[BrettR]

I dont know if a duplicate thread on AVS is being run somewhere(if so remove this thread), but


BB DVD rental and new release VHS has gone up $.50 to $4.50 before tax.

I wonder if a Blockbuster PPV increase on DirecTV is coming soon?

 

[Ray H]

That would be an unfortunate decision on DirecTV's part if it happens. A number of people (myself included) curtailed or virtually stopped ordering PPVs when the "Blockbuster Ticket" program started with its $1.00 increase in pricing. I went from 2-3 PPVs per month to two, total, during the entire last year. One buck is just a psychological barrier, but another buck (speculative) is infuriating. -sigh-

 

[SteveMiller]

I hate blockbuster! As of two nights ago I have completely sworn off BB. We rented three movies, and two of them were so scratched to **** that that wouldn't't play. We rent movies about every other week, and the last THREE times this has happened to us with the bad disc.... I am signing up for NetFlix

 

[Ray H]

There are considerable differences in the error correction capability among DVD players. My first player - an entry level dork unit whose name I can't even recall, was terrible. (There were very fiew DVDs in my pristine collection that would play all the way through!) I replaced it with one of the cheaper Sonys, and it is much better. A year and a half ago, when I wanted a player for the bedroom TV, I bought a cheap GE ($65.00 at WalMart) on closeout (I think it's actually manufactured by Samsung.). This thing is virtually unstopable. I've put some horribly scratched DVDs from Hollywood Video (the kind that look like they were cleaned with sandpaper), and nary a glitch - even through the layer transitions. Go figure.

 

[SteveMiller]

Yeah,


I know that the amount of errors that a DVD player can take varies, but these were not scratches as much as "cuts" in the disc.


I am simply disappointed in Blockbuster's lack of interest in keeping a working product on the shelf. I would think that at some point they would have some DVD player like machine that they could just pop the discs in to see if they are too badly damaged to rent... it is like Avis rental cars not checking the motor oil every so often in cars they rent out...




Ray, GE is made by Thompson Consumer Electronics. They make GE, RCA, and used to make ProScan ( ProScan dosn't exist any more, has been replaced by RCA Celinuem)

Not being a smart ass, just a fun fact.



- Steve

 

[Marissadad]

Where I live, BB just dropped their rental prices to $2.99 for DVD, including New Releases.

 

[Ray H]

Hi Steve,


I realize that Thomson S.A. (no "p" - another fun fact) in France holds the rights to the G.E. and RCA trademarks for consumer electronics products sold in North America. However, not everything sold under those names is actually manufactured in a Thomson operated facility. I believe my "G.E." DVD player manufacture was subcontracted to Samsung as stated earlier based on reports I read as well as comparison inspection to a very similar Samsung player on display at the same store at the time. (The plastic front panel escutcheon, logos, button shapes, and cabinet color were the only visible differences to me. Button count and placement, and rear apron layout were identical, as were the South Korean source labels, other than the presence of the words, "Samsung" and "GE", respectively.)

 

[Gregor]

BB was getting too expensive and I got tired running to get the DVD back in time -- we have a 17 month old so we do not always get to watch a movie when we thought we would . So recently signed up for netflix -- still on the free trial period -- but I love it! I have three new movies on hand to choose from, can watch when we want to, and end up spending less. IMHO -- a great idea -- BB should start a similar in store rental "club". You could "buy" four DVD's at the regular price and then pay 2 dollars whenever you wanted to trade one in.

 

[restart88]

I remove PPV channels from my user profile lists, and the system just keeps sneeking them back in. Tell me that isn't on purpose! ;-)

 

[ram1220]

Well has anyone else noticed that since Blockbuster took over the pay per view part of DirecTv not only did they raise the price, they also take a lot longer to put a new movie on DirecTv? But of course that movie is available in the Blockbuster store for a higher price. And the movies they offer on PPV were much better before BB took over. I used to order 2 to 3 PPV movies a week. Now I order 1 every 4 to 5 months. And now with the picture and sound quality of DirecTv going to crap I'm looking really hard at switching to DishNetwork. This Bockbuster thing just might be what pushes me over the edge.


Bob

 

[restart88]

Quote:

Originally posted by ram1220 Well has anyone else noticed that since Blockbuster took over the pay per view part of DirecTv not only did they raise the price, they also take a lot longer to put a new movie on DirecTv? But of course that movie is available in the Blockbuster store for a higher price. And the movies they offer on PPV were much better before BB took over. I used to order 2 to 3 PPV movies a week. Now I order 1 every 4 to 5 months. And now with the picture and sound quality of DirecTv going to crap I'm looking really hard at switching to DishNetwork. This Bockbuster thing just might be what pushes me over the edge. Bob

I'm not real big on PPV anyway. There seems to be fewer and fewer movies I even care to see coming out in general. And the ones I may want to see eventually seem make it to one the movie channels -- especially during free preview periods.

 

[Dmon4u]

I think PPV has gone the way of "Starz".


They are showing more HIT movies that made over $25 million Total at the Boxoffice. This usually includes most of the major studio releases.


Unfortunately, NOW, the majority of these movies cost more than $25 million to make. The true meaning of this, in general, is that they were really, really, really BAD Movies......................

 

[jerryez]

Blockbuster is sooo big that they can block other rental places from even getting a release until they have had it for several weeks. They have put most competitors out of business by doing this. I will not rent from them at all.

 

[Steve Mehs]

The DBS providers know they are losing money on PPV, but I doubt Blockbuster or Dish will raise there prices as $4 is a lot, especially if its not in DD or OAR.