Blockbuster Ends Late Fees in 2005

This is the beginning of the end in my opinion. We are on the verge of a fundamental change on how society expects to access media. We are showing (with our dollars) that there are better ways to access media than to drive to a store, pick from what's left, and then pay a penalty when we're late getting it back. Blockbuster is scrambling to make changes in order to keep their customer base. Netflix is a good start. Blockbuster is trying to out-Netflix Netflix, but I think physical media is on its way out. I've seen video on demand. I've seen broadband speeds. I've seen horrible digital rights management schemes (that will fail). Consumers and movie studios will need to eventually settle on a comfortable common ground. My guess is it won't be the way either side wants it and it won't be quick, but I think 2004/2005 will be remembered as the timeframe when the change started. Here's an MSNBC article covering the Blockbuster announcement.