Here’s a collection of reactions to Blockbuster’s rate increase culled from our tipline:
I responded by immediately canceling my account – I gave them the benefit of a doubt the first time, but this is too much.
One thing I enjoyed, when you cancel your account through their website – there’s a text field for “How Can We Improve”….but it’s limited to 255 characters….I don’t think they can really improve in only 255 letters. -Scott
“I don’t know what planet you are from, but the marketing technique of “make the company richer at the expense of existing customers” does not translate well to consumers. I would understand a price hike for new customers, but to slap your current customers in the face with these OUTRAGEOUS prices is absurd. This is especially true when said consumers can get a drastically better deal from your competitor and they are still dropping prices. Have you thought about how your pricing plans compare with Netflix, your main competitor in the online movie rental industry? Its no wonder Blockbuster has lost so much money in the past quarter. Not to mention losing over half a million customers.” -Kris
i just got this email from blockbuster, this sh#$ is getting rediculous?!? i was happy with my 14 dollar plan with unlimited trades, now im going to be paying 20 bucks a month for 5 trade ins and a lousy 4 movies a month? what a scam! -Chris
Your plan restructure took effect this summer and I received a notice that my rate and features would be grandfathered in and remain the same. I would not personally consider this rate hike part of that restructuring; several months have passed. I have subscribed to your service for a long time, since shortly after it started. Now I am about to leave. I understand the realities of business and appreciate your candor. The question is what are you willing to do to keep me as a customer? -Tim
Ugh. -Naomi
I have been using blockbuster online now for a few years and have been enjoying instore exchanges. Back in July they changed their subscription plans, but to my suprise i was grandfathered in under my old plan and was told i would not have to change my plan (at this time). Well last night was time. I got an email saying the price would go to 19..99 from 17.99 and only get a limited number of instore exchanges. Granted i probably use about an average of about 4 instore exchanges a month (some months i use 10 but some i use 1), but this might be the straw that breaks the camels back and send me BACK to Netflix. -Will
First they drop me from unlimeted in-store exchanges down to 5 in-store exchanges per month. The number 5 is idiotic…movies come 3 at a time in the mail…why not allow 6 in-store exchanges per month? At least then you could feel somewhat fulfilled by having 2 opportunities per month to exchange everything that you get in the mail – it’s not what I signed up for in the first place, but I understand that you can’t have unlimited everything. The biggest kick in the teeth is that when I follow the rules and make my 4th and 5th exchange in a month (turning in 3 envelopes, picking up two in-store excahnges) the in-store reps ALWAYS ask me why I’m not taking advantage of all 3 exchanges! I’m tired of explaining their own policy to them!
Now, after I get less than what I signed up for and have to do all the brainwork for their reps, Blockbuster has sent me a notice telling me they will be raising the price of my monthly fee $2 per month, from $17.99 to $19.99…so for the past few months, I was paying the same for less…now, I’ll be paying more for less.
As I have explained to Blockbuster before, I am sorry that I signed up for their offers and made them so successful, but I won’t do it anymore. I’m going back to Netflix ASAP. -Greg
I got a Christmas supprise from Blockbuster Online this morning. They sent me a E-Mail telling me how much I love them and hidden in the 3rd chapter was informed that they were so awesome that I was going to be able to pay them $2 more ($11.99) starting in a week.
What a great Bait and Switch. They make me realize that there store down the street is too expensive, then they make me switch to Netflix. At lease Netflix does not hold movies back when you exchange too many in a month. -Jeremy
They must be out of their damn minds.
I am switching to Netflix. -Bill
They say it so nicely, don’t they… how many people do you think actually read this email? -MarkMan
Blockbuster is now trying to raise out rate by two bucks a month after sending an e-mail a couple months back telling us our service nor price was changing. They really know how to keep customers! I’m out of there! -Wayne
Good job Blockbuster!
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@catskyfire: Wrong, they are not there anymore for some subscribers. I know because they disappeared on me about 3 months ago.
The disappearance of the coupons alone pissed me off enough to almost cancel. This made me have to cancel. Bye bye BB, I deeply hope more current customers give money to your competitor and drive you out of business.
@kimsama:
Same thing happened to me…my online coupons mysteriously vanished about 3 months ago…no more email notifications, and the “print coupon” link is no longer there.
Hmm 2 major price increases in 6 months, and they offer less services, with less in-store selection.
