Alas, It's "Alias"

Joe Wilcox | August 23, 2004, 09:41 AM

I fought off the flu this weekend while watching "Alias" season one on DVD. "Alias" is one of those TV shows I had heard about but never got around to. I don't watch that much network TV.

But, I had been trying out Blockbuster's new rental service and decided to grab the first "Alias" disc as one of my rentals. Sidebar on Blockbuster: I've been a Netflix subscriber since April 1999, back when I couldn't even buy DVDs at my local Best Buy. But, dissatisfied with recent price increases, I decided to try out Blockbuster. So far, the rival service is slower to deliver movies, has great but not as good selection and costs a couple bucks less.

Back to "Alias": I found the show riveting and couldn't wait to rent another disc. So, I bought the entire first season set Saturday afternoon over at Target. What amazes me: The willingness to spend $45 on something available at lower cost (rental from Netflix or Blockbuster) or free (over broadcast TV).

While my own experience is totally anecdotal, my reasons for spending on something I could otherwise get free are revealing: Convenience, immediacy and experience. Convenience in the sense I could watch when and how I wanted--not wait for broadcast reruns; immediacy in the sense I could get to watch right away; experience as in the superior DVD over broadcast TV.

Among early adopters, I see myself as typical--and so I wouldn't discourage any vendor developing digital media products or services from focusing on those three things: Convenience, immediacy and experience.