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Blockbuster BD rental discussion thread - Page 115

post #3421 of 3790
7/19/12 at 11:18am
Those of you with stores nearby, go in and and talk to the store manager. They will give you a one month in-store pass.
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post #3422 of 3790
7/19/12 at 9:30pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by iamian View Post

Those of you with stores nearby, go in and and talk to the store manager. They will give you a one month in-store pass.

The problem is that can sometimes be even harder to get a title than from the online service. At least that was the case with the BB store I went to regularly. The only way for me to get a title was to come in when they opened at 10Am. And even then many times they didn't have the title yet because they had to purchase them from retail locations. So by that evening they were all gone.
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post #3423 of 3790
7/20/12 at 6:18am
Quote:
Originally Posted by aaronwt View Post

The problem is that can sometimes be even harder to get a title than from the online service. At least that was the case with the BB store I went to regularly. The only way for me to get a title was to come in when they opened at 10Am. And even then many times they didn't have the title yet because they had to purchase them from retail locations. So by that evening they were all gone.
Yeah, most of the time when I stop by on the way home from work, there isn't a whole lot of new releases, unless you catch someone returning it.
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post #3424 of 3790
7/20/12 at 8:01am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Jarod M View Post

I don't know if we have confirmation of that. But even if BB did/does keep those inventories completely separate, then what is the explanation for why so MANY previously available titles are now unavailable? Theft? Old, unplayable discs? They never had those titles in the first place? I think it is more likely that a large part of inventory was sold-possibly it was shipped off to some of the few remaining stores as "previously viewed for sale" items. Regardless how it happened, it has created a situation that makes the online rental service an even worse option compared to the competitors.

I'd suspect what Network said .. or BB's inablity to populate their mail inventory properly ..

BB is a failure in kiosks, by mail and store, IMO .. now, if the head honchos would just concentrate on ONE aspect and ditch the other two, there might be a chance as a company .. I know it may sound stupid, but I still think there is a market for B&M rental .. Family Video continues to grow and buck the trend .. I don't know the specifics of their business model, but it seems to be working ..
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post #3425 of 3790
7/20/12 at 9:32am
Quote:
Originally Posted by mgkdragn View Post

I'd suspect what Network said .. or BB's inablity to populate their mail inventory properly ..
BB is a failure in kiosks, by mail and store, IMO .. now, if the head honchos would just concentrate on ONE aspect and ditch the other two, there might be a chance as a company .. I know it may sound stupid, but I still think there is a market for B&M rental .. Family Video continues to grow and buck the trend .. I don't know the specifics of their business model, but it seems to be working ..
I think that Family Video was better liked in my area, compared to Blockbuster. I don't know if it was price, selection, policy, or decor, but that was my general observation. Also, some of the Family Videos were newer, so they might been in better locations compared to the Blockbusters, many of which had been around 20 years. While Family Video might still be doing ok, they have benefited from most of the B+M competition going out of business. But the kiosks must have taken a big chunk of their business. The only B+Ms that I like are ones that actually try to carry EVERYTHING, instead of just stocking the hot new titles. Like what Netflix used to do.
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post #3426 of 3790
7/20/12 at 10:15am
I certainly like Family Video stores better than BBV stores. They have a much better selection, have ALL of the new releases, and have better pricing. If I wasn't trading in mail order discs, I wouldn't even walk into a BBV store.
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post #3427 of 3790
7/20/12 at 10:45am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Jarod M View Post

I think that Family Video was better liked in my area, compared to Blockbuster. I don't know if it was price, selection, policy, or decor, but that was my general observation. Also, some of the Family Videos were newer, so they might been in better locations compared to the Blockbusters, many of which had been around 20 years. While Family Video might still be doing ok, they have benefited from most of the B+M competition going out of business. But the kiosks must have taken a big chunk of their business. The only B+Ms that I like are ones that actually try to carry EVERYTHING, instead of just stocking the hot new titles. Like what Netflix used to do.

