Supermarket Sainsbury‘s has launched a new video on demand service, offering access to over 300 film titles as it looks to strengthen its multichannel capabilities, it has been announced today.
Allowing users to rent or buy movies and watch them immediately via any computer or Apple device, Sainsbury‘s Video On Demand is a pay-as-you-go offering which is available to customers without the need for a subscription fee.
Available at sainsburysentertainment.co.uk, rental prices begin at £1.99 per film for 30 days while purchasing new releases will cost £12.99, the retailer said.
Ramping up non-food lines is an increasingly useful weapon in grocers‘ arsenals as competition within the grocery market intensifies amid changing customer behaviour and a spokesperson told Retail Gazette that such changes have encouraged the chain to push its digital operations further.
Sainsbury‘s is expected to reduce investment in new supermarkets in the year ahead in favour of growing its online presence and convenience format, after announcing in full-year results last week that convenience sales reached £1.5 billion in the year to March 16th 2013 as online sales reached nearly £1 billion.
In keeping with leading providers, Sainsbury‘s new service will give customers 48 hours to finish a rented film once they start watching it, while parental controls are also available.
Jon Rudoe, Sainsbury‘s Director of Online, Digital & Cross-Channel, said of the move: “We‘ve worked hard to expand our digital entertainment offer for our customers.
“With the recent launch of eBooks by Sainsbury‘s, the launch of Video On Demand allows our customers to enjoy their favourite books and films from Sainsbury‘s Entertainment when and how they want – be it through digital downloads or physical copies of DVDs, Blu-rays, CDs or books.”
