Say goodbye to Blockbuster Video

It looks like the bottom has finally fallen out of Blockbuster. After numerous failed attempts at attracting new customers, the company is finally spiraling out of control.

Sad as it is, the end is near for Blockbuster, and all that pressure it has been placing on Netflix will be lifted.

Blockbuster Video was one of the exclusive supporters of Blu-ray in their stores. This turn of events could possibly have an impact on the format war between Blu-ray and rival HD DVD. Only time will tell.

[RadientFlux]

I doubt it will have any effect on the format war. Blockbuster going out of business has more to do with lower costs of purchasing DVDs and the ability to order movies through cable/sat.

[emaddox84]

Don't forget online movie rentals like Netflix which took a massive amount of revenue from rental stores. Depending on how quickly you get around to watching your movies, you can end up paying like $1 per movie with Netflix, which is way more appealing then $5 per rental at Blockbuster. I do go to Blockbuster still for game rentals though.

[ruibing]

I like owning the movies I watch, especially for BD movies that I'd like to keep. It won't affect my purchase decisions for the holidays at all.

[witchking]

I think BB will continue to divest of its brick and mortar business in favor of its online component. Couple with that partnering with a digital download service (TiVo, Xbox Live, Playstation Network, etc.) and you'll see the BB brand thrive. The nature of the business is to change, and BB has been slow to do that, but they have enough resources at their disposal to ensure their future... provided they are smart enough to adapt with the times.

[Ju]

Gamerental at Blockbuster are way to expensive. That's another problem, IMO. $7 a week? Imagine. 4x7 = $28 a month. Compare that to $17 for GameFly. So its NetFlix on the movie side and GameFly for the games. They are nowhere competitive. They are not out yet, as far as I understand. So I don't actually know why this is reported as news, while its simply a blog posts opinion.

[VaNdAl]

Movie Gallery, which operates under the names Movie Gallery, Hollywood Video, and Game Crazy, filed for bankruptcy on Tuesday, according to a story by Bloomberg. http://www.news.com/8301-10...

[Sulphur Man]

Yes, SD DVDs are cheap, easy to copy, store and utilise on portable hardware. None of these qualities are present on BR & HD-DVD, which is why they'll both fail to gain any grip on the market, and will be sidelined once net bandwith is capable of delivering on-demand HD content more easily.

[WilliamRLBaker]

Why I approved.
It doesn't need to be in tech it needs to be in industry news, Block buster is the biggest rental store in the world, they rent out video games, and marketing revenue and such is put into blockbuster by gaming companies. so it does have to do with games.

[gamesblow]

But why?

Why the hell does anyone want it to go undeR? This is absurd. People are so out of touch with nostalga it's sickening. The drive in movie was killed off in much the same vien. What a waste. I don't shop at Blockbuster or rent from there anymore... I know what I like and buy accordingly. It pains me to think families who aren't internet savy or high enough class to own broad band connections and other high end devices are going to be left out of the loop because of selfish behavior in the market place. What a joke. This makes me wanna go to Blockbuster and dump money into their registers by renting a **** load of movies.

[lawman1108]

Just to see that the movie they wanted was out and to have to get something they did not want because they drove to BB. On demand is all people need, now MS live is going to be doing movies over the net too. In less then Twenty years going to the movies will be a thing of the past.

[PS3 Limps on and on]

If you don't rent movies from them, who's so much better? Hollywood video?

Or are people saying that renting movies is a thing of the past in general? So you buy all your movies or maybe you rent online and wait 3 or 4 days for them to arrive?

[gamesblow]

Nothing's wrong with Block Buster... It's the elitist idiots who have the problem. People who like to see **** die off just for the hell of it. I hate the xbox 360, but I don't want itto go anywhere. I loath Nintendo, but I'd hate to see them dry up and leave the market. We'd lose the foundation of the industry that way. Blockbuster needs to stick around. All there is to it.

[Kholinar]

I think they're ok. Hollywood's generally cheaper, but have far less locations.

For me it has to do with my taste. My wife and I mostly watch obscure art films and foreign films that are hard to find. Blockbuster doesn't have much for us, Netflix does. We also found that we were spending $30 per month at blockbuster for a limited selection when Netflix had most everything we wanted, and could rent three times as much for half the price.

