A dying breed? One of 600 remaining Blockbuster storefronts. (Photo by Blockbuster.com)

Blockbuster’s “Good Grades, Free Rental” program launched Thursday and is designed not just to get customers into their stores, but also to encourage kids to do well in school.

“Blockbuster wants to help show students one of life's great lessons: hard work has its rewards,” said Kevin Lewis, chief marketing officer for Blockbuster. “We believe the ‘Good Grades, Free Rental’ program gives teachers and parents another tool to provide positive reinforcement to school-age kids.”

Students in kindergarten through 12th grade simply bring in an original copy of their 2011 report card to a participating store showing they have a B average or better (Satisfactory, 2.7, or 80% grade).   It must be signed by a parent or guardian and be presented within 30 days of the report card’s issuance.

The student then receives a one-day free movie rental (new releases are exempt) through their parent’s Blockbuster account.

This might sound great to students and parents since, as we all know, nothing’s cheaper than free.   But when one considers that a one-day rental for a non-new release Blockbuster DVD only costs a mere $0.99 to rent in the first place, it can hardly be considered the deal of a lifetime.

Additionally, many savvy young people already know that they can get movies online instantly for free from websites like YouTube, Hulu, and Megavideo, albeit at a lower viewing quality. 

And finally, one would hope that students with a B average or higher would not only know where their local library is, but also that they can often find DVD’s and sometimes even videogames there for free.

So if handing out free movies can’t save Blockbuster, which filed for bankruptcy in September of 2010 and was subsequently purchased by DISH Network Corporation in April, what can?

There is one thing that Blockbuster has that its competitors lack: its storefronts.  And perhaps this is what Blockbuster is counting on in their student promotion, something money truly can’t buy: the feeling of walking out of a store with real product in your hand, without having to pay for it, and the company actually thanking you for doing so.

Reach Whitney Bratton here.