VIDEO BUSINESS STILL BOOMING AS COMPETITION INCREASES

Jo Anne Macke and her granddaughter, Bridgitte Macke, selected "Flubber" at Hastings Books, Music and Video.

There's nothing new about video stores. They've been with us since the VCR made them possible. But with increased outlets for movies on cable, pay-per-view and increased theatrical screens locally, video stores are hanging tough and growing.

Why?

People love movies and they love to have them when they want them, and video stores are still successful at providing this service.

With many video stores offering guaranteed availability on popular new releases, video stores have etched out a commanding position over other alternatives.

Other advantages with renting movies from a video store is the wide price range. Some stores offer movies as low as 49 cents to as high as $3.

Differences in availability, customer loyalty and convenience have created a wide variety of prices at local stores.

Consumers have a wide variety of video stores to choose from. From the national chains such as Hollywood Video and Blockbuster to small neighborhood stores like Broadway Video and video sections in your grocery store, customers have a much greater chance of finding what they are looking for.

At Hastings Books Movies and Videos, renters see the price selection firsthand. Hastings offers titles at 99 cents, $1.49 and $2.99, Cindy Turner, assistant manager, said.

Through the week selected titles are available for rent for all five days at Hastings, she added.

At Super Video Warehouse in Jackson a similar program is available for customers where the more movies you rent, the more days you can keep them, like 10 movies for 10 days, Patti McCallister, Super Video clerk, said.

Fun Flicks in Cape Girardeau has dropped their prices from $1.75 for new releases to 99 cents on all new releases, Amy McClanahan, Fun Flicks clerk, said. They also offer a video rental punch card that credits the customer with a free rental after so many movies.

Broadway Video has the same deal, after 10 rentals the customer gets the next one free. But Rick Youngblood, owner, said his customer base comes to him from the neighborhood. His movie selection is based on what his customers ask for.

Videos are also in grocery stores as an added convenience for those one-stop shoppers.

Mike Ricker, store manager at Food Giant, said, "we offer it (videos) as a convenience, it's not a major part of our business."

New releases at the grocery store go for $2.25 for two days, while older releases go for 99 cents for two days.

Food Giant does get the new releases, but not anywhere near as many as the larger video stores.

So what videos are popular with people in the area?

One possibly disturbing answer that was offered by area video stores over and over again was the Jerry Springer "Too Hot for Television," video and other Springer titles.

Other big renters recently have been "Scream II," "Switchback," Home Alone III," "Spiceworld," "For Richer, For Poorer," and "As Good as it Gets" to name a few.

All-time big renters in the area include "Independence Day," "Air Force One," "Casablanca," "Schindler's List," "Grease" and "Scream."

And when the interest wanes with a movie the video stores either sell the titles as previously viewed movies or they sell them to other, smaller video stores.

What's in store for the future for in-home movies?

Jim Maevers, owner of Super Video Warehouse in Jackson, said he is offering Digital Video Discs right now as a novelty, but this is one area that may signal the end for the VHS video market.

A lot of factors will determine the fate of the DVD format. Most namely: Will the DVD players enjoy the same success as the VCR in becoming a must electronic device for your home?

The DVDs are the size of the audio compact discs that have soared to the forefront of the music industry formats over the past decade. Should the DVD players become popular, the DVD rentals are sure to follow.

One sign that points to DVDs becoming a major player in years to come is their affordable price.

"They cost less than traditional videos," Maevers said.

He has 30 titles on DVD to rent and he has 200 titles for purchase and he sells the players.

While DVD isn't anywhere near the top of the video rental business, it may be well on its way to becoming a dominate format in the next decade.

It offers true digital video and audio and most titles come out the same week as their VHS counterpart, Maevers said.