Entertainment conglomerate, Disney, is being sued by retailing company, Redbox. The movie rental company has claimed that Disney has been employing unethical tactics to prevent Redbox from releasing Disney movies digitally. In addition to that, there are also preventive measures set to make sure that the films are not available for digital download.
As reported by Deadline, Disney is disrupting the ties that Redbox has with both its customers and suppliers by stating false claims about the company's ability to provide their service when it comes to Disney's films. According to Redbox, these false claims are simply not true, and that the statements from Disney are a clear ploy in order to pave the way for them to form their own "direct-to-consumer" service.
"Defendants' actions are harming Redbox's lawful sales of Disney digital movies," Redbox stated in its suit filed against Disney, also adding, "Because Disney is impeding Redbox's ability to sell Redbox's lawfully acquired Disney digital movies, consumers are being dissuaded from looking to Redbox as a source of titles that are in high demand."
If the claims from Redbox are true, then from a different perspective, it can be seen that Disney is trying to eliminate all forms of competition. However, Redbox does not agree with Disney's methods, since it is also being employed to bring in as much money as possible by overcharging their potential customers. Additionally, this strategy will drive other similar services to the ground, especially smaller businesses that offer the same service.
Notably, this is not the first time that Redbox and Disney have butted heads. Apparently, Disney has had a recurring problem with how much Redbox charges their customers, and have complained that the streaming service offers Disney's films at too low of a cost. Even though Redbox initially gave in to Disney's requests of hiking up the prices for their films, Disney still sought after distributors that are in direct competition with Redbox to prevent them from selling their movies.
