(NAPSI)—It’s holiday season, and for many that can mean long lines, time crunches and short tempers.

Indeed, the National Retail Federation expects holiday retail sales for 2011 to increase 2.8 percent, to $465.6 billion. Additionally, nearly six in 10 holiday shoppers (59.9 percent) say they plan to take advantage of retailers’ sales and discounts to make additional nongift purchases for themselves and their families during the holiday season.

But there’s good news for time-strapped, budget-conscious consumers looking to treat themselves and their families to more relaxing activities and avoid the long holiday lines. It’s home entertainment—particularly this season’s movies. Movies bring families together and cable providers bring movies into homes, saving consumers valuable time and money.

Entertainment from Movies on Demand on cable delivers to digital cable subscribers the latest movies, often weeks before the DVD can be rented. With just a click of the remote and for only a few dollars, movie lovers can enjoy recent theatrical releases, as well as favorite flicks and seasonal classics—instantly.

No waiting in line at a vending machine, and every movie listed on the menu is always in stock. Current and future film releases are listed at www.rentmoviesondemand.com. Here are a few examples:

Ralph Fiennes wreaks havoc in “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2.” Johnny Depp takes another swashbuckling journey in “Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides.” Those gleeful kids of the hit TV show “Glee” take center stage in “Glee: The 3D Concert Movie”; Jim Carrey delights in “Mr. Popper’s Penguins”; “The Smurfs” fall into our world.

And this holiday season there’s something for the grown-ups, too. Viola Davis risks everything when she speaks from the heart and tells it like it is in “The Help,” along with Emmy Award winner Allison Janney. Then grab your “kitchen pass”port and head to Thailand for another bachelor party gone seriously wrong in “The Hangover, Part II.”

With fun movies like these available in your own home, family holidays can be more relaxing; even last-minute shopping may seem easier.

 

On the Net:North American Precis Syndicate(NAPSI)