sounds like a case of cutting off there nose to spite there face.

[Renegade Knight]

That's one way to spend more money on a single product than if you just sell the dang things like the final prodcuts is intended to be.

On the other hand if they strip out that FBI and Interpol warning it would be nice. Live is too short to be reminded in a legit DVD that stealing is bad.

[EALChilazr]

I think it's pointless for Fox to do that. I don't think it's going to increase their DVD sales all that much. They may go back up a little but not what they're hoping for. Especially because they're going to tick a bunch of people off, so the consumer will be less likely to buy the DVD.
Besides, our society went through how many years of home video entertainment without "specials" without too much problem? If the cost of renting 2, or even 3 movies without "specials" is less than buying 1 movie that has them, I think it'd be better to just rent them.
That being said, if I rent a movie and I like it, I generally also buy it. For me, renting is like test driving. I think that it's that way for a lot of other people too. So that's another reason why I don't think they're DVD sales are going to move upward very much.