Lionsgate Extends Agreement With Redbox To Offer Releases At Its Kiosks

Movie fans who like to rent discs from Redbox’s $1.50-a-night kiosks will be able to continue watching Lionsgate releases as soon as they’re available to home video as a result of a deal the companies announced this morning.

The new arrangement extends the multiyear one the companies made in late 2014.

“Redbox is a longstanding and valued partner,” Lionsgate Home Entertainment President Ron Schwartz says. “We are pleased to extend our relationship with them and remain committed to delivering a broad portfolio of premium content across an ever-expanding array of linear and digital platforms.”

This is the latest of several efforts Redbox has made to reassert itself in video as millions of households turn to streaming and digital download alternatives. Last September a group of funds led by Apollo Global Management closed a $895 million deal (not including debt) to buy the DVD kiosk company’s parent, Outerwall.

Last month Fox agreed to supply its home video releases to Redbox a week after they first appear in stores or online. That followed a similar deal, in May, with Warner Bros. which also provides releases a week after they hit the market.

In addition, Redbox has begun to sell some discs and video games at some of its kiosks.

The disc dispensers have been losing ground in the market: Consumers spent $306.5 million at kiosks in Q2, the Digital Entertainment Group reported this month. That’s down 19.3% vs. the period last year and it’s the lowest amount for the category since 2010.

Still, Redbox is optimistic: It said in May that it plans to add 1,500 kiosks to its fleet this year, bringing its total in the U.S. to more than 41,500.

“In small and large towns across America, millions of hard-working Americans rely on Redbox every day for relief and value from the rising costs of going to the theater, or exorbitant fees from cable and satellite companies,” Redbox CEO Galen Smith said at the time. “Renting discs remains an important consumer offering for families on a budget, or any consumer who wants a better value for new release content.”