Before Redbox became a verb ("Let's Redbox a movie"), the engineers at DVDPlay in San Jose proved that people would rent movies from a vending machine. They proved that price sensitivity (the $1 rental) was the key to unlocking the market.
It is easy to forget DVDPlay because Redbox won so decisively. But the DVDPlay headquarters deserves credit for proving the model worked. dvdplay headquarters
DVDPlay had exclusive contracts with 7-Eleven in many regions. However, Redbox began making deals with other grocery chains and even some McDonald's locations that DVDPlay thought they owned. The market became oversaturated. When a Redbox opened up across the street from a DVDPlay, the superior branding and reliability of Redbox usually won out. Before Redbox became a verb ("Let's Redbox a
Former employees recall that the HQ had a literal "wall of shame" featuring cracked discs, unwound VHS tapes (holdovers from an early failed test), and a prototype kiosk that looked like an ATM bolted to the breakroom floor. The vibe was very startup-meets-logistics—think pizza boxes on whiteboards covered in supply chain math. But the DVDPlay headquarters deserves credit for proving