In my area, when we had Blockbuster stores, Family Video prices were cheaper, especially on BD .. by about a buck per .. the main problem with BB before they closed was a surly staff, a manager that was even worse .. they kept the store up pretty well and had a much better location, yet Family Video took much of their business away .. and it was not just price .. BB was in a heavy traffic shopping area / FV more out of the way ..

Although I don't visit FV very often anymore, when I do, I am greeted with a smile, the selection is pretty deep, a new release is usually available on BD even late on Tuesday, and if I call, they will pull and hold until I get there ..
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post #3428 of 3790
7/20/12 at 11:44am
Quote:
Originally Posted by tienvg View Post

Sorry about hearing the shipping issues still persist for you folks. It happened to me also when this started but it seems my service has resumed normally since last week. I'm in the Miami area and no, I don't work for BB:D


Same here. Nothing really wonky ever happened to us. It was just really slow for a bit.

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post #3429 of 3790
7/20/12 at 1:39pm
I received my last two discs in the mail without any email saying I would be receiving them. OK, I figured Blockbuster's email doesn't work any more. No problem as long as they get my disc and send me another.

For no reason I'm once again receiving emails again telling me both that they've received a disc and are sending me another.

I just don't get these guys. How hard is email?
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post #3430 of 3790
7/20/12 at 11:00pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by vazel View Post

I was already a paying subscriber but I created a new account to sign up for the free six months. It worked with the same credit card.
62
I don't mind being a freeloader as I was getting bad service anyway. We'll see if it gets any worse.
What is the link to get 6 months free?
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post #3431 of 3790
7/20/12 at 11:18pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Jarod M View Post

I suspect this inventory problem is due to the unorganized sell-off of a lot of the inventory when stores closed, resulting in a LARGE number of titles being no longer available to rent.
I must say that your answer to this sounds like it would be a correct answer. If not, then very very close. When my local store was closing I was speaking with one of the managers there in a casual conversation about the business and possible future of the company. He had mentioned to me that the store was shipped all this random inventory from various places such as the distribution center in Texas which was closing (think its closed now), different Blockbusters stores that were remaining open that had overstock or stuff they could not sell/rent, and stores that had already closed and had to ship off the rest of the inventory to the new round of stores that were closing. From my understanding this was sort of a confusing process for them as far as them receiving the product into inventory. Things got messed up along the way and the sheet of paper(s) with what inventory was in the boxes were way off and everything so I would imagine when they had to ship stuff back from the leftover stock after store closing that it was screwed up too. I think we can draw a conclusion here that the way they keep track of their inventory is not the best way and hopefully this last month of crappy service is a hiccup with the end result having a more accurate inventory.

Also, I did read a small piece article on the Home Media Magazine website. They had mentioned that Blockbuster purchased this company named Alpha Bay Corp and it sounds like it may be easier to checkout at the store. From what I read it could be a method where the employee will be able to check you out away and out from behind the counter. In addition the article mentions it is supposed to improve inventory management.
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post #3432 of 3790
7/21/12 at 9:18am
Quote:
Originally Posted by DJ Matt View Post

I must say that your answer to this sounds like it would be a correct answer. If not, then very very close. When my local store was closing I was speaking with one of the managers there in a casual conversation about the business and possible future of the company. He had mentioned to me that the store was shipped all this random inventory from various places such as the distribution center in Texas which was closing (think its closed now), different Blockbusters stores that were remaining open that had overstock or stuff they could not sell/rent, and stores that had already closed and had to ship off the rest of the inventory to the new round of stores that were closing. From my understanding this was sort of a confusing process for them as far as them receiving the product into inventory. Things got messed up along the way and the sheet of paper(s) with what inventory was in the boxes were way off and everything so I would imagine when they had to ship stuff back from the leftover stock after store closing that it was screwed up too. I think we can draw a conclusion here that the way they keep track of their inventory is not the best way and hopefully this last month of crappy service is a hiccup with the end result having a more accurate inventory.
Also, I did read a small piece article on the Home Media Magazine website. They had mentioned that Blockbuster purchased this company named Alpha Bay Corp and it sounds like it may be easier to checkout at the store. From what I read it could be a method where the employee will be able to check you out away and out from behind the counter. In addition the article mentions it is supposed to improve inventory management.

