The new service, Blockbuster Express Digital, will be tested in a few markets. The initial offering will have about 1,000 movies, which is about 15,000 fewer than Netflix offers on its streaming service, which works with TVs, computers and PS3s, and other devices.

Blockbuster isn't the first company to try to to rent DRM-protected movies that play on proprietary devices. Apple's been doing it for years through iTunes. Of course, to rent movies on iTunes, you don't have to go hunt down a kiosk. You can download them to your computer, iPhone, iPod or Apple TV and watch them instantly. How's Apple doing with that? CEO Steve Jobs calls Apple TV his "hobby," and when the company released an upgraded version of the box last month, it didn't exactly take the world by storm.

So, yeah, good luck with that Blockbuster. It's nice to have a hobby.

NCR, MOD Systems begin digital kiosk download revolution in Entertainment with first technical trial in retail [Press Release]

Here's the thing. If you don't want to go to work, this is not the excuse to use — A) Because you have to stab yourself, and B) because nobody argues with the word "diarrhea" and they certainly do not go review security camera footage.

From ABC 7 in Denver:

Investigators reviewed surveillance video taken at a nearby business that failed to show an attack where [the Blockbuster guy] claimed it had happened.

[The Blockbuster guy] was re-interviewed by detectives who said he finally admitted he stabbed himself because he didn't want to go to work.

Police: Man Who Claimed Stabbing Didn't Want To Go To Work [ABC 7 via HuffPo]
(Photo:FleaTheMagician)

He didn't stop there. Other complaints the woman is levying:

- Perrier made numerous inappropriate comments such as "anytime you want three inches for three minutes..."

- Perrier took photos of plaintiff's backside and refused to delete them.

After all that, the manager fired the employee. Could the allegations be any more creepy and disturbing? Way to train and supervise your managers, Blockbuster. Netflix just got even more appealing.

Chicago Now [via The Minimum Rage]
(Photo: medalian1)
(Thanks, Chris!)

Ryan rented a game from his Blockbuster and was told by his receipt and employees that late fees for video games were back. He writes:

This new policy really screws over those of us that rent games from Blockbuster. If this continues any more than a month, I will promptly cancel my membership and just get myself a Gamefly membership.

Full text from my receipt, I will offer some more details from what I was told in-store below.

"NOTICE: Starting October 6, 2009 in select stores, including this store, the rental terms have changes as follows:

MOVIE RENTALS: No additional rental charge will be applied if a member chooses to keep a movie up to an additional ten (10) days beyond the initial pre-paid movie rental period.

GAME RENTALS: Game rentals have a 5-day rental period (the "Initial Game Rental Period"), An additional daily rate (each, an "Additional Daily Rate") plus tax will be charged for each day the member chooses to keep the rental product beyond the Initial Game Rental Period. [I was told the charge was $0.99/day for the first 10 days]

All Product kept more than 10 days beyond the initial pre-paid rental period is converted to an automatic sale. Sale may be reversed by returning the product to this store within 10 days of the sale and paying a $1.25 restocking fee. Member remains responsible for all Additional Daily Rates incurred prior to the auto-sale (if applicable).

These terms supersede any contradictory term on the back of this receipt. See store for details."

... so basically they're finding a way to milk an extra $10 out of customers who rent video games. They claim this will get more games in stores so people can rent them (and kids don't keep them forever), but this approach seems FAR too aggressive. I could see a $1/day charge after the 10th or 15th day, but this is ridiculous and basically them trying to sneak in hidden late fees. I will not be their customer for long if this continues.

Now the issue is just how "select" these video game rental fee-having stores are. Or maybe Blockbuster chose the language because after all the store closures, only "select" stores remain open. Has anyone else run into this at their local Blockbuster?

The LA Times says that 18% of the chains stores are unprofitable — and 47% are barely profitable. The company plans to get away from physical stores and concentrate on opening kiosks to compete with the surging popularity of Redbox.

In all, the Times says that as many of 1,560 of Blockbuster's 4,356 stores could close down or be converted into "outlets."

Can Blockbuster catch up with Netflix and Redbox by aggressively eliminating physical locations? Or was that the one edge they had left?

Blockbuster more than doubles planned store closures to nearly 1,000 [LA Times] (Thanks, Brett!)
(Photo:Cuttriss)

Problem was, Brian says Blockbuster didn't send him the next movies in his queue once he returned his others to a store, and wasn't quick about resolving the problem, as Brian details in his message to us:

I have spent nearly the past two weeks trying to get Blockbuster to send me any movies that are on my Blockbuster Total Access account after I returned my previous three to my store. However it seems that they are incompetent on trying to resolve any issues let alone even sending me the "free" in-store rentals that I've been promised by their customer representatives over the phone. Here is my detailed time line.

Thursday August 6th: Stopped by the (redacted) location to drop off my three online rentals. Rented out a Blu-Ray title at the time as well as my plan includes five in-store rentals. Get home and see said movies are "returned" but the status on the return doesn't show the date of return since they are being mailed from the Northtown location to whatever location they originate from.

Friday August 7th: Nothing shipped out yet. Assumed they might not of been able to get my next movies sent out so I decide to sit through the weekend on the issue. No big deal yet.

Monday August 10th: Still nothing. Decide to wait until Tuesday to see if anything happens.

Tuesday August 11th: The returned rentals today show they are officially "returned." Still nothing sent but I decide to give it one more day to see if anything is sent.

