Zip.ca
Encyclopedia
Zip.ca is an online DVD rental
company operating in Canada. It has a database of over 82,000 unique titles.
Zip.ca is a member of the privately held Momentous group of companies, and was owner of the Ottawa Rapidz baseball team until its first-season bankruptcy.
, Ontario
. In July 2005 it arranged to provide the fulfillment services for Rogers Video
Direct, a new online subsidiary of one of Canada's largest video store chains. By February 2006, Zip.ca had over 30,000 subscribers; currently it has over 47,000 and is shipping over 24,000 discs per day. In December 2006, Zip.ca announced passing the 6,000,000 disc rental milestone.
company. Some details specific to Zip.ca include:
Zip.ca imposes a free shipping limit per month, unless the customer chooses the special "Unlimited" plan. When the DVD shipment limit is reached, the customer must choose to pay for additional shipments ($2.49 per DVD) in the billing month or wait the next billing month before Zip.ca continues shipments. In November 2011, a $1 fee for each Blu-ray title rented will be imposed.
Updated fee structure. There is an additional $1 fee for each Blu-ray title. Blu-ray is not available on both the 1-DVD plans.
Customers are not held responsible for items that were lost or damaged during shipping. If discs are lost multiple times, however, Zip may choose to suspend a customer's account until they agree to pay for any future discs which are lost, stolen, damaged in transit, or otherwise not received by Zip. Should a customer lose a DVD while it is in their possession, they may be asked to pay the suggested retail price to cover the cost of restocking. Zip.ca does investigate instances of theft or fraud.
Online DVD rental
DVD-by-mail services allow a person to rent DVDs, Blu-ray Discs, video games and VCDs, among other film media online; for delivery by mail. Generally, all interaction between the renter and the rental company takes place through the company's website....
company operating in Canada. It has a database of over 82,000 unique titles.
Zip.ca is a member of the privately held Momentous group of companies, and was owner of the Ottawa Rapidz baseball team until its first-season bankruptcy.
Corporate history
Zip.ca began its rental operations in February 2004, from its base of operations in OttawaOttawa
Ottawa is the capital of Canada, the second largest city in the Province of Ontario, and the fourth largest city in the country. The city is located on the south bank of the Ottawa River in the eastern portion of Southern Ontario...
, Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
. In July 2005 it arranged to provide the fulfillment services for Rogers Video
Rogers Video
Rogers Plus is the overall banner for the retail operations of the Rogers Cable subsidiary of Rogers Communications. It was formed in early 2007 from the merger of the Rogers Plus chain of telecommunications stores previously operated by InterTAN under licence from Rogers, and the company-owned...
Direct, a new online subsidiary of one of Canada's largest video store chains. By February 2006, Zip.ca had over 30,000 subscribers; currently it has over 47,000 and is shipping over 24,000 discs per day. In December 2006, Zip.ca announced passing the 6,000,000 disc rental milestone.
Zip.ca specifics
Zip.ca follows the general model for an online DVD rentalOnline DVD rental
DVD-by-mail services allow a person to rent DVDs, Blu-ray Discs, video games and VCDs, among other film media online; for delivery by mail. Generally, all interaction between the renter and the rental company takes place through the company's website....
company. Some details specific to Zip.ca include:
- Shipping - Zip.ca started with a single warehouse and distribution centre, in a NepeanNepean, Ontario- Recent quantity of snow :- History :Nepean Township, originally known as Township D, was established in 1792 and originally included what is now the central area of Ottawa west of the Rideau River. Jehiel Collins, from Vermont, is believed to have been the first person to settle in Nepean...
business park in the Canadian capital city of OttawaOttawaOttawa is the capital of Canada, the second largest city in the Province of Ontario, and the fourth largest city in the country. The city is located on the south bank of the Ottawa River in the eastern portion of Southern Ontario...
, OntarioOntarioOntario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
. To decrease shipment times to other parts of the country, it later introduced what it called a "hybrid" or "gateway" system, where they express-shipped large batches of envelopes directly to Canada PostCanada PostCanada Post Corporation, known more simply as Canada Post , is the Canadian crown corporation which functions as the country's primary postal operator...
sorting plants in major cities. These shipments were designed to arrive during the same overnight sorting shift that would have processed them had they been mailed locally, providing something close to local delivery times within those urban areas, and improved delivery times within the region. Returns were sent to Zip.ca in Ottawa, and thus didn't benefit from this arrangement. In 2006 Zip.ca opened distribution centres in CalgaryCalgaryCalgary is a city in the Province of Alberta, Canada. It is located in the south of the province, in an area of foothills and prairie, approximately east of the front ranges of the Canadian Rockies...
, TorontoTorontoToronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
, and VancouverVancouverVancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
to serve those regions directly, and while "gateway" routes may have been kept for areas with no regional warehouse (for instance ManitobaManitobaManitoba is a Canadian prairie province with an area of . The province has over 110,000 lakes and has a largely continental climate because of its flat topography. Agriculture, mostly concentrated in the fertile southern and western parts of the province, is vital to the province's economy; other...
, or the Atlantic provinces), it is not known if these are still in operation.
- ZipRefill - To alleviate the return delivery times, Zip.ca will (for qualified customers), send a replacement disc once a customer indicates (via the website) that a disc has been returned to Zip.ca, without waiting for it to actually be received (the ZipRefill is not a guaranteed rental). Only a single ZipRefill is allowed at any one time, which allows a person with, for instance, a 4-disc membership to at times actually have 5 discs in their possession or in transit. Some other Canadian rental companies have incorporated a similar concept, often extending it to multiple active replacements.
- ZipList - In August 2006, Zip.ca revamped its ZipList (the customer's movie queue), which is more flexible than its predecessor. With the new queue, each title can be individually ordered at the user's preference. This change was made to address one of the most significant criticisms of the Zip.ca in the past. Movies are not shipped according to customers' ranking, but rather, when titles become available.
- Shipping Limits - In January 2006, Zip.ca introduced monthly limits on the number of discs shipped free (customers on the 4-disc plan have a monthly limit of 11, for instance). Customers who exceed these limits can, at their option, continue to receive shipments for the month, but will be charged a fee (currently $2.49) for each additional disc shipped that month. The new policy took effect for existing customers on February 27, 2006. In August 2006, Zip.ca re-introduced some unlimited shipping, but solely on a new 3-disc/unlimited plan, which carries the same price as the 4-disc/11-disc-per-month plan.
Rental plans
| Plan | Monthly fee | DVDs out | DVDs Shipped per month |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 DVD | $5.95 | 1 | 2 |
| 1 DVD | $10.95 | 1 | Unlimited |
| 2 DVD | $18.95 | 2 | Unlimited |
| 3 DVD | $24.95 | 3 | Unlimited |
| 4 DVD | $24.95 | 4 | 11 |
| 6 DVD | $36.95 | 6 | 16 |
| 8 DVD | $49.95 | 8 | 22 |
Zip.ca imposes a free shipping limit per month, unless the customer chooses the special "Unlimited" plan. When the DVD shipment limit is reached, the customer must choose to pay for additional shipments ($2.49 per DVD) in the billing month or wait the next billing month before Zip.ca continues shipments. In November 2011, a $1 fee for each Blu-ray title rented will be imposed.
Updated fee structure. There is an additional $1 fee for each Blu-ray title. Blu-ray is not available on both the 1-DVD plans.
| Plan | Monthly fee | DVDs out | DVDs Shipped per month | Blu-ray |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 DVD | $7.49 | 1 | 2 | No |
| 1 DVD | $12.49 | 1 | Unlimited | No |
| 2 DVD | $19.95 | 2 | Unlimited | Yes |
| 3 DVD | $29.95 | 3 | Unlimited | Yes |
| 4 DVD | $26.95 | 4 | 11 | Yes |
| 6 DVD | $39.95 | 6 | 16 | Yes |
| 8 DVD | $54.95 | 8 | 22 | Yes |
Canadian rental marketplace
On August 30, 2005 Zip.ca announced that it was buying out the online operations of its then main Canadian rival, VHQonline.ca, and has also picked up assets from other companies going out of business.Customers are not held responsible for items that were lost or damaged during shipping. If discs are lost multiple times, however, Zip may choose to suspend a customer's account until they agree to pay for any future discs which are lost, stolen, damaged in transit, or otherwise not received by Zip. Should a customer lose a DVD while it is in their possession, they may be asked to pay the suggested retail price to cover the cost of restocking. Zip.ca does investigate instances of theft or fraud.