I can't help but comment on the fact that if sheets of paper are being used to track inventory, then BB is somehow still doing business pre-barcode .. all video inventory is tracked / moved / stocked by barcode .. nothing could be simpler .. I find it incredible if BB is not using barcodes ..
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post #3433 of 3790
7/22/12 at 3:25pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by mgkdragn View Post

I can't help but comment on the fact that if sheets of paper are being used to track inventory, then BB is somehow still doing business pre-barcode .. all video inventory is tracked / moved / stocked by barcode .. nothing could be simpler .. I find it incredible if BB is not using barcodes ..
They are using barcodes. From my understanding they get shipped boxes with sheets of paper that lists the inventory in that specific box and they load it up on their computers so they can put it into their own inventory, but it seems to me from what I was told that whatever is listed on the paper does not always match what is in the box 100%.
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post #3434 of 3790
7/23/12 at 6:48am
Quote:
Originally Posted by DJ Matt View Post

They are using barcodes. From my understanding they get shipped boxes with sheets of paper that lists the inventory in that specific box and they load it up on their computers so they can put it into their own inventory, but it seems to me from what I was told that whatever is listed on the paper does not always match what is in the box 100%.

Maybe .. my point was that when you enter a barcode, it updates inventory, thus the paper inventory sheet really does not mean much ..
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post #3435 of 3790
7/23/12 at 7:17am
Wow! Received two shipment emails on two new release titles! On Monday morning at 6 AM PDT!

I guess there's first time for everything; hope this signifies new & improved BB. I doubt it but man can dream, can't he?
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post #3436 of 3790
7/23/12 at 9:47am
Canceled last Friday. We had enough problems to push us away. No more. Done. Finished.
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post #3437 of 3790
7/23/12 at 10:03am
Although they've continued to update my Queue and send me discs, I have not gotten a single email from BB in over a month, until today. Maybe they are back from the dead.
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post #3438 of 3790
7/23/12 at 1:19pm
in last 10 days i've gotten 2 disks from my queue that i entered 4-5 months ago. no emails about the disks, just show up in the mail.
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post #3439 of 3790
7/23/12 at 11:55pm
Hey, wouldn't you know I returned a disc and it cleared my queue immediately! Has hell frozen over or what! Hopefully they are returning back to normal now.
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post #3440 of 3790
7/24/12 at 11:31am
Quote:
Originally Posted by DJ Matt View Post

Hey, wouldn't you know I returned a disc and it cleared my queue immediately! Has hell frozen over or what! Hopefully they are returning back to normal now.

Yes, I received all return confirmation e-mails and a shipped disc today.
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post #3441 of 3790
7/25/12 at 5:24pm
Have you guys returned discs to a local Blockbuster store this week?

Are the movies returned in store clearing the queues immediately or do you still have to get a manger to call in to get them removed?

Also if you return the discs for an in store rental are the rentals you exchanged them for clearing the queues immediately when you return them or are they still stuck in your queues?
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post #3442 of 3790
7/25/12 at 5:36pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by marine92104 View Post

Have you guys returned discs to a local Blockbuster store this week?
Are the movies returned in store clearing the queues immediately or do you still have to get a manger to call in to get them removed?
Also if you return the discs for an in store rental are the rentals you exchanged them for clearing the queues immediately when you return them or are they still stuck in your queues?
Looks like they worked out all the kinks in the system. I just exchanged two discs in-store, and received email confirmation even before I got home.
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post #3443 of 3790
7/25/12 at 6:11pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by iamian View Post

Looks like they worked out all the kinks in the system. I just exchanged two discs in-store, and received email confirmation even before I got home.