Wednesday August 12th: Call Blockbuster after again nothing has been sent. Woman on phone says she will send a message to their IT support on the matter and I will get in-store free rentals due to this. I simply write this off as a simple technology issue and move on. However none of the free rental coupons show up.

Friday August 14th: Two days later and still nothing sent. I call again. Man I get says he will send message to the distribution center in my area and once again I am promised free in-store rental coupons. He says I will have them "within the hour." Did I get them? Nope. But I did get an e-mail from Blockbuster telling me what new releases I
can rent that weekend. Returned Blu-Ray rental to store.

Monday August 17th: At 10 AM CST an e-mail showed up in my box saying a movie has just shipped out. Happy to put this issue to bed. At 10:15 AM CST however the issue worsened. A second copy of the same exact title had shipped out. At first I thought maybe somehow my ISP didn't delete the e-mail off the server the first time I got it so I checked my account. Nope... I indeed have two copies of the same title on the way.

Call Blockbuster at 1 PM since I had other things going on. Get told that two different distribution centers had sent out the title and there was nothing that can be done at this point. Told I can return one of the copies to an store and have it exchanged for an free in-store rental. Brought up that I never even got the promised in-store rental coupons. Woman argued with me for over five minutes before she finally realized I wasn't about to drop the issue. She then in a very unprofessional tone told me that she would resend them to me and that I should be happy she is doing that for me.

When Brian called to cancel his account, the CSR fixed the issue, attributing Brian's problems to a reorganization in his local distribution center. He sent Brian the e-coupons and credited $9.99 toward his September payment.

Boy, those cancellation threats can sure move things along.

(Photo: FleaTheMagician)

The offer, which restricts you to one rental at a time, is good through Sept. 7. If I didn't have 40 Netflix instant-watch flicks waiting for me on my Xbox 360, if my DVR wasn't filled with unwatched Family Guys, Simpsons and South Parks and if I didn't have Flight of the Conchords season two preordered on Amazon I might just take Blockbuster up on the deal.

But I won't. And neither will anyone else who keeps current with home entertainment technology, which is sort of why Blockbuster is screwed to begin with. But it would be fun to take a long weekend to go on a nonstop movie binge. In a nostalgic 1998 style.

Blockbuster 'summer escape pass' allows unlimited rentals for $10/week [Joystiq]
(Photo: imjoshdotcom)

Valerie says:

I just noticed this while trying to cancel my Blockbuster online account subscription. If you see by the orange exclamation point, it says "Still want to cancel? Just click 'cancel my subscription'."

Awesome! Except if you'll notice, there is nowhere to click.

I do have the option to call them to cancel my subscription, but srsly Blockbuster? Do you not read your own website?

Wanted to share this epic fail.

(Photo:styngerme)

Robert writes,

Within the last 2 weeks I have noticed that Blockbuster seems to be throttling the queues. When you exchange an online envelope for an in-store rental, it shows up in your queue within a few hours. When you return that movie to the store, it won't clear your queue for at least 2 days.

I returned a movie on Monday evening well before the store closed, and it has yet to clear my queue (today being Thursday). On my rental history it shows rentals being returned to the store 2 days later than normal. And there isn't really anything I can do. The store has checked it in, and when I go to report a problem on their website, it says since it's an in-store rental, I have to contact the store.

What's surprising about this is the 2 day delay is for a movie Robert rented from the store's physical inventory, then returned to the store. Imagine if you'd rented a movie from Blockbuster and turned it in, and the store refused to acknowledge it on your account for at least 48 hours—and wouldn't release that rental slot so you can get another movie in the meantime. That's what Robert's experiencing.

He pointed us to Blockbuster Underground, a blog that describes catching Blockbuster at some of the same tricks. That blog notes,

Even if you personally return a store DVD to a Blockbuster store and call the manager of the Blockbuster store to confirm the DVD has been scanned into the system, the DVD can still sit in your queue and occupy a shipping slot indefinitely. Every day a returned DVD incorrectly remains in the At Home section of your queue is a day you are not able to fully benefit from your subscription. Please note that Blockbuster will continue to charge you the full subscription fee even if unnecessary shipping delays of this nature are Blockbuster's fault.

The best thing is to call Blockbuster at the first sign of any shipping delay. You can reach Blockbuster toll-free at (866) 692-2789. Blockbuster may ask you to wait twenty-four hours before reporting a delay, but this is a ridiculous request. Blockbuster's system should be able to update at least hourly. If their system updates less than that, they need to fix it.

Your other alternative: see if there's a Redbox, and make the switch to Netflix.

Blockbuster Underground
(Photo: sunshinecity)

MSNBC reports,

The video rental giant agreed Monday to pay $300,000 in "civil fines and costs" as part of a ruling against them for unfair business practices, officials announced yesterday.

[...]

The civil complaint alleged Blockbuster stores in California charged customers more than the currently advertised or posted price on scanned items in violation of unfair competition and false advertising statutes.

Blockbuster was also "prohibited" from overcharging customers in the future, which we think would make a swell new advertising campaign for them: "Now with no sneaky markups at the register!"

"Blockbuster Fined for Defrauding Customers" [MSNBC] (Thanks to Anthony!)
(Photo: Felixe)

But the most heinous act of Redbox — other than subjecting witless viewers to Bride Wars — is destroying the very fabric of the movie industry. Take it away, L.A. Times:

The discount DVD rental business worries Hollywood movie studios because of fears that it is undercutting DVD sales, which dropped 13% in the fourth quarter and were projected to fall at least 6% more in the first quarter, according to analysts.