Hellllo Netflix.
Thanks CATSKYFIRE, but the notifications and coupons simply
disappeared. It seems as though the experience that different customers
get, even on the same plan, varies according to some forumla. I would
consider myself a moderate user (former user) of the Blockbuster Online
service…maybe 1 “order” of 3 movies a week, plus the exchanges.
I lived without in-store exchanges before when I had Netflix. I can
adjust my behaviour back to that with my return from Netflix.
It would be cool if Netflix did something special to welcome
everyone back, but I’m sure they’ll see plenty of new/renewed business
from this screwing…
From the Reuters article “The price hikes will apply to new subscribers and some existing subscribers who are heavy users”
Anyone else have a major problem with the heavy users part? If you offer a plan, stick to it. It just seems grossly unfair for them to have a plan and then penalize someone for taking advantage of it…all while someone else across the street who takes 2 weeks inbetween movies will be keeping the same price. I don’t know what grounds you can sue on but i would think there should be something if they are selectively choosing who to bill more.
@gc_atl: Oh yeah, Blockbuster definitely looks at your rental patterns / history before changing prices, removing coupons, etc – so individual results may vary.
For instance, I signed up a couple months before the first price increase – thus going though the “OMG, this is awesome” stage of watching a dozen movies per week. As a result, I was not grandfathered into my original price during the first increase.
Since then, I’ve gone back down to a “typical user” of watching maybe 3-4 movies per month….But I’m still considered a “heavy user”
Wow, I got a similar letter from Netflix a few months ago. Only instead of raising my fees, they lowered them then had the audacity to give me a free hour of streaming movies online for every dollar I spent per month.
I’m gonna ditch Netflix and go back to Blockbuster. I miss getting screwed.
You know the problem with Blockbuster? They still involve the human element. You still have to walk into a B&M store to talk to a pimply faced kid who just doesn’t give a darn and you still have to be subjected to endless spiels about popcorn and soda and candy. And if you’re really lucky, the same pimply faced kid will be on his cell phone and when he pauses to do his job, he’ll squint at your credit card, ask for ID and when you show him (or cause a ruckus by saying it violates your CC agreement) he’ll just shrug, go back to his conversation and you’re saddled with two movies you can’t rent and that probably skip anyway.
The only human element Netflix has is their customer service, and that’s another reason why I like Netflix. Any normal question or problem, including reporting lost DVDs, can be solved on their website. If you really do have an issue, their CSRs are helpful and well-informed.
I’m chuckling at the idea that I must be a “heavy user”. My $5.99 plan is going up to $7.99. That’s one out at a time, two a month, with in-store exchange.
They already killed the free game rental coupon in their last round, so the value was just barely there. Obviously we’re not big movie watchers, but even watching just two a month made the $5.99 worth something (with in-store rentals at $4 a pop). Not so much any more. Going back to a la carte rentals now.
I’m a “heavy user” who got the increase but I’ve been in for a long time and didn’t lose my unlimited exchanges.. I’m getting 2 at a time plus unlimited in store exchanges, now paying 16.99. Its still a slightly better deal than netflix but only because in store exchanges (which I love). I’m staying for now but if I wasn’t near a blockbuster I’d probably switch.
I’m not surprised. BockBuster has always been on my list of scumbag corporations which show no respect for their own customers. I haven’t spent money there in years.
@jerros: “This is Blockbuster after all, they attempted to charge me rewind fees for DVD’s”
LOL, what, did you take it back with all the ones and zeros reversed?
I got the e-mail this morning and wasn’t too happy, but I’m not switching to Netflix just yet. It seems like some of the customers had restrictions set on how many in-store exchanges you can do. I wonder why that is? I’m glad I still have unlimited, but I know it’ll just be a matter of time before they take that away. THEN I’ll switch.
And I guess I’m lucky that I haven’t had any problems with sending or receiving my DVDs in the mail. So far I’ve received all of mine within 2 days, with it being 1 day most of the time.
I took a slightly different route. I never use the in-store exchange, so I dropped Total Access from my account. Instead paying an additional $24 per year, I now pay $12 less per year. They could have handled this a lot better. I’ve been very satisfied with blockbuster.com, but I’m going to take another look at Netflix.
@squidbrain: How is it you have 2 at a time with unlimited for 16.99? On the site, it currently says that’s 21.99, and the increases aren’t posted, yet?
