In this trendwatching podcast, Cathi Bond talks about Blockbuster’s deal with Motorola (via AP) to download movies onto cellphones.  Nora Young thinks in part it’s a good thing, because it’s part of the dematerialization trend that folks like Alex Steffen talk about.  On the other hand, what about the curation role of physical stores, like Suspect Video?  Can “if you like this, you’ll like that” recommenders really work? Is finding out what your friends watch via Facebook going to do the trick?

Meanwhile, Nora talks about this neat Fast Company article about handbag designer, Shannon South, and her company reMade USA, which takes old scraps of leather or upholstery, and fashions great-looking, original handbags. Upcycling is a booming trend which Nora sees lots of in Toronto, for instance, Susan Harris Designs, or Matthew Simpson’s AKA Menswear.