DVD sales historically have been how the studios earn a profit on movies, because ticket sales are barely enough to offset production and marketing costs. Some studios believe that consumers will forgo buying DVDs if they have a cheap option to rent movies.

"You could make a bit of an argument that rental is cannibalizing [DVD purchases] in 2008, especially in a recession year, where everyone is watching their nickels," said Tom Adams, a video industry analyst.

The logic goes that people pay $1 to rent Bride Wars rather than $16 to buy the DVD. The studio fails, the sequel Bride Wars 2: Electric Boogaloo doesn't get made, and Anne Hathaway is a homeless bag lady. And then when Hathaway wants to see a Keanu Reeves movie, all she can afford is to rent it for $1 from Redbox, thus leading to Reeves' homelessness. And the cycle continues, with more homeless actors spending too little to rent more and more movies, systematically making their colleagues homeless until all that's left are Harry Potter movies. And no one wants that.

Oh well, even though Redbox threatens to undermine the very stability of mankind's ability to sustain an entertainment industry, at least we can count on Redbox not to allow our credit card info to be skimmed.

Redbox's $1 vending-machine video rentals worry movie studios [Los Angeles Times]
(Photo:KitanaOR)

Hint to preserve your sanity: to avoid PC Mag's trashed layout, try viewing/bookmarking the print-friendly version.

"How to Delete Accounts from Any Website" [PC Mag] (Thanks to Josh!)
(Photo: jm3)

"Blockbuster Said to Hire Firm for Advice on Possible Bankruptcy" [Bloomberg]
"Blockbuster Shrs Plunge; Reportedly Mulls Bankruptcy" [Barron's]
Blockbuster on Google Finance [Google Finance via CoryOBrien]

Two readers have caught the changes and alerted us to them. Ryan writes,

Blockbuster has a new policy that decreases the amount you can rent at any time, and disguises it as a benefit of "no due dates". Previously they would exchange movies in store, and continue to ship your online queue as usual.

Another reader, Jon, is particularly annoyed because he was an early customer:

Blockbuster total access was a dream for me, 19.99 a month unlimited rentals and unlimited movies by the mail (I was grandfathered into that deal). But now they changed the plan for the worse and [are] trying to make it look like a great deal.

Their new headline reads, "No More due dates for total access in store returns," but the fine print is they don't send you your next mailings until you return the movies to the store. You used to get both in store and mail movies at the same time.

Here's the new fine print from Blockbuster:

You'll receive one free in-store movie rental for each online rental sealed in its return mailer, up to your plan's limits. The maximum number of free in-store movie exchanges is based on the plan to which you subscribe. At participating stores, your free in-store exchanges will not have due dates. You can keep them as long as you want without incurring additional fees, as long as you remain a BLOCKBUSTER Total Access subscriber. However, in all cases, any free in-store movie exchanges will count towards how many online rentals you may have out under your plan. Your next online movie will ship after the in-store movie exchange has been returned to the store you rented it from.

Here's the logic from the Blockbuster release.

"We already rent more video games than any other company, store-based or online, in the nation, so we know our core customer loves games as well as movies," said Bob Barr, Vice President and General Manager of blockbuster.com. "With this pilot program, we're laying the groundwork for offering BLOCKBUSTER Total Access customers easy online access to the movies and games they want, through an integrated subscription offering. Plus, according to their plan, they'll continue to be able to exchange their by-mail rentals both for free in-store movies as well as half-price in-store game rentals. A combination video game and movie online offering — with in-store exchange privileges — is a tremendous value and convenience offering not available through anyone other than Blockbuster."

HackingNetflix also notes that Netflix has not even considered video games, even advertising the similarly-organized Gamefly on their envelopes.

What do you think, Consumerists? Is this skillful move trying to outflank Netflix and overpower Gamefly, or just another misstep of a living fossil? Leave your thoughts below.

Blockbuster Testing Game Rentals With Total Access Subscription
[Hacking Netflix]
(Photo:northernplateguy)

"We do have plans in the month of January to more aggressively roll throughout the system a value offer that will include movies in the 99 cents price range," Blockbuster Chief Executive Jim Keyes told the Reuters Media Summit on Thursday.

"The 99 cents plan is targeted at the value-conscious consumer in this challenging economy."

"Targeting" the "value conscious" consumer in this economy is the equivalent of standing 5' in front of Soldier Field and trying to hit it with a shotgun, so we wish him the best of luck. It's certainly a better idea than Blockbuster's previous plan — buying Circuit City.

Blockbuster offers 99-cent DVD rentals [Reuters] (Thanks Phil!)
(Photo: northernplateguy )

Anthony writes:

Called both Blockbuster and PayPal this morning and of course one pointed the finger at the other for the double subscription charge. So here I am with two charges and no way to resolve the issue since Blockbuster does not see both charges in their system and PayPal says I need to contact Blockbuster for resolution.

[Note: we edited the above screenshot for space, but we did not remove any figures.]

Has anyone else had this problem with Blockbuster's PayPal account agreement? It's a small amount in this case, but that's only because Anthony's plan is the cheapest Blockbuster offers; they charged him the full subscription fee both times.