Since I’m primarily a fan of older films (silents and early sound), I never did have the urge to switch from Netflix to Blockbuster. Netflix has everything I want to see, it gets here quickly, and the one time I needed customer service it was superb.
Mine says I’m going from $14.99 to $16.99 and my subscription stays the same. I’m one of those grandfathered in from the last price increase, so I have unlimited in-store trades w/ 2 at a time DVDs in the mail. I don’t know if I’m ready to make the NetFlix switch yet…we’ll wait and see what happens when I’m on my 6th in-store exchange.
Dont forget postage has increased this year so that may have some impact on BB and Netflix. Especially for those watching 24+ movies a month.
@Skiffer: Yeah, apparently I’m considered a “heavy user” since my price was raised. I usually only receive about 3 or 4 via mail, and exchange maybe two in store. So I guess “heavy user” really just means “user at all”.
I shot an email into the consumerist on this last night. I am in the 3 out, unlimited returns plan and they didn’t up my charge 2 bucks, they upped it 10. Thats an extra $120 a year. Screw that, the email didn’t even settle in my brain before I switched to the Netflix 4 movie plan. Charging me a promised flat fee, then on top of it charging me on a per use scheme a la “heavy users” is a scam. Comcast does the same shit with bandwidth throttling, its plain false advertising. Good riddens, I’ll never come back.
They lost my business when they did that “Return videos by noon on the day it is due, as opposed to by opening the next day.”
Hollywood lost my business when they didn’t properly stock their shelves, there were boxes on the shelf for items they didn’t have in stock. It was impossible to find what WAS in stock.
Netflix and Gamefly are where I am going now.
I get all of the movies I want to watch from my local library for free. I put something on reserve and it’s usually in ready to pick up within a few days. You have to be patient with the new releases, but I’ve never not been able to find something I wanted. I tried Netflix once on a 30 day trial basis about two years ago. They shipped the initial set of DVD’s very promptly, but after sending them back it took forever for the next set to trickle out. I found it amazing that they thought they could get me to become a paying customer and not even give good service during the free trial.
Yay! I hate Blockbuster. Now if my stupid Time Warner Cable would try this, I could ditch the last company that I hate and still pay money to.
I love netflix. I think I’m going to e-mail them and tell them so.
[www.netflix.com]
With all this baclash and people jumping ship to NetFlix, does anyone know of a program that can scrape out your queue and movie ratings?
A lot of people are complaining that they are losing their unlimited in store exchanges with this. My account stayed the $17.99 with unlimited last time the price changed like 5 months ago, and this time its going up $2 but it doesn’t say I’m losing any features. Maybe I’m lucky.
Or maybe its the fact that I used to go into the stores and take advantage of their sales. 3-4 movies (depending on the sale) for $20 is a good deal especially when they look brand new. Just switch out the jewel case and its a new DvD. I must have bought a good amount of DvD’s that way for them to keep my account the same. That or its because I’ve been a customer since Jan 07.
Blockbuster replied to my complaint (aside from my comments, I am
also quoted as “greg” in the main story above)…I replied that I am
cancelling as soon as I can transfer my queue over to Netflix, as
Netflix “provides a better balance of great service wile still making
it affordable for essentially the same level of service for their
customers.”
—–
Hello Greg,
Thanks for contacting BLOCKBUSTER Online Customer Care.
We’ve reviewed our pricing structure and found that to get a better
balance of providing great value for Total Access subscribers while
still making it affordable for us, as of December 27, 2007, we have
restructured the prices of our Total Access subscription plans.
The vast majority of our Total Access customers will only have a
$2.00 increase in their plans. We believe that even with this price
change, we’re offering an excellent value for customers who prefer the
convenience of in-store or on-line Total Access, while striking the
right balance between providing great value to our subscribers and
getting a fair return for the company and our shareholders. Plus, the
price adjustment enables us to bring our online subscription plans more
in line with our in-store subscription pricing.
You’ll still continue to get the same great benefits and value from
Total Access such as free in-store movie exchanges valid on DVD
rentals, including HD-DVD, Blu-ray, and even $4.99 game rental
discounts with an online envelope.
Concepcion
Customer Care Associate
BLOCKBUSTER Online
I worked for Blockbuster for over two years, and the last movie I rented from them was with my employee discount a few days before I quit.
