Recession-hit Americans can now watch hundreds of free movies – by using a new web site to borrow DVDs from their friends.

“It’s like Netflix meets Facebook,” said Jackson, founder of LendAround.com. “You list some DVDs you own, invite some friends you like, and start browsing their collections. The web site helps arrange loans, and keeps track of where everyone’s DVDs are. And nobody pays anyone anything.”

Jackson estimates that though there are over two billion DVDs in US homes,80 per cent are watched just twice a year. “What stops us sharing with friends isn’t meanness,” he said, “it’s embarrassment. Borrowers don’t know how to ask, and lenders fear they’ll forget who they lent a treasured movie to.”

LendAround solves the problem for both sides. Browse and search tools make it easy to find out what movies and TV are in friends’ collections, and a Your DVDs tab shows the location of every lent out DVD. A ‘retrieve’ button allows owners to ask for their movie back without having to call or email the borrower.

So, who wants an invite? ;)