Here's their official statement:

"Based on market conditions and the completion of our initial due diligence process, we have determined that it is not in the best interest of Blockbuster's shareholders to proceed with an acquisition of Circuit City," said Jim Keyes, Blockbuster Chairman and CEO. "We continue to believe in the strategic merits of a consumer retail proposition that would bring media content and electronic devices together under one brand. We will pursue this strategy through our Blockbuster stores as a way to diversify the business and better serve the entertainment retail segment."

Whatever Circuit City's got, Blockbuster doesn't want to catch it.

Blockbuster Withdraws Proposal To Acquire Circuit City [Blockbuster]
(Photo: Maulleigh )

For users of Profiles, I have good news to report: we will keep the feature with no plans to discontinue it.

We were persuaded by the well-reasoned, sincere responses of loyal members who very much value this feature. As someone who enjoys helping his four-year-old daughter manage her one-DVD-at-a-time, G-rated sub-account, I identified with these thoughtful pleas to maintain Profiles.

Because of an ongoing desire to make our website easier to use, we believed taking a feature away that is only used by a very small minority would help us improve the site for everyone. Listening to our members, we realized that users of this feature often describe it as an essential part of their Netflix experience. Simplicity is only one virtue and it can certainly be outweighed by utility.

As for improving Profiles, there are no definite plans in place yet, but, like everything at Netflix, we seek to make it better and we are open to suggestions. Non-users of the feature and new members will be able to access Profiles in 2-3 weeks. Existing users will be able to continue their use, uninterrupted.

We apologize for any inconvenience the previous announcement caused.

Enjoy.

-Todd

Emails from Consumerist readers sharing the good news hit our mailbox moments after the news was released. Here's how some of our readers are reacting:

Rick: "Sounds like Netflix got the message. Personally, I never used profiles, but it's nice to see that they are willing to say, OK, we made you mad, so we're going to make things right. I like the tone of this message — not too sappy, silly, or over-apologetic. Most companies insult your intelligence one way or another with their apologies."

Sonya: "Yay!"

Keith: "Netflix does take us seriously :)"

Di: "I wonder how many people have already sold thier soul to Blockbuster over this. Oh well."

Steven: "We win I guess!"

Profiles feature NOT going away [Netflix Community Blog] (Thanks to everyone who sent this in!)
PREVIOUSLY: Netflix Eliminates User Profiles, Infuriates Customers
(Photo: Maulleigh)

Incredible shrinking service. Every single person I know uses Netflix uses profiles. For those out there who don't, you can create profiles for different people using the same account, and allow those people to maintain their own list of movies. For example, I get two discs at a time from my queue, my wife gets one at a time from hers, but we pay for just one 3-disc at a time account.

I called Netflix to tell them that if they do this, I will cancel service with them - I made it clear to the poor guy that answered the phone I wasn't going to yell at him, I just wanted to lodge my protest. It seems he's taken LOTS of such calls. He told me to log into my account, click on the Contact Us link, and go to Suggestions and put the information in there. Apparently that page sends information to the correct people. I certainly hope every Consumerist reader who is a Netflix user does just that. Netflix has been one of the better companies I've dealt with, and I believe that if their userbase tells them "no, you are being dumb, stop it", they just might. This also might be the point where they have realized they have Blockbuster just about beat and are starting to abuse their customers. I hope not, because I'd rather they not let Blockbuster up off the mat.

Here's the email Neflix sent out, announcing the discontinuation of profiles:

Important News Regarding Netflix Profiles

Dear ,

We wanted to let you know we will be eliminating Profiles, the feature that allowed you to set up separate DVD Queues under one account, effective September 1, 2008.

Each additional Profile Queue will be unavailable after September 1, 2008. Before then, we recommend you consolidate any of your Profile Queues to your main account Queue or print them out.

While it may be disappointing to see Profiles go away, this change will help us continue to improve the Netflix website for all our customers.

If you have any questions, please go to http://www.netflix.com/Help?p_faqid=3962 or call us anytime at 1 (888) 638-3549. We apologize for any inconvenience.

- The Netflix Team

The ability to have "his and hers", or a kids queue, is pretty essential to the Netflix service for some people. However, according to Netflix's FAQ, they will be emailing people a copy of their queues so they can rebuild their selections. Will this drive you back to the arms of Blockbuster?

The Associated Press says:

The design, which [CEO] Keyes said is likely to change with testing, offers a range of features to help customers make movie choices, including previews and recommendations. Keyes said the company is working to reduce the download time for movies to about 30 seconds.

At first the system will only be compatible with the an Archos portable device, but will eventually be an "open system," able to recognize a wide variety of devices. Blockbuster says that even if they don't manage to acquire Circuit City, "transforming" their stores with these movie ATMs is their goal.

"With or without Circuit City's acquisition, we think we have a terrific opportunity to transform our stores," Keyes said. Blockbusters' presentation also included mock-ups of small movie download kiosks for other locations such as airports.

Will a digital download kiosk save Blockbuster? Or are you perfectly content with Netflix and their new box?

Blockbuster unveils in-store kiosk prototype [AP]
Blockbuster Annual Meeting Presentation [Blockbuster]

Jason writes:

On Thursday I went to Blockbuster and rented a videogame for 8.47$. The next day I checked my online statement to find out that I was charged 8.47$, and then another separate transaction from Blockbuster for 1$. Considering the guy behind the counter had no idea what he was doing at the time I figured he made a mistake and called the Blockbuster back to investigate. They informed me that it is a relatively new policy on all in-store rentals for debit/credit cards in which before charging you the rental for the game, they first bill your card $1 to make sure that it is active, then they bill the rental in addition to that. The manager I spoke to said that they refund the $1 at a later date, but here I am almost a week later with no refund. If this is even legal, why not just charge the $1, and if it works, charge the normal rental price subtract the $1?

