Best Buy Joins Netflix and Blockbuster in Quest for Digital Cinema Superiority

If you’ve been watching all your movies in the comfort of your living room couch, you’ll be excited to know that, as early as this summer, there could be one more digital venue catering to your cinematic viewing needs. In a move to offset declining DVD sales, Best Buy is in talks with web-based cinema providers like CinemaNow to begin a new online movie distribution service.

According to Variety.com, the big box retailer is linking up with set-top box makers who will offer connections to CinemaNow’s library and offer streaming video in a fashion similar to Netflix’s relationship with Roku Digital Video Players.

It’s a dicey move for Best Buy considering that BlockBuster, which has made inroads into the market with its Blockbuster online download service,  has also partnered with CinemaNow to sell TiVo set-boxes and Blu-ray players that offer direct movie downloads. Blockbuster’s service is scheduled to launch this summer, right about the time Variety reports that Best Buy hopes to launch its own, too.  It’ll be a busy season for the couch.

Via Variety.com