The drop boxes at McDonalds are having an effect too. For those who just watch "blockbusters", those are a cheap, local option. So there are options for people with lower incomes. Though I don't see how you can beat Netflix if you watch very many movies.

[goodganja]

Blockbuster succeeded in dominating the rental chains worldwide. Not everyone has internet and actually likes the idea of going into a store and picking up a game/movie instead of waiting for it in the mail.

P L A Y B 3 Y O N D

[vilmer]

You got it. If Blockbuster goes down, will there be an obesity spike?

[Kholinar]

"Not everyone has internet and actually likes the idea of going into a store and picking up a game/movie instead of waiting for it in the mail."

Dead on.

And that was blockbuster's main advantage with their online service. Unlimited In-store rentals (up to your at-a-time limit). Once they chopped that down to a few a month, they lost any real advantage over Netflix. It's too bad, but honestly, their moves on this whole thing have been a nightmare.

The article is right though, they lived off of late fees, much like the credit card companies... and people who live off the misfortune of others often come to unfortunate ends.

[jackdoe]

Blockbuster hasn't gone bankrupt yet. And like the two comments above me asked, why do people want Blockbuster to close down? I have no problem with them staying open.

[godofthunder10]

BB isn't going to make in much longer,now you have to have a credit card to rent from them and this is a bad time to do this.we have more people filing for banrupt the last few years then they ever had before,the economy is slowing down,not for the rich but the poor and middle class because it's the middle class that's filing for bankrupsy then ever before,so if more people goinging bankrupt then ever before then how in the hell will bb business pick up.if you don't belive me about bankrupsy just check it out and if you put disagree then you didn't check it out because it's fact.i hope bb don't close down but i don't see how it can stay afloat the way the economy is.

[XxZxX]

sorry man, blockbuster is here to stay. :D

[lawman1108]

face facts......it's gone baby.

[ScentlessApprentice7]

If they want to dig themselves out of the hole than they better start renting out porn again. I know it wouldn't cause a huge turnaround but it would at least cause some kind of an upsurge in revenue.

[tplarkin7]

The very reason that Blockbuster succeeded was due to their policy of no porn. It was truly "family friendly" which is the only way to reach the highest level of success in America.

[Doppy]

In today's news we investigate the death of Blockbuster. They authorities have two suspects Netflix and Gamefly.

[Ares84]

to undermine blu-ray by saying it's supporters are going out of business!!

Check the source....it's cnet. Cnet is owned by Microsoft...no need to see anything anymore!

What a stupid article!

[Doppy]

I hardly doubt that. Cnet is not as biased as most people think I mean they gave the Playstation 3 hardware a better rating than they did the Xbox 360. They do underate some items but their not biased.

[DethWish]

Getting paranoid eh?

[BloodySinner]

DethWish, he is.

[RelloC]

yet another conspiracy theory. as dumb-founded as they are, they never get old.

[lawman1108]

http://www.circuitcity.com/... ohhhhh sooo tasty. Between this and my PS3 door stop I am covered

[godofthunder10]

your post just show how stupid people could be.it pi**es me off to read a post from someone that's a sony fan that blames microsoft for every thing.it shows how bias and a dum a** you are.just because there's an report that says that BB is in finicial trouble because it lost 35 million in 1 quarter and its stock drop lot a ton of bricks.every time that they have bad news about the ps3 and Br dum a** people like you think that you know every thing but you don't know a dam thing.the only reason you made the remark about microsoft and hd-dvd is because you have a ps3 so you like br and if the ps3 had hd-dvd in it,you will be the first one to jump up and say that hd-dvd is better then br because the only reason that you say br is better is because you have a ps3,and by reading your article you're not smart enough to understand any thing about them.
this post didn't have a damn thing to do with br,hd-dvd or microsoft,but since BB is only renting br disks and it might be a blow to br if they have to close down (and their's a good chance that they might)you have to post a stupid remark about how every one is trying to hurt the ps3 and br but the truth is that sony hurt the ps3 when they were only tring to get br out to the public so they forced it on people and didn't worry about any games,hell the president of sony even made the remark before the ps3 was released that people will buy the ps3 even if it didn't have any games,well i guess he was wrong because you can't give them away where i live out.
i should also tell you something that you don't know yet,microsoft don't own hd-dvds, they only suport it and uses it in their products,sony uses windows in their computers but they don't own windows do they.hell microsoft even said that they are just backing hd-dvd and if br wins then they could just switch over to it.i also want to let you know that you can't just print lies about stocks about any company or lies about anything because it's against the law to print lies.
so stop acting like a damn kid fighting over a kids game system and worry about the article because it didn't have a damn thing to do with microsoft so if you can't post something that's about article just go and sit in the corner and find a game you like and play with your little toy.