Ugh.

(Photo: Seth W )

What's so poignant about this time is the uncertainty. When you get to Blockbuster are they going to have your video? Did someone else rent it? Is there going to be a line? Are the alarms going to sound when you walk out the front door? It was very difficult for the people that lived during this era.

Difficult indeed.

Historic ‘Blockbuster’ Store Offers Glimpse Of How Movies Were Rented In The Past [The Onion]

"The combination of Blockbuster and Circuit City will result in an $18 billion retail enterprise uniquely positioned for the convergence of media content and electronic devices," Keyes wrote. "We would seek to differentiate products in both Blockbuster and Circuit City stores by offering exclusive content and content-enabled devices.

Circuit City was initially unwilling to talk to Blockbuster, but today CNNMoney said that Circuit City has agreed to open its books:

"We are pleased to have reached an agreement with Circuit City to conduct due diligence and further explore a possible merger between our two companies," said Blockbuster's management in statement Friday. "We continue to believe this combination would create significant cost and operating synergies therefore unlocking substantial value for our shareholders."

We have to ask you... are you interested in "exclusive content and content-enabled devices" from Circuit City?

Circuit City opens books to Blockbuster [CNNMoney]
(Photo: northernplateguy )

She's seeking class action status, with $2,500 for each violation of the statute. MediaPost says the law was passed in 1988 when a newspaper obtained the rental history of U.S. Supreme Court nominee Robert Bork.

What about you? Did Facebook tell all your friends that you rented Basic Instinct 2... again?

Blockbuster Sued For Participating In Facebook Beacon [MediaPost]

I've been a regular personage at a Blockbuster in Mishawaka, IN for some time. Just recently I moved into a new house, so I was rather excited to know that your store was within walking distance to rent movies. Not having a car, this meant plenty of rentals of video game software for my 360 and Wii.
 
However, just recently I rented Halo 3, and when I brought it home, it was cracked. They graciously replaced it with a "free rental", so I went to another one of your stores and rented Halo 3 there. I returned it on time, and proceeded to rent Rainbow Six Vegas 2, and Oblivion, both for the 360 again. When I got it home, neither worked. When I opened my 360 Oblivion had a scratch on it, which 360's are known to do. Rainbow Six's disc looked just fine. It however wouldn't load. When I called your store that night because it was already too late to head back over, they told me they'd grant me a "free rental" and return the games for replacements. Now here's where the problem begins.
 
I went over just a few minutes ago, and brought the games in, and told them what was going on. When I couldn't find anything else to rent and asked for my money back, even though I'd rented the games on my debit card, the manager (Adrian I believe) told me "It's not store policy." I asked if I could put the money toward purchasing a product (a used copy of Halo 3, for 39.99), and she told me she couldn't allow that either because it wasn't store policy. I had my receipt from the rentals, that clearly said debit card, and she still wouldn't put the $17.10 toward the purchase.
 
She finally refunded the money, however, she terminated my ability to rent games from the store.
 
They also tried selling me on their "Game plan" which means you get unlimited replacements for ONE game for 20 some odd dollars and said "Five bucks additional wouldn't have killed you, with what you spent on the games previously."

American Airlines: canceled 3,300 flights last week to make sure some wires were properly wrapped and tied, disrupting travel plans for hundreds of thousands of travelers. Granted, their lives would have been much more disrupted had any of their planes caught fire, but as this repair was on the FAA top list of things to check for, it should have been part of routine maintenance. That aside, American was the most-complained about of the big airlines for the past year, ranking in the tops for complaints about customer service and overall flight problems.

Blockbuster: is a crappy video store dittoed across the face of America. The worst thing about them is that they never have any movies that we like and sometimes they edit controversial movies to make them more mainstream-friendly. And based on reports from our readers, some of their in-store personnel seem to have discs stuck up their bum.

This is a post in our Worst Company In America 2008 series. The companies nominated for this honor were chosen by you, the readers. Keep track of all the goings on at consumerist.com/tag/worst-company-in-america/

STILL OPEN FOR VOTING: Time Warner Cable vs Radioshack, Wellpoint vs Charter Cable, Dell vs Home Depot,
Sears vs Citibank, Wal-Mart vs TJMaxx, Mattel vs ATT, Capital One vs Video Professor, eBay/Paypal vs COX, Apple vs SallieMae, Diebold Vs Pfizer, MTV vs TransUnion, CompUSA vs DirecTV
Target vs Best Buy
Allstate vs Verizon,
DeBeers vs 1800 flowers, Starbucks vs United Airlines,
Exxon vs Crocs, Google Vs Sony, Ticketmaster vs Wachovia, Facebook vs The American Arbitration Association, Comcast vs Menu Foods

Here's what he wrote:

Well, after I had blown through my 5 free in-store exchanges by mid-March (on the bottom of your Blockbuster receipt it tracks how many in-store exchanges you've done this month), I decided to see what happens if I go in and try a get 6th in-store exchange. Well, as to be presumed, I didn't get a free exchange, but the online movie did serve as a $3.00 coupon off the price of the rental ($4.99 movie), which just further confused me. Apparently, buried in their FAQs it says "If the pre-determined number of free in-store exchanges is met during the calendar month, you have the ability to exchange your Online DVDs for discounted movie rentals for the remainder of the month." The bummer is it doesn't mention how much of a discount it is. For a .99 rental, is there even a discount?

