Amazon Disc+ Offers Free Streaming for DVD Purchases for 10,000 Titles

Amazon has announced that it is expanding its Disc+ On Demand offering to 10,000 titles, which allows shoppers who purchase a physical retail DVD copy on Amazon.com the opportunity to get instantly gratified and watch their flick right away through Amazon’s video streaming service gratis. According to Amazon, customers who purchase select DVD or Blu-ray titles from the program will have a digital edition of their movie added to their Amazon Video On Demand library, and “Titles range from new releases to timeless classics. To browse the complete selection of Disc+ On Demand movies, customers can visit www.amazon.com/discplus.” The move by Amazon comes a day after WalMart launched a similar offering via that retailer’s VUDU service for Disney’s Toy Story 3.

However, despite Amazon’s push into the streaming, instant gratification market, JP Morgan analysts say that the move will have little effect on Netflix, which offers a subscription base movie rental plan with free streaming added. The rationale behind JP Morgan’s verdict is that “a single DVD purchase under the program costs, in most cases, more than a month-long Netflix subscription.”