Cyber cafés enter retail arena

The UK’s biggest video rental chain Blockbuster Video is piloting three in-store cyber cafés.

Multimedia and point-of-sale specialist BCG Communications has worked on the interiors.

The Internet B@r sites in Bayswater, Putney and Canterbury, offer Internet access, multimedia kiosks, and interactive video gaming.

Mike Keefe, operations director at Blockbuster, says the aim of the Internet B@r design is to offer Internet access in a “non-technical and friendly environment”.

He will not confirm exactly how many cyber café sites are intended, but confirms that the cyber café brand could be rolled out to “several scores” of Blockbuster stores.

Meanwhile, BDG McColl is working on the design of a cyber café site within the bookseller Waterstone’s “superstore” site in Glasgow, due to open in September. The Waterstone’s cyber café is a joint venture with London-based Café Internet.