[Blitzed]

I doubt we will see them close their door anytime soon. They will be bought by another conglomerate who will cut costs and alter the business model etc. thats not to say it wont eventually die but I dont think its going to be in the immediate future.

[Megaton]

Well that blows. There's one a block away from my house. I walk down there to check out the used games from time to time. I've been going there since I was a little kid, when all the staff knew me and used to give me free movie posters.

[GIJeff]

i dont think blockbuster is going anywhere. This article is one guys opinion. Lame. Then again, it is bloodmask...sigh.

I really enjoy the awesomeness of just running down the street to grab a movie or game i want to try. Screw netflix, i dont see the point. BLockbuster doesnt even have late fees anymore. Its freaking awesome. But whatever loosers. whatever.

[Groo]

People who would like to see Blockbuster go down...wait till movies you've rented online get lost in the mail and you have to pay for them instead of just bringing them to a store. Thats one thing that makes Blockbuster convenient.

[gEnKiE]

wow, thats crazy....I never thought it would go under like that. Thats where I buy all of my cheap dvds..... :(

[sleepbox]

I remember when they opened....

I also remember that they carried like 5 Sega Saturn games and the entire PS1 library...I feel that they contributed their fair share to the demise of the Saturn

I won't be upset when they shrivel up and away. POWER TO THE MOM AND POP PEOPLE!

[THE_JUDGE]

the bottom fell out on BB years ago. They haven't lost as much money this whole year as they did in one quater when they eliminated late fee's. I know first hand, I used to work there. This is just a pathetic attempt by Blooodmask to find a negative against Sony and Blu-ray. Nice try but fail!

[PS3 Limps on and on]

you think?

[Bladestar]

This is just the next evolution and cross over between crappy disc media distribution and digital distribution... simple as that...
I since I subscribed to Netflix I've never stepped a foot on a video store... they also allow me to watch movies (older) directly from their website... I get to take 4 movies at a time... ge them by mail... return them by mail... and I don't have to drive to no store...

Mail distribution will replace video stores...
Digital distribution wll replace mail distribution...

Digital distribution is not HD DVD nor blu-ray friendly... so they will both be killed.. murder by digital distribution...

the only room that disc formats have in the market will be transferable content... like taking your movies from one home to another.. of course.. unless companies making digital media devices don't add removable hard drives (ala xbox 360) where you can carry your entire movie library easly...

For rental.. there is no benefit on disc distribution.. none... cost less to companies and the consumer to digitally distribute it.

why wait? turn on your device, browse for movies, buy, watch... forget the middle man... I think eventually each studio whould offer than own digital distributed services... via IPTV... kill the middle man.

[GIJeff]

hard copys are here to stay for quite some time. People really like having the library of movies in their living rooms. Letting friends borrow movies, im sorry but hard media is going to be here for a long while.

[WilliamRLBaker]

I agree Digital distribution isn't even in its infancy its in its conception, untill Broadband in america gets better (we at 15th in the world for broadband speed, price, and per capita) then we wont be relying on digital distribution too much any time soon.

Physical media will be around for a long time, Because Digital distribution is still iffy.

[Megaton]

Yeah, I don't like the idea of digital distribution becoming the leader, and I know I'm not alone. I'm a big fan of having the case, booklet, and disc in hand. I'd much rather bring that to a friend's house than my whole desktop computer.

I'm also not a fan of methods of living that keep us further trapped inside our homes. If I have to run down to the store to buy/rent a movie/game, that's fine with me.