Being an assistant manager for them at ONE store was far more stressful than running 4 stores at my current job. Upper management yells at employees for giving more than $10 in credits a day, and customers scream at you cause they never turn in a movie late. Terrible, terrible company to work for, and their price structure is completely ridiculous.
As I write this I’m watching Season 1 of 30 Rock courtesy of Netflix instant access.
@gc_atl: I hate to sound selfish, but I don’t give a flying toss about what is affordable to the company and their shareholders. They really should have known better than to send you an email like this. They’re basically saying your only value to them is as someone to make a profit off of.
Yeah, okay. We all know that is the purpose of a business but whatever happened to customer satisfaction? Blockbuster of all companies really cannot afford to treat their customers this way. They’re just hanging on by the skin of their teeth.
I’d go ahead and jump ship now, folks. I get the feeling they’re setting up to make a profit increase for a quarter or two so they can unload it on someone else.
I especially love this line from their Customer Service response:
“Plus, the price adjustment enables us to bring our online
subscription plans more in line with our in-store subscription pricing.”
What business strives to make their online experience cost as much as their brick and mortar experience?
Completely out of touch with reality. Go to Netflix – seems like
they know how to treat a customer and work in the economics of the web.
If you’re going to tie in a B+M operation, you have to take some unique
approaches to achieve success…raising prices and cutting benefits
isn’t the way to go…
@gc_atl: Actually it’s the Brick & Mortar operation that’s been the standard, as you probably know. If I was to a smart business move, it’s gotta be Netflix adding the “instant access” in to their physical mail service, especially since that’s where I see the majority of the business shifting in the next decade.
Blockbuster’s “dumbass move” is just what both you and they stated – trying to make their online experience cost the same as in-store. Why they would go after that target, or at least phrase it that way, boggles me…
You know, I don’t feel sorry for anyone that went with Blockbuster.
Here we have a company that built its empire by buying out smaller stores across the nation and immediately charging 3-4 times as much for the same product.
They have a history of having a de facto monopoly, driving prices through the roof, and screwing their customers at every chance they get. They couldn’t stand a bit of competition from Netflix and tried in vain to undercut them and kill THEM off too.
And you all are somehow surprised they’re following their standard M.O.? Please.
I got a notice from them, and canceled my account immediately. Blockbuster violated my personal TOS by raising prices twice in just a few months. That exceeded the profit threshold that I find acceptable based on my personal irritation/shoddy service/scratched disks/delayed shipment algorithm.
I still say we dont want BBO to go under.
It would eliminate netflix’s competition and give them license to raise prices and lower service. Remember when they first started? 3-out was $22 until BBO came on.
Well, I guess this is their final answer…all about reminding us that this is a great value and nothing at all about how this plan is nothing like what we signed up for in the first place…good bye Blockbuster, hello Netflix!
———————
Discussion Thread
Response (Genesis) 12/23/2007 12:01 AM
Hello Greg,
Our goal is to strike the right balance between providing great value to our subscribers and getting a fair return for the company and our shareholders, and restructured our prices accordingly. It’s important for us to give consumers the most convenient access to media entertainment, whether that’s through our stores or by mail, and are dedicated to doing that with flexible plans and pricing.
We believe that Total Access remains one of the best values around, offering customers the exclusive ability to rent online and exchange their movies by mail or in-store. As an example, our Total Access 3-out at a time plan with 5 in-store exchanges per month is now only $19.99. Our local store rentals are roughly $4 each, and the exchange portion alone of this plan is an approximate $20 value.
I’m sorry if you don’t agree with that business decision and we will understand if you elect to exercise your right to select a new plan via “My Account” or decide to cancel. We hope you decide to continue your membership.
Respectfully,
Genesis
Customer Care Associate
BLOCKBUSTER Online
And they wonder why people download pirated movies!
Who’s really the pirates?
@CaffeinatedSquint: TBH, the human aspect of Blockbuster has always been the best part of it (I don’t consider anyone who answers their email form, that stuff’s GOT to be done by robots..). They always get me exceptions, work around the Total Access stupidity, etc. etc.
You losers need to sign up for Netflix.
Blockbuster Corporate is engaging in unfair business practices and I want to let everyone know about it. I would like to seek advice, because I feel like I am out of options, if the BBB can’t help me.
Not even the BBB can help me against the BlockBuster tyrant.
