Instawatch

[slhecho]

Is owning an Instawatch copy the same as owning a redeemed copy? Vudu support is not responding to this question which makes me wonder about titles expiring.

[sankoni]

Instawatch does not always work well.

The way it's supposed to work is you get a digital copy (in addition to the code included with disc) when you purchase movie at Walmart.com or at a Walmart physical store by scanning your receipt into the Walmart app. If your Walmart and Vudu accounts are linked, this all happens automatically without you having to do anything. However, if your accounts are not connected you will get an email with a couple of extra steps involved.

That's the way it's supposed to work. But it doesn't always. In my experience I'd say they have about a 20% fail rate. Sometimes you get wrong quality (SD instead of HD) or you get the wrong version (Theatrical instead of Extended) or you get only one movie out of a multiple-movie collection/bundle, or you simply never receive the digital copy at all.

I hate to say it but Vudu support is terrible at resolving these types of issues. Most of the tickets I've opened in the past have just sat there until it is no longer an issue because I've already redeemed the digital copy that came with disc.

This is especially infuriating when you buy a disc via Walmart.com because part of the allure of purchasing a film with Instawatch is that you don't have to wait 1-2 weeks for your package to be delivered to watch the movie. With Instawatch you should be able to watch the movie within minutes of making your purchase. But like I said, 1 out of 5 times something seems to go wrong with Instawatch.

[slhecho]

Thanks. I didn't know instawatch existed until last week when I ordered Underworld Ultimate Collection. Next thing I'm getting an email about the instawatch copies. It worked great but now I don't know if I should hold onto the Redeem code in case the instawatch copy expires.