admin
Site Admin
Joined: 09 May 2004
Posts: 137
|
 Posted: Mon Aug 23, 2004 6:33 pm Post subject: Screenselect and Videoisland merger info |
 |
|
Websites:
ScreenSelect still offer a Free DVD rental Trial
Screen Select Review
VideoIsland
Here is what screenselect have emailed members:
| Quote: | We are delighted to announce that as of today, ScreenSelect and VideoIsland
have merged, forming the UK's market-leading online DVD rental business.
VideoIsland offers DVD rentals by post in a similar way to ScreenSelect.
VideoIsland is backed by leading global venture firms (including the company
behind eBay) and has been growing quickly since it launched in September
2003.
Our intention is to bring the best of both businesses to all our
subscribers. We will be making significant investments in the ScreenSelect
service in respect of stock, customer services, and new features. We will
announce more details of this later this year.
Please be assured that your service will continue as usual and we will
strive to continue to offer the highest levels of service as we integrate
the two operations.
Combined, the two businesses will form the clear market leader. We offer the
largest selection of DVD titles in the UK, rent the biggest amount of DVDs
by post, and have the most sophisticated technology available in the UK.
Although less than a year old, the business has grown rapidly and is now
renting as much as a chain of about 70 traditional video stores!
If there is anything you would like to see us do as we invest in our
service, please let us know at feedback@screenselect.co.uk.
In the meantime, we hope you have are enjoying the summer and look forward
to entertaining you in the months and years ahead.
The ScreenSelect Team
ScreenSelect.co.uk
|
ScreenSelect Press Release:
Video Island and ScreenSelect join forces
| Quote: |
Merger creates largest online DVD rental player in UK market
LONDON, 23rd August 2004: Today, online DVD rental service ScreenSelect announced it is to merge with Video Island. The merger will bring together the market's two leading online DVD rental companies to create the UK's clear market leader.
The combined businesses will create the number one player in the UK online DVD rental sector and will establish a company that is both significantly bigger than Blockbuster's online rental service and a considerable competitor to Netflix's planned entry into the UK market. The businesses will ship over 300,000 rentals in September, equivalent to over 70 high street rental stores, and expect this figure to treble in the next 12 months.
The merger further validates Video Island's partnership strategy of teaming up with leading UK brands such as Tesco, MSN, Comet and Toys 'R' Us to bring online DVD rental to the mass-market. In less than one year of operation, ScreenSelect has successfully created the UK's largest branded online DVD rental service and has recently announced partnerships with Dixons and Wanadoo.
The management team of the merged company will see Saul Klein, CEO of Video Island remain as CEO. William Reeve and Alex Chesterman, founders of ScreenSelect, will take on the roles of Chief Operating Officer and Chief Commercial Officer respectively.
The move comes at an exciting time for the online DVD rental market in the UK, and creates a clear leader in this marketplace. According to Screen Digest, the DVD rental market is expected to be worth £376.1m by 2006, already 14.1m households own a DVD player and over 1 million of these households rent a DVD every week.
Entertainment lovers all over the country are rapidly discovering the benefits of online DVD rentals including 24/7 ordering, unrivalled selection, free delivery and free return postage and incredible value compared to the traditional high street pricing model. In September alone, the combined businesses estimate they will save their subscribers more than £500,000 compared to what they would pay in traditional high street rental outlets - not including money saved on late fees and fines.
Saul Klein, CEO of Video Island commented, "We are excited to have joined forces with ScreenSelect. The combination of ScreenSelect's excellent service and team, alongside Video Island's platform, studio relationships and strong VC backing, creates the undisputed number one in the UK market and accelerates our shared vision of expanding the market for online DVD rentals."
William Reeve, Managing Director of ScreenSelect added, "We are delighted to be teaming up with Video Island. The new business will boast the best of all worlds - partners, skills, backing, brand experience, an extremely sophisticated technology and operations platform and the happiest subscribers in the sector - and we look forward to together driving growth in the UK's dynamic DVD rental market."
About Video Island
Video Island, launched in September 2003, is a company set to revolutionise the home entertainment market by bringing unlimited DVD rentals to a mass-market with the biggest national brands including MSN, Tesco, Toys 'R' Us and Comet. Video Island is backed by global venture capital firms Benchmark Capital, Index Ventures, and Cazenove Private Equity. Video Island has also assembled a team with unrivalled expertise from Blockbuster, Microsoft, BCA and Carphone Warehouse to deliver a quality of service that both Internet Magazine and Internet Advisor awarded a 5-star rating.
videoisland
About ScreenSelect
ScreenSelect.co.uk is the UK's leading online DVD rental business. For a flat monthly fee of £14.99, ScreenSelect allows subscribers to watch as many DVDs as they want. Subscribers have a revolving library of three DVDs at any one time, which they can exchange as often as they wish. In addition to offering the world's largest DVD selection, ScreenSelect.co.uk offers the latest releases from the day that they come out for DVD rental, which means that someone looking for the latest box office hits is as well catered for as someone looking for a specialist arthouse film. ScreenSelect.co.uk was set up in 2003 by two entrepreneurs William Reeve and Alex Chesterman who believed that High Street video rental could be "amazoned." As a result they enlisted the backing and expertise of amazon.co.uk founder Simon Murdoch.
ScreenSelect
|
You can also read :
Please read post
http://forum.dvdtrials.co.uk/post-85.html
for info about the merger |
|
FAQ
Search
Memberlist
Usergroups
Register
Profile
Log in to check your private messages
Log in