Complaint filed against: Blockbuster, Inc (More)
Business Info
NAME:
Blockbuster, Inc
BBB MEMBER:
YES
http://www.blockbuster.com
(Less)
Complaint status: Customer Dissat – Member Company – BBB Review (More)
Activity
Date
Activity
Description
01/10/2008 Customer Dissat – Member Company – BBB Review (The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.)
My question about understanding the criteria that Blockbuster Corporate setup to grandfather some accounts and not others was not answered. I do believe it is a valid complaint. There was supposed to be a price restructure only affecting new Blockbuster accounts. I setup my account in December 2006. My friend was able to retain all of his benefits and pay the same price of $17.99 (which I found out that they even added another free movie/game rental) for this month onto his account. So now he has an even better deal.
01/09/2008 Forward Business response to Consumer CLT.cf.rtf
01/09/2008 Receive Business Response Member dissatisfied with price restructure. Invalid complaint. Please close.
01/07/2008 Notify Business of Dispute – Member
01/07/2008 Send Acknowledgement to Consumer
01/07/2008 Case Reviewed by BBB – Member
01/05/2008 Case Received by BBB
(Less)
Case Description: BBB,
Listed below is the email I sent to BlockBuster Corporate(corporate.communications@blockbuster.com) with no response on 11/29/2007. I still have the originial… (More) BBB,
Listed below is the email I sent to BlockBuster Corporate(corporate.communications@blockbuster.com) with no response on 11/29/2007. I still have the originial email that I sent if you may need that.
————————————————-
Dear BlockBuster Corporate,
I was told by a BlockBuster Supervisor, David, on the phone to contact you regarding my BlockBuster Account. The problem is that unauthorized changes were made to my account while my friend’s account was left alone. My friend was grandfathered in, so they left his account alone, while my account went through changes. I noticed this month in November 2007, that I had lost my +1 Free Bonus Movie or Game each month as well as my unlimited in-store free movie/discounted game exchanges as well as my BlockBuster Total Access Premium Status. My friend’s account is still the same as when he signed up for his account and received his first bill in December 2006. What I do not understand is why my account was not grandfathered in just like his account. And I would like some answers, because I feel that this is unfair and unjust. The only thing David told me is that BlockBuster has specific criteria that led corporate to decide which accounts should be grandfathered in and which ones should not. I want to know about this specific criteria, because I know that I had the exact same account as my friend’s. So there should not have been a reason why his account got grandfathered into the new system and mine did not. Right now, I had David cancel my BlockBuster account. I feel that BlockBuster has let me down. I was truly a loyal customer and had nothing but great things to say about your company until now. I feel that BlockBuster is participating in some unfair business practices and I will investigate this further and share this unpleasant experience to everyone. I hope you realize that something is definitely wrong, and I hope that you look into this matter further. I have listed some details below that compares my account with my friend’s account. I hope that you can see why I am upset.
————————————————-
12/13/2006 ************ NA3 at a time Unlimited rents $18.89 (Ann’s Account-First Bill)
12/25/2006 ************ NA3 at a time Unlimited rents $18.89 (Friend’s Account-First Bill)
————————————————-
Your current plan… (My Friend’s Current Account-Which was what my account used to look like.)
* Rental Type:
BLOCKBUSTER Total Access Premium
* Your Plan:
$17.99 / month (plus taxes)
3 at-a-time, unlimited mailings
unlimited in-store free movie/discounted game exchanges
+1 FREE bonus Movie or Game Rental E-Coupon / Month
* Next Billing Date:
December 25,2007
Note, if you change to another plan, you will be limited to the pricing and plan limits currently available to new subscribers
————————————————–
Subscription Plan (This is what my account is today)
* Re-Subscribe
Your current plan…
* Rental Type:
BLOCKBUSTER Total Access
* Your Plan:
$17.99 / month (plus taxes)
3 at-a-time, unlimited mailings
5 in-store free movie/discounted game exchanges/month
* Next Billing Date:
N/A (Less)
Category: Service Issues
Case opened date: 01/07/2008
Case closed date:
Desired Resolution: I would like to understand the criteria that Blockbuster Corporate setup to grandfather some accounts and not others. I want… (More) I would like to understand the criteria that Blockbuster Corporate setup to grandfather some accounts and not others. I want to try and understand why my account did not get grandfathered in, and if at all possible retain the deal I had when I signed up for a BlockBuster Total Access Premium Account in December of 2006. (Less)