In the process of trying to figure out the limits of the system, I realized that different Blockbuster stores are keeping track of the in-store exchanges separately. Yes, that's right. After getting my free 5 in-store exchanges at one store, I simply took my next 5 online movies to another nearby Blockbuster and was able to get another 5 in-store exchanges during the same month.

Blockbuster tracks whether individuals are abusing their online subscription plan and "gaming" the system to exceed the number of in-store exchanges they are allowed per month.

If an online subscriber tries to circumvent the terms of their plan, and in this instance gain more free rentals than allowed, we'll know and ask them to stop if they want to remain an online subscriber, just as we're doing with Kevin.

Blockbuster Total Access Extra Movie Hack? [Hacking Netflix]
Blockbuster Warns Against "Gaming the System" [Hacking Netflix]
(Photo: Knowzy) (Thanks to Jeff!)

Long time reader, first time tipper. I'm sure you've heard plenty about Blockbuster and their shady Total Access dealings, but I thought I'd send along my experience with them.

My girlfriend and I have been using the service for a few years now, almost since day-one, and while it was pretty easy going for the first year or so, things started to get strange last summer. Her account was inexplicably put on hold when she had to change her debit card number. The CSRs told us that it was going to be a week or two to authenticate the new card, but months went by and nothing changed.

Then, a month ago, out of the blue, two DVDs showed up in our mail and the service was reinstated. No explanation, no nothing, but there was a nice debit from her account in the form of $16.99. We took the mailers into the local branch, got them replaced with a couple more movies, and it looked like everything was back to normal.

Then today, she checked her Q to see if the next movies had shipped - they had not. She checked My Account, and sure enough, the account was cancelled, and the only option open to her was to re-subscribe. I wondered if it was just a glitch because of the old debit card issue. I logged into her account to re-sign up, and I'm presented with the new options. (see the photo below) Just notice our current plan, and those not available to us.

Our $16.99 account will now run us back $34.99. A $18 price bump. Or we can stay at the same price-level, and get a crippled in-store exchange program (which for us was the main advantage of going over to Netflix). What a great way to treat a couple of loyal customers.

Thanks Blockbuster, but I don't know if we're going to take you up on the new offer, or the Mario-Kart pre-order offer either.

Thanks for listening Consumerist. Keep fighting the good fight.

From IFC/Blockbuster's press release:

Under the terms of the agreement, IFC and Blockbuster will share rental revenues from IFC titles. Blockbuster will have an exclusive 60-day rental window, including both the physical and digital rental distribution channels, for each title as it becomes available. During this period no title will be available on a retail basis in any format. After the 60-day period, the IFC titles will be available on a non-exclusive basis both for retail and digital distribution. However, Blockbuster will retain the exclusive physical rental distribution rights for IFC titles for three years after each street date.

Considering Blockbusters' draconian NC-17 policy, the retailer seems like an odd choice for IFC, says Emerson:

If you were to check into the availability of films on DVD at Blockbuster Online, among the titles you will not find are "Crash" (David Cronenberg,1997), "Beyond the Valley of the Dolls" (Russ Meyer, 1970 — screenplay by Roger Ebert), or "This Film Is Not Yet Rated" (Kirby Dick, 2006), an IFC Films release. They're not even listed, because they were rated NC-17 and Blockbuster will not make such films available through their stores or online service. (See David Edelstein's article, "Blame Blockbuster, not the MPAA.)

You will also not find the theatrical releases of Ang Lee's "Lust, Caution," Takeshi Miike's "Audition," John Waters' "A Dirty Shame," Peter Jackson's "Dead-Alive," Bernardo Bertolucci's "The Dreamers," Abel Ferrara's "The Bad Lieutenant" and many other films that are only available in cut versions (in some cases heavily cut versions) that have been re-submitted to the MPAA for an R rating just so they could make it onto Blockbuster's shelves during their first few months of release. You tell me if 2001's "L.I.E.," directed by Michael Cuesta ("Six Feet Under," "Dexter"), starring Paul Dano and Brian Cox, is available from Blockbuster Online. There's no box art, no description, no credits info, but there's a page for it here.

Does IFC think its core audience doesn't care about the integrity (or lack thereof) with which a company like Blockbuster treats the movies it rents and sells? I mean, if they don't, who does? You'd think the core IFC constituency would be precisely the "movie consumers" who, in principle, would not patronize a place like Blockbuster, any more than they would order a Domino's pizza.

"We're delighted to join with BLOCKBUSTER as we continue our mission of making independent film available to the widest possible audience," said Lisa Schwartz, IFC's senior vice president of sales and business development.

Is Blockbuster trying to start a Netflix/Blockbuster format war?

IFC signs pact with devil Blockbuster [Scanners Blog]
IFC Entertainment and BLOCKBUSTER Sign Two-Year Exclusive Rental Deal (Press Release) [Yahoo!]
(Photo:medialian1)

I am writing to explain why I am no longer a Blockbuster Total Access subscriber and never will be again. Service wasn't always so deplorable at Blockbuster, but in the last several months I have had three very negative experiences with the chain that has caused me to turn from a Blockbuster evangelist, who persuaded my parents and friends to join the Total Access plan, to a disgruntled consumer who won't step into a Blockbuster until they've reformed their customer service attitude.

