CPFK, the video clubs French leader, with some 2300 stores all over the French country thanks to its brand marks Video Futur, Cinebank and Video Pilote, announced during summer it had entrusted Archos with the manufacture of a unique-and-to-measure product, exclusively designed for renting and allowing to avoid classic availability and fast-return issues. This new offer, Moovyplay, protected by a patent, was the opportunity for CPFK to create a new entity called the same.

We recently had the opportunity to interview Anne-Laure de Montety, Moovyplay SAS General Manager, and Simone Agarez, Head of Customer Department. Here’s the report.

Schedule and launching communication

Moovyplay offer’s launching is expected for the forthcoming weeks : first, a pre-launch is expected within a restricted perimeter, that is to say some thirty stores (mainly around Paris, and two or three stores in the provinces), then it will spread progressively all around France, once the first technical, marketing and financial assessments are done.

Each rent point will, in fact, be fit out, equipped with an server installation with ports in order to transfer movie files to the Moovyplay PMPs.

These stores deployment will be accompanied of communication inside the sell point (brand mark, in-store publicity and signs designed for it, shop-in-shop style Moovyplay space) and outside-very-restricted-geographical communication (mobile posters on “Mobil’affiche” trucks, street marketing, flyers, mails etc.), limited to these stores’ vicinities.

As for the national launch, it will be accompanied of an ambitious pluri-media communication.

Moovyplay seems particularly satisfied with Archos collaboration, whose basic work is not being an equipment supplier. In fact, thanks to this, Archos gets another commercial path.

Technical details and offer prices

Each Moovyplay customer will aiether be able to rent the PMP or buy it. For the moment, Moovyplay doesn’t want to say what will be the products definitive tariffs, since the latter may be bound to evolve after the pre-launch. Nevertheless, it should not be too different from the one announced during summer, that is to say 149€ for the purchase with probable promotions, and some euros monthly for rent.

Fr the skeptical ones, it has to be pointed out that Moovyplay has already done real-conditions tests, in order to validate these tariffs pertinence. Result : customers divide by 50% o purchase, and 50% on rent.

An anecdote : those tests were done by opening fake stores, training sellers and stimulating the sell act up to the point when the client gets out his credit card to pay the purchase or rent of the PMP… This allowed them to evaluate the daily flux in order to avoid stock-shortage or overstock.

Contrary to a conventional PMP, the Moovyplay one won’t have a screen or battery of its own. In fact, it is mainly a player meant to be plugged directly to a TV. A dock will be supplied in order to receive the moovyplay on the main TV without having to plug and replug each time. This dock will probably be like a DVR Station, yet no video recording feature will be possible. However, the moovyplay will obviously pluggable by the classic means (peritel, RCA cable) to use it on other screens (bedrooms, friends’…)

In the end, the customer will receive a box with the player, a remote control, a dock station, wires, a transport case and a guide.

When the player is plugged to a Moovyplay port inside a store, customers will be able to rent different movies and quickly transfer them to their player. The whole Moovyplay will automatically be updated. Customers will thus be able to look at everything at home, movies, the whole catalogue and trailers, and will also be able to make a choice for the next time in the store.

Finally, Archos PMPs (5th generation or else) are not compatible with Moovyplay. Thus, don’t expect to go and load your favorite movies from the store with your 605 in your pocket…

Commercial strategy

Thus, this player constitutes what materializes the whole new rent process. This innovative offer is meant to redynamize the rent sector, by getting rid of the historical problem about availability, return and choice ; frustration factors for consumers. In this way, it allows to put home cinema again, to everyone.

Moovyplay also insists on the sellers’ job evolution, who will benefit from a specific formation, and will be able to fully advice their clients on a large range of films and thus participate to a spread of cinema culture, since freed from DVD availability issues.

Thus what CPFK wants to put in place in the forthcoming weeks is a new model business.