Target is shutting down its digital movie store after less than 18 months

[Shawn Knight]

Target Ticket, the retail giant’s video-on-demand service designed to compete with Best Buy and Wal-Mart, will soon be closing down.

A notice on the service’s website says Target has made the decision to end the services offered on Target Ticket and will be focusing efforts on other entertainment offerings.

As of writing, the service is no longer accepting new rentals. Effective March 7, the service will no longer be available on game consoles, tablets, smartphones, set-top boxes or on the web. Customers have until this date to watch any movies they have rented but not yet viewed.

Those that have purchased digital movies or television shows through Target Ticket will be able to access those purchases through CinemaNow starting March 7 using their existing Target Ticket credentials to log in.

Any remaining credits in a Target Ticket users' account will also be transferred to CinemaNow. In the event CinemaNow doesn’t carry movies or shows purchased on Target Ticket, users will be issued a store credit for the amount originally paid.

Target Ticket launched in September 2013 as yet another provider in an already crowded market that includes Amazon, Google Play, iTunes, Wal-Mart’s Vudu and the aforementioned CinemaNow. Despite being offered across multiple platforms, it’s clear that Target Ticket wasn’t able to attract enough users to be worthwhile.

Target Ticket isn’t the only service of its kind to shut down in recent memory. Redbox Instant, operated jointly by Redbox and Verizon, bit the bullet last year after less than two years of service.

Permalink to story.

https://www.techspot.com/news/59716-target-shutting-down-digital-movie-store-after-less.html

 

[JohnCB]

Target had a digital movie store?

Well there's your problem.... fire the advertising department.

 

[RustyTech]

"Target Ticket, the retail giant’s video-on-demand service designed to compete with Best Buy and Wal-Mart, will soon be closing down"

I guess all 3 have/had something going, but too few people even knew.

 

[S_Brideau]

In the article: "Any remaining credits in a Target Ticket users' account will also be transferred to CinemaNow. In the event CinemaNow doesn’t carry movies or shows purchased on Target Ticket, users will be issued a store credit for the amount originally paid."

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If the shelves are as empty in the US as they always were at Target in Canada, that's going to be useless. Now that Target Canada is going bankrupt the shelves are full, probably because the going out of business sale is only 10% off... Anyway, never going to go to a U.S. Target seeing how they treated their employees in Canada, no severance package for any employees except for the CEO who's getting a $66M severance package.

/rant about Target

 

[tonylukac]

Who watches movies any more anyway?

 

[Ziffel]

Who watches movies any more anyway?

What a phenomenally stupid question.

 

[Guest]

I use Vudu and Itunes myself. They both have their pluses and negatives. My biggest grip with Itunes is that I don't like when I want to watch Itunes videos on my TV that I have to use a Apple TV, while Vudu is on every streaming device I own, so I'm free to watch whatever I want, in whatever room I am in. I don't need to go out and buy another player, its built into my Blu Ray player, and in my Tivo.

I don't like the fact that Vudu doesn't have everything. Apple must pay big royalties or have great deals with some studios because they seem to have EVERYTHING, while Vudu lacks with some content. (A small studio movie or not to popular TV show for example is on Itunes and not Vudu) But that is when I buy those very few movies on Itunes, but mostly I buy movies and TV shows on Vudu.