Keep in mind, I was an easy customer. I auto-paid my monthly bill. I held my movies for weeks and months on end without mailing them back or taking them back to the store for exchanges. I even went for a period of 6.5 months without exchanging my movies (While being charged $17.99 all the while). In the past year I was with Blockbuster, I exchanged only 11 movies in-store. I was as profitable as they could get. But between August and today, I have had three incidences which have convinced me that Blockbuster managers are (1)Incompetent (2)Powerless and (3)Apathetic.

Incident 1: I had exchanged out a set of 3 movies in-store in August. After keeping them out past their initial due date I was billed the price of the movies which is in-line with their policy. As long as they are returned within 30 days, Blockbuster is supposed to refund the charge minus a $1.25 processing fee. However, I got called out-of-town on a business trip, and I left before being able to return the movies. Once I realized the situation, I called my local store and asked if it was necessary to have my wife return the movies while I was gone, or if I could wait a week and return them myself. His answer was that it wouldn't be a problem for me to return the movies after 30 days, but I would be charged the $1.25 fee per movie. Great, I thought, until I got back home. When I tried to return the movies (32 days past their due date), I was told that it was impossible to return the movies, and that I'd have to pay the ridiculously marked-up used price of $40 for the three (the price at Target for all three new was $21). The manager simply wouldn't acknowledge that one of their employees had mis-informed me about my ability to return the movies. I tried to call their corporate customer service, who could only refer me to the district manager. To cut this long story short, I spent 3 weeks calling between the store manager and district manager trying to simply refund the movies, which they still sold on their Used racks. I was repeatedly told it was "Impossible" and "the computer won't allow it". I know the time I spent trying to return the movies was worth more than $40, but I felt like I was being wronged, and didn't want to let the issue go. I finally caved when I received a threatening Credit Agency letter. I thought about writing this letter to The Consumerist back then, but I figured it was partially my fault, even though I thought Blockbuster did a terrible Customer Service job.

Incident 2: This one was much shorter. Me, my wife, and her friend walking into a Blockbuster with three return envelopes to exchange. My wife, who had never exchanged movies before, didn't know to hold onto the envelopes until checkout and sat them on top of the counter as she walked in (thinking that she wasn't allowed to walk around the store with them). About two minutes later, I realized she wasn't holding them any longer and walked back to the counter to pick them up. Too late. The clerk had already checked them in without pausing even for a second to see if someone was planning to use them. Again, the clerk and manager claimed that they were powerless slaves to the computer and wouldn't be unable to let us use the credit towards any new movies since they were already checked-in. Still sore after the treatment I had received a month earlier, I didn't want to let this go, but they wouldn't budge. I explained that I was a long-term customer who rarely redeemed my credits, but they stood firm. We ended up paying for two movies and left.

Incident 3: Today. I tightly clutched my return envelopes as I slowly browsed the shelves for three new movies to exchange. Finally, I settle on two movies and a Wii game. Last year, I was able to use a return envelope to pick-up a Wii game without a problem. Well apparently things have now changed. After scanning my three envelopes, they scanned the three items I had brought up. $5.34. "Excuse me, this should be an even exchange." Apparently not. Now the returned movie only counts as $4 off a $9 game rental. Oh well, I thought, "Just take it off and I'll grab another movie". Nope - Apparently each credit gets automatically applied to a specific item and can't be re-transfered to another item. On top of that, they wouldn't remove the game from my checkout and insisted that I HAD to pay for the game, even though I hadn't payed yet and the transaction was unfinished. They insisted that the transaction WAS finished and now I had to pay for it (Which doesn't make any sense. How can the transaction be over before I am even told what the cost will be). After much debate with the manager, they agreed to take the game off the transaction (as a "Favor"), but they couldn't do anything about applying the credit to another movie. By this time I had already decided that I would be writing this letter when I got home, and canceling my year-long subscription to Blockbuster Total Access.

It no longer surprises me that Blockbuster is failing as a company. They are closing many stores and hemorrhaging cash. Many analysts don't even expect them to survive more than a few years. They may not be able to compete with the price and selection of Netflix or the new Apple video rentals, but they had one thing strongly going for them - availability. I knew that if I really needed to, I could go down the street and pick up a physical movie and talk to a real person if I needed to. Now my mindset has changed. Clearly, Blockbuster has decided that their employees and even managers are too incompetent to run their own stores and must be treated like trained monkeys. Even when I found a sympathetic ear, they were simply powerless to over-ride the computer for even simple tasks. Oh well, now that Netflix has unlimited downloads at less than half of the price I was paying at Blockbuster, maybe this is exactly the incentive I needed to make the change.

Should he switch?

(Photo:medalian1)

Any idea on what's going on at http://www.blockbuster.com/?
Tried to log on this AM and it says "Sorry, BLOCKBUSTER Online is temporarily unavailable while we make some changes to the site. We're working hard to bring you an ever better BLOCKBUSTER Online experience. Check back soon!"
Nice, since I am a Blockbuster Online member and now have zero access to my queue or know what's coming to me next.

Anyone have any ideas?

Blockbuster

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!

Looks like in addition to bad service Blockbuster wants another 2 bucks per customer who were grandfathered in by the old pricing system.

