Rental chain Tsutaya plans to let customers return rented DVDs and CDs by post, officials from its head company said Saturday.
The development is expected to make its service more convenient for seniors and those in rural areas, owner Culture Convenience Club Co. said. The service will be offered at about 170 shops in three areas — Hokkaido and Kyushu from Sunday, and Okinawa from mid-November. The service will then gradually be extended to the rest of the country, they said.
Customers will be charged an extra ¥100 to use the postal return service and receive a container to return the items. The container, which holds up to six DVDs and CDs, can be used with any mailbox.
Some Tsutaya shops individually attempted mail-based return in the past but gave up because postal rates were too high.
The company expects that expanding its service area will help lower the charges, the officials said.