Don’t think of GameFly as the Netflix for video games any longer. The disc-by-mail service is currently testing a DVD and Blu-ray rental service with a limited set of subscribers. The new offering allows select GameFly members to get video game and DVD/Blu-ray releases in one place.
For now the new program, called GF Movies beta, is available at no extra cost to GameFly subscribers who sign-up for the 2-Game Plan or higher, according to a post on the NeoGaf forums.
Movies will start shipping to subscribers on April 4 and are integrated with your existing game queue. Once a movie comes up in a user’s queue, it ships.
The move makes a lot of sense for GameFly. With the latest generation of consoles gearing towards digital downloads, GameFly and other businesses like GameStop need to branch out from selling or renting gaming discs. Since GameFly already has a distribution network in place, widening its reach to include movies doesn’t take much logistical hassle. In addition to its disc-by-mail service, GameFly also offers digital game downloads for Mac and PC.
If the company takes its DVD rental feature beyond the current beta program it would also pit GameFly directly against Netflix.
Netflix’s primary focus is online streaming these days, but the company still offers its once popular DVD-by-mail service. Two years ago, Netflix abandoned plans to go head-to-head with GameFly by adding video games to its mail service during the Qwikster debacle.
GameFly says it decided to test out the movie rental waters after subscribers asked for the service. And as one NeoGaf member pointed out, bundling movie and game rentals should appeal to hard-core gamers who otherwise wouldn’t have much use for their GameFly subscriptions between major game releases.
You can check out GameFly’s current movie rental offerings on the company’s website.