[Bladestar]

yep... that's exactly what many said about music.... how many people do you know buy music in CDs now in days?

oh yeah.. and about bandwidth... movie on demand.. by cable company.. isn't that digital distribution? how about the xbox 360 marketplace? one can start watching movies within 1 minute of starting to download. Take a lot more to go to the video store and rent a movie...

forget that... I only care about the content... why the heck would I want to have 300 movies laying around or games? I don't have room for that.. I currently own like 10,000 songs.. imagine the problem having discs.. and organizing that? right.... you people are old school... Look at me.. I am holding a disc!

[Arkham]

"Blockbuster Video was one of the exclusive supporters of Blu-ray in their stores. This turn of events could possibly have an impact on the format war between Blu-ray and rival HD DVD. Only time will tell."

How did this get approved with the above comments added by the contributor? They're not in the original blog post.

Naughty. Incorrect and fear-mongering too, while we're at it. "Blockbuster Video [is]..." not "Blockbuster was...".

[damnwrx]

Movies broken in halves or never got to destination..............hmmmm m

[Leathersoup]

I just checked Blockbuster (BBI) on Nasdaq and they're doing better now than they were this time last year.

[IdontTakeSides]

Nice spin on the story guys this is someone's opinion ...Blockbuster isn't closing...the orginal article stated that there online membership took a beating...no wheere did I read about them closing down...!!

[MaximusPaynicus]

Am I the only one who has noticed that Don Reisinger never has any good news about anyone, ever? I swear, it's like he gets his jollies off writing about how much the Wii is all hype, and how the PS3 is already an abysmal failure, or in this case, the impending death of Blockbuster.

It's only been a short time, but I've already grown sick of this guy.

[Ashta]

If Blockbuster goes out of business then I guess my renting days are over. I refuse to use Netflix because it relies way to heavily upon an internet driven service. I prefer a physical address I can walk too if I actually have a problem.

As for the actual article itself...it's just a bunch of wishful thinking. Just as "IdontTakeSides" said the article was made to focus upon their internet service but with spinned information like the closing of stores added to the article. Sure, the net service has taken a beating and thats pretty much where their problem is. If Blockbuster was going to shut anything down it's their internet service and that wouldn't effect me at all.

As for Netflix? I can't actually believe that anyone actually uses it. It has yet to become an attractive service that anyone could claim is "reliable" and without the use of actual physical stores I think it should fall well within the realm of "not exactly trustworthy". Why? Because of personal information being thrown across the net in the form of purchase receipt after purchase receipt. The risk of user information being stolen is greater with less ability to actually track the thief. Besides...why the hell would I want to -wait- for my movies to arrive? I'm not so fat and lazy that I can't walk to my car and go rent it the day it arrives on the shelves.

In closing, the article is an opinion. It isn't based on any facts or announcements that Blockbuster is dire straits. As for calling the guy paranoid for thinking that just because cnet is MS owned that it has a biased opinion I think you might need to rethink that.

Remember, the glorious benefactor that helped bribe Dreamworks and Paramount with going to Toshiba was the japanese based companies american partner....which is Microsoft, and considering their less than desirable tactics at advertising and trying to defame competition to monopolize a market area I wouldn't put it past them to put out a hit piece every now and then.

Not saying that this IS one, but it is kinda ironic that CNET (which is MS owned) would make an article that defames Blockbuster who had just recently went the way to Blu-Ray and left HD-DVD (which MS has a stake in) in the mud. Ulterior motives? Maybe...maybe not.

[WilliamRLBaker]

Say Microsoft owns Cnet we'll I've yet to find any evidence to prove or disprove so can you give me proof they do own them? On the books proof?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wik...

No mention of Microsoft.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wik...

No mention of Microsoft.

1 no name disagree no name given and no reason, and really there is no reason, because MICROSOFT DOESN'T OWN CNET! There is no proof they do, so its a FACT you can disagree with facts but it makes you look stupid.

