Rip in Love film by post
Marvel1
Forumite 6.8K Posts
Just had this email
Gutted, I loved the service, as they had movies and tv shows that are not available on Netflix or Prime, and i have many more to watch. I Will now cram as many as I can now until then 3 discs at a time, so average 6 a week
We have very much enjoyed delivering the LOVEFiLM By Post service to you. However, over the last few years we’ve seen a decreasing demand for DVD and Blu-ray rental as customers increasingly move to streaming. Due to this, we will be closing the LOVEFiLM By Post service on 31st October 2017
Gutted, I loved the service, as they had movies and tv shows that are not available on Netflix or Prime, and i have many more to watch. I Will now cram as many as I can now until then 3 discs at a time, so average 6 a week
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I got the same and will miss for the same reasons. Not surprising though.
I can bear pain myself, he said softly, but I couldna bear yours. That would take more strength than I have -
Diana Gabaldon, Outlander
Some are yes but maybe not all.
Not everyone will have access to a streaming service so Lovefilm was useful.
Not all of them, i will run a lost later of what's on my list of what i don't think will be on there, any sites to check that doesn't require signing up to browse?
I think the delay caused by postage was another reason it was never popular.
Instant streaming and the availability of cheap discs in supermarkets made the failure of this business model inevitable. I'm surprised it lasted as long as it did.
I don't think there's many companies now who do DVD rental now is there? Cinema Paradiso seems to be the only other one. Many of the others that were around years ago were either powered by Lovefilm or bought by Lovefilm.
The fact that Netflix was a similar price (albeit with a more limited choice) helped that decision.
Contrary to the comments here, or what Amazon will lead you to believe, I think DVD rentals aren't a dead business model. Reasons being:
1. Lovefilm has a much better catalogue than the streaming services. I considered moving over to Netflix recently, but I found that the range of shows is nowhere near what I can get on Lovefilm. And likewise, I tried the Amazon Prime trial but was disappointed to find it's catalogue is also limited and I can't use a Chromecast with it and would need to get a Fire stick. In all, I think streaming services suffer from being fragmented (i.e. if you want to watch both Bosch and House of Cards, you'd need both Netflix and Amazon, whereas both are avaialble easily on DVD);
2. Streaming isn't convenient for everybody. Some people have poor quality internet connections, or don't see the need for having fibre when a normal connection is fast enough for most applications (as in my case). Others also may be confused by streaming and prefer using DVDs/physical media;
3. The service has suffered from Amazon's prioritisation of streaming services. It is incredibly difficult to find the rental lists/Lovefilm account page on the Amazon home page. I therefore suspect this has resulted in some users thinking the service was cancelled some time ago and no longer using it/paying for it. Likewise, Amazon has left this to become a 'forgotten' service, so it's no surprise subscriptions have flatlined; and
4. It's very good value for money. I believe a Lovefilm subscription is only around £4 for the most basic package.
All in all, I am very sad; although there is hope that Cinema Paradiso might provide an alternative option.