It's good you got the email. Did they show the discs removed out of your queue on your online account also?
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post #3444 of 3790
7/25/12 at 8:12pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by marine92104 View Post

It's good you got the email. Did they show the discs removed out of your queue on your online account also?
Yup.
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post #3445 of 3790
7/26/12 at 1:04am
Quote:
Originally Posted by marine92104 View Post

Have you guys returned discs to a local Blockbuster store this week?
Are the movies returned in store clearing the queues immediately or do you still have to get a manger to call in to get them removed?
Also if you return the discs for an in store rental are the rentals you exchanged them for clearing the queues immediately when you return them or are they still stuck in your queues?

I returned two in-store exchanges two days ago. They haven't cleared yet. No e-mails and they are still listed in the queue.

Edit: They shipped a disc this morning. It now shows that I have 5 discs "at home" now. At least it seems things are moving along somewhat.

Edit 2: Shipped discs are still taking forever to arrive. Guess nothing really has changed.
Edited by bigbeefxy1 - 7/26/12 at 12:43pm
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post #3446 of 3790
7/27/12 at 12:23pm
I am wondering if problems with BB Online service are related to certain locales. I am in the Boston, MA area and have hardly ever had an issue with the service in 8 years of being a customer. Always one day shipping back and forth, always get notification emails, and discs always immediately clear my queue.

I used the 3 out at a time subscription for years until recently I decided to switch to 1 out at a time because we were running out of movies we wanted to rent, and our queue was regularly getting cleaned out completely faster than we could add new discs. As for new releases in our queue, we usually get them within the first month they're available.
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post #3447 of 3790
8/13/12 at 10:50pm
All seems to be good now. I have not had any issues *knock on wood* in the past couple of weeks. They even sent me Boss season 1 on Blu-ray and yesterday sent me out Dexter season 6 disc 1 on Blu-ray so I am a happy customer right now. My only complaint and this is not a complaint towards Blockbuster, but the Hunger Games that comes out Saturday will only contain a Dolby Digital 5.1 track on Blu-ray. This is the first Lionsgate release that I know of that pulled this. I wonder if this has to do something with the acquisition of Summit because Summit Entertainment pulled the same thing with Red and one of the Twilight movies. Looks like we will be getting screwed out of the DTS HD MA 7.1 track. Big bummer!
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post #3448 of 3790
8/14/12 at 6:17am
Well that is becoming a trend with some titles that have a rental disc. I might just rent The Hunger Games from VUDU.
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post #3449 of 3790
8/31/12 at 6:35pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by DJ Matt View Post

All seems to be good now. I have not had any issues *knock on wood* in the past couple of weeks. They even sent me Boss season 1 on Blu-ray and yesterday sent me out Dexter season 6 disc 1 on Blu-ray so I am a happy customer right now. My only complaint and this is not a complaint towards Blockbuster, but the Hunger Games that comes out Saturday will only contain a Dolby Digital 5.1 track on Blu-ray. This is the first Lionsgate release that I know of that pulled this. I wonder if this has to do something with the acquisition of Summit because Summit Entertainment pulled the same thing with Red and one of the Twilight movies. Looks like we will be getting screwed out of the DTS HD MA 7.1 track. Big bummer!

I was going to ask a question about this but see it answered here in a search. I'm fairly new to blu-ray, and I went to Blockbuster to rent The Hunger Games. I noticed that the back of the disc said the audio was 5.1 DD. At first I thought maybe they cut out the DVD back and put it on the Blu-ray case, but it also said the video was 1080p, so that couldn't have been the case. I put the Blu-ray back on the shelf and went to Target, where I purchased the Blu-ray with the 7.1 DTS track. More expensive but half the reason I got my Oppo was for the 7.1 output.

I take it from the post above by DJ that this is not common? My first thought was that Blockbuster got dummied down versions of Blu-ray movies, which would suck...is it just a few titles?
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post #3450 of 3790
9/1/12 at 8:52am
I've rented a bunch of BD rental only discs that only have legacy audio. But it isn't the norm. Most still have HD audio.
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