[WilliamRLBaker]

I personally use Total access online, because I've been with em for a while so I'm under the grandfather clause that whatever I signed up for i get.
Which is 3 movies out at a time for 17.99, unlimited trade ins at the store, Game discounts for trade ins, monthly coupon for free movie or game...ect

I've happy with it to a point, Their discs tend to be in better condition then netflix *which i've tried* but Netflix tends to keep movies in stock more and more obscure titles.

I went on an queue addition spree last month adding all these movies i want to watch into my queue and all ready 5 movies have disapeared from that list because the online store doesn't carry them anymore, which is sad because i'll get the first and 2nd in a series then the 3rd they wont carry any more but they'll carry the 4th and 5th, which netflix is pretty good at keeping stuff in stock.

1 no name disageee, And what I said above is Fact, 5 movies i put on my queue disapeared, Netflix? nothing has ever disapeared from my queue their, And I am under a grand father claus.

Disagreeing with facts makes you look stupid.

[Douglasp]

Aprox. In April I went to BB. (been a customer since 98 maybe) The guy at the counter said "Your card has expired you need to renew it." I was like "o.k". He said I need a credit card so I can renew it. I gaved him my Bank check card with the VISA logo. He said "No I need a real Credit Card not a bank card with visa on it." I said "ummmm WHY it's accepted like a credit card every where I go, including to pay gas." He said "our policy requires a real credit to renew the membership only, after that you can pay for rentals using this card." I said "well if this is your new policy it damm sucks, because I don't have a real credit card." I told him "give me back my card and I walked out." Never again to step into BB again. All it takes is one bad incident and people will walk away from BB. Alot of my friends don't rent from them since the late fees days. Now are Netflix members. I am not a netflix member but guess where I rent my movies now. VOD from Time warner, Vongo, X360 movies. With the amount of HD movies my cable company and X360 offers for rent who needs BB. Not only that it only takes around 10 months for movies to appear on Starz or HBO HD. Times are changing and BB needs to change a bit. Before it's gone, like so many other retail changes go. The big retail cloud in the SKY.

[sheng long]

I hope they don't go out of business. Where am i going to go rent movies now? I don't mind online rentals, but online you have to order in advance. If i feel like watching a movie i can drive down to bluckbuster and rent it real quick.

[hamsterfist]

I had of course given Blockbuster my credit card when I signed up. Which I did not think was a big deal, as I thought they wanted it for people that did not return movies, or big ticket items. Anyway I forgot to return a movie ontime, and had a $3.50 late fee. (Seriously that is it) As I was used to Hollywood video, not really caring about late fees I figured I would just pay this fee next time I rented from Blockbuster. (Seems reasonable to me, I wasn't going to make a trip to Blockbuster just to pay them $3.50, this was 1999 so I don't think you could pay them online or anything) Anyways they charged my "at limit" credit card, put me over the limit thus costing me an extra $40....last time I ever rented from them. Netflix is now where I get my movies, so I say hahahahahaha and go to hell to Blockbuster.

[Lionsguard]

With Blockbuster gone, there's no direct competition for Netflix which means they can charge everyone anything they like. Monopolies are NOT GOOD, people who say stuff like "I hope HD-DVD,Blu-ray,360,PS3, or Wii dies" is an idiot. If something doesn't have any competition, things will only turn for the worst. Imagine if Wii and PS3 no longer exists, heaven right? wrong, Microsoft would no longer have any incentive to upgrade or even make a new machine in a few years time. No incentive in investing money in AAA titles because every title is coming out to 360. This is the same for Movie rentals, what's to stop Netflix to charging people up the ass for rentals now? The only reason their prices got so low was because Blockbuster was responding to their prices. Same goes for consoles, we'd only have an 80gb and 60gb PS3 at original release price right now if the 360 and Wii didn't put pressure on it.

Oh and before Netflix who was the monopoly on movie rentals? BLOCKBUSTER, and who was it that charged up the ass for late fees? Then Netflix came along. Now Netflix will be the next Blockbuster

[segasage]

for only blu-ray, I knew something was up.

Sony's Monthly allowance..has gone dry.

With MS making partnership with Netflix for Xbx 360 downloads..

the DLC takeover is in effect. Disney is even sleeping with the enemy, offering downloadable content on Xbox Live.

