Video rental firm Blockbuster might have been late to get into mail-order rentals and online streaming, but the company is certainly trying to give rival Netflix a run for its money: Blockbuster and Samsung have announced that new Samsung HDTVs, home theater systems, and Blu-ray players will be able to access Blockbuster’s OnDemand video library via the Internet. Products supporting the service will launch in the fall of 2009 (we’re assuming northern hemisphere, here). Owners of selected Samsung Seris 650 LCD and plasma TVs as well as Series 7000 LCD HDTVs and above will be able to get the service via a firmware upgrade; some existing Blu-ray player and home theater systems will also be upgradable.