I Kinda thought it was too good to last, guess I was right.

Hi *******,

As a BLOCKBUSTER Total Access™ subscriber, it's always easy to have the right movie during this holiday season with more than 75,000 titles, including great new releases like Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, The Bourne Ultimatum and Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End.

We know that during this busy time of year the convenience of BLOCKBUSTER Total Access is especially important to you. Have your movies delivered right to your door. If you want new movies right away, exchange in-store*. And with free shipping both ways and no late fees, it's easy to enjoy all the movies you want for as long as you want.

To continue to bring you the unmatched convenience of both online and in-store DVD rentals, your monthly subscription fee will change slightly from $17.99 to $19.99. This adjustment† will go into effect on your next billing cycle on or after December 27, 2007. The benefits of your subscription plan will remain the same...and it's a value of $34.99!

And now check out blockbuster.com where you can view exclusive footage from The Great Debaters, the much anticipated new movie starring Denzel Washington that opens in theaters on Christmas Day. This is just another example of how BLOCKBUSTER® is working to bring you exciting new entertainment features.

There are plenty of long winter nights ahead, so make sure that your Queue is filled with all the movies you want to watch next including new movie releases coming in January 2008, such as 3:10 to Yuma, The Game Plan and Saw IV.

Thanks for continuing to be a BLOCKBUSTER Total Access subscriber. It truly is the best entertainment value out there.

BLOCKBUSTER

I have been using Blockbuster Online for almost a year now. It has been ups and downs. I have been shipped the wrong movie countless times, but just took the pain of not being able to watch my movie and sent it back. I have received enough "wrong" movies to deserve a few months of free service, but I don't even complain I just figure "Nature of the Business".

Now to my issue.... I had rented the classic "Apocalypse Now" and watched Disc One (which by the way Blockbuster online doesn't tell you it is 2 discs on some of the choices so it is hit or miss.). So I went to my queue to put disc 2 on the list so I can enjoy the end of the movie. To my dismay, I log in to my account to find my queue EMPTY. I had 20-30 movies in the queue.... all gone!

So I email Blockbuster asking what happened to my movies? and can they do anything to recover the list! This is when the Mania ensues.... The respondent from Blockbuster was rude at best. Won't acknowledge I even have a problem. Basically accuses me of erasing all of my movies (why would someone do that?) or that I gave my password to someone else and they did it. The most scathing part is that in her first response she in so many words "scolds" me for having an empty queue! I am also a big fan of the "Always here to help" signature on the end of the emails....

It is a ridiculous response, and considering their situation they should be doing jumping jacks to keep customers. Instead they respond with nonsense. They sent me two "surveys" after each response which I filled out "Extremely Dissatisfied" on every question.

Here is a copy of the Emails for your reading enjoyment. Hopefully people reading this will choose to not use Blockbuster, or even better someone from Blockbuster will read this and go to the customer service office and rattle some cages of their customer service agents.

My first email:
"All the movies I had in my queue are gone? What happened can I get the list back?"

Blockbusters Response:
"Hello Martin,

Thanks for contacting BLOCKBUSTER Online Customer Care.

I've checked that your queue is empty. Unfortunately, we would not be able to recover the list of movies that you have. You may just try to add movies again. Please remember that we use your queue to provide service and ask that you keep 30-40 "Available" movies listed at all times to ensure there are no interruptions.

Always here to help,

Regina
Customer Care Associate
BLOCKBUSTER Online"

My Response:

"Regina,

That isn't a good answer.

1. What happened to everything I had in there? Where did they go?
2. I don't like the attitude of your response. You basically scolded me for not having 30-40 movies available. I DID have movies in there, the complete list is GONE.
3. If you can't recover my list, I want SEVERAL months credit to my account. There was months of picking movies in there. I will never be able to remember all the movies my Wife and I put in there.

Please provide a better response. Your response was sub-par at best.
Marty"

Blockbuster 2nd Response:

"Hello Marty,

Please note that your queue can only be accessed with your own personal password. We don't have the ability to modify or manage titles to your queue. You are also solely responsible for all activities that occur on your account or through use of your password by yourself or by other persons. Please make sure that your password is secured so no one can add or delete a movie in your queue without your knowledge. Thanks for your understanding.

Always here to help,

Regina
Customer Care Associate
BLOCKBUSTER Online"

My 3rd Response:

Regina,

Can you please give this to a manager? You are not even answering my questions!

I did NOT delete anything from my queue, and I am the ONLY person with the password. Why would I delete my movies that a spent months putting the list together.

Please give this to someone who can give me a real answer. Otherwise I will have to cancel and go to Netflix. This is ridiculous that you aren't taking me seriously. I didn't delete anything and now after 2 communications from you... I still have not even gotten as little as and APOLOGY.

Regards,
Marty

Our advice? Netflix? The local library?

(Photo:Maulleigh)

Blockbuster managed to lose $35 million in the third quarter, and its customers have been writing in to complain about benefits being cut from their "Total Access" packages.

Not good.

From Forbes:

Chairman Jim Keyes announced that Blockbuster will reduce the number of people currently employed by the company in an effort to reduce annualized overhead costs by approximately $45 million.

As if any more proof was need that Blockbuster Total Access program essentially failed to compete effectively against Netflix (nasdaq: NFLX - news - people ), Keyes noted that "the company will no longer be narrowly focused on its online subscriber count but instead will concentrate on the growth of, and report on, its total membership."