For all the people say driving to get the movie is a good thing, well imagine when winter rolls around and you don't feel like going out, just Boot up your Xbox 360 , choose afilm orwhatnot and BAM!! instant gratification.

[wangdiddy82]

i use to hate block busters because they charged a crap load for late fees..

But i love them now because there are no late fee charges and they have blu ray movies.. I hope they dont close down

[King2008]

"Blockbuster Video was one of the exclusive supporters of Blu-ray in their stores. This turn of events could possibly have an impact on the format war between Blu-ray and rival HD DVD. Only time will tell."

No where in the blog does it say this. You cant help but to put some crap in there about HD-DVD. This will have no impact on Blu-ray whatsoever. I usually dont resort to petty name calling but your a moron because somehow you feel that Sony is the neighborhood bully that took your lunch money or something. Sony=Nelson Muntz You=Ralph. It one thing to "support" something its another to be totally blind and if your gonna be blind at least be Ray Charles or Stevie Wonder; be a genius not a blind dork!

~END~

[MrWonderful]

i would miss them because i can trade games in there and get more for them there then at gamestop

[BlazinEurasian]

I'll believe it when I see it actually happen.

[Dmack79]

I remember going to BB as a little kid looking for the newest "E" rated PS1 games. I must have rented Crash Bandicoot 1 a hundred times....BB will be missed.

I have to tell my friend this since he works there and he is a 360/hd dvd fanboy! I wonder what his response will be???

[power of Green]

Simple... how can a company compete with services delivering movies to your home?. Netflix has already jumped on the DDL boat aswell just incase" and to succeed now.

Movie renting politics are getting out of hand too. No rules or over the top restrictions will obviously appeal to a greater amount of people. The netflix system works better and DDL even better than that hence the intrest in it.(you need a debit and credit card to rent a dam movies lol).

#4.1 you "hate" consoles?. lol

[Dmack79]

If he said anything its "I LOVE" consoles, considering he purposely did not mention the PS3.lol

As for the topic. I have read some of the comments and most of them make sense. And I have also done some personal research on this topic. So for now I will treat this as a rumor.

[power of Green]

Opinion can not change the meaning of those words in his post. No big deal I was just giving him sh*t.

[kornbeaner]

$4-$5 for a movie rental is nuts and not to mention now you have to give a credit card number everytime you rent a 360/PS3/ or Wii games.

Thats crazy, and for me there are 2 mom and pop rental places near by.

In both location get the new movies 1 week before their street date and they only charge 1.50 to $2.00 for the new releases and they charge $1 for anything over 3 months and one of the place even lets you keep that old release for up to 5 days, thats only 20 cents a day for the rental.

Blockbuster as a word of advice lower your rental fees to the mom and pop standard and you will succeed. Its not like you won't make your money back selling your over priced candy and popcorn.

[mikeslemonade]

There's more blu-ray subscribers than hd-dvd on Netflix so this has zero effect on the format war. Blockbuster was crap either way so it wasn't going to promote blu-ray even if they survived.

However it's bad how a competitor is leaving. Now Netflix is has a larger market and they will probably try to monopolize more. I have Netflix account and im happy but im willing to switch to a different company for competition. I primarly joined Netflix to be another number in there blu-ray subscribers. Gamesandflix is probably better.

[power of Green]

(0_o)

[Dmack79]

I'm not sure who said this but the quote goes like this. "If you're not for me then you're against me" or something like that. In other words BB obviously wasn't for hd dvd and therefore, it was against it, in a way.

BB went the way of the BLU. :)

[DJ]

They chose to support Blu-ray exclusively after offering both formats for 6 months, and Bloodmask has been sore ever since. Now it is true that Blockbuster is overpriced, and while their selection of movies is superior to all other rental chains, that's no excuse to charge 5~7 dollars for a rental when local competitors do it for $2~3.

This is just a sign that they need to lower their prices if they expect to maintain their edge, and the program that they have to compete against Netflix is actually really good (returning online-ordered movies to the store instead of mailing them back). Some changes are due, but they're definitely not "saying goodbye".

[Dmack79]

what you're saying is that BB just needs to find a fair balance in what they charge their consumers. And that this is just a rumor. right?