I don’t mean to be a complete dick to all the unfortunate folks working for Blockbuster, but if you’ve not sought other employment as the writing has been put on the wall in great big neon exploding Ben-Hur letters over the last few years… probably ought to start.
You’ll remember that blockbuster was scooped out of Bankruptcy by Dish Network for some fucking reason back in 2011, with the new owners ruthlessly closing stores or letting impending leases go un-renewed. The effects were obvious here in Atlanta, for example, where quite suddenly every Blockbuster location within the city perimeter was quite suddenly closed, and I bought a Scott Pilgrim blu-ray with no case for $2.00.
What was hilarious were the “We’re Moving!’ signs featuring the image of a moving truck, but if you asked to where they were moving they’d just point to a Blockbuster.com sign.
In any event, there are apparently nearly 850 stores still left open in the states, and Dish is letting another 300 of them die out by letting their leases lapse, or by closing them outright for poor performance. In other bad news, Blockbuster UK has has filed for what amounts to bankruptcy across the pond.
There is nothing, nor has there ever been anything of its business model left to salvage from Blockbuster, and many of Dish’s original plans for the brand were quite wild. With no expectations of salvaging the brick-and-mortar stores, the buy amounted to a quarter of a billion dollar acquisition of a logo to slap on some new digital venture, but none of these Dish schemes worked out. Through last year there was the hope to use Dish spectrum for wireless data and to sell mobile devices for streaming Blockbuster movies in the stores, but the proper government approval didn’t come through, killing the venture that might have done something with the physical locations. As for any other kind of Netflix clone (plans for which have already been scrapped) the blue-and-yellow torn ticket is damaged goods. Blockbuster doesn’t mean “movies” anymore. That’s been supplanted by Netflix and iTunes and Amazon and YouTube and on and on and on without ever mentioning “Blockbuster” ever again.
Always remember: $50m. A mere $50m was the price Blockbuster could have paid for Netflix back in its startup days, shortly Blockbuster’s own IPO made it flush with billions in cash…
Source | Deadline
20 comments
Good.
It serves them right for charging me outrageous late fees and providing a poor selection of edited movies in the 90’s-00’s.
Agreed. Same goes for their stand-alone kiosks. Charging $3 for new releases when Red Box doesn’t?
Yeah, we’ll see how that business model pans out
Yeah, When I was young (the 80’s) I remember asking them why they wouldn’t carry the unrated version of Scarecrows. “Because this is a family video store.” Yeah, but I’m part of the family and I want to see the blood, dammit. Thus began my hatred of Blockbuster. Good riddance.
Once they went from letting you have a movie for up to 30 days(with a rewards membership) to only letting you have it for one, I was gone. Too bad, I would go to a video store if they had a more lenient return policy. Sometimes waiting for a DVD in the mail is a bit of a pain. Fuck Redbox though.
Dude, Redbox costs a dollar. The late charge is a dollar. What do you have against a dollar?
Yeah, good riddance. I miss the video store experience and all, but they can suck it. I still got a Family Video here that I can frequent.
I don’t support something that caters to the lowest common denominator. No selection, only “newer” movies. I also don’t like being forced to bring something back the next day and be charged if I don’t. For the volume of movies, and depth of selection, I’d rather support Netflix, plus for number of movies I watch, Netflix is much, much, cheaper. Redbox will never get a dime from me. Show me a Redbox that has Conquest, The Atlantis Interceptors, or Cannibal Holocaust and you will see me renting from there…until then…they can fuck off.
Blockbuster could have been saved,If they had started snatching up Documentries and special interest video that one normally would buy but would rent,Netflix their actual film and documentry selection actually sucks the library consists of mostly z rated productions that are’nt even fit for cable with a few great titles mixed in..Blockbuster missed the boat there’s still a place in or economy for brick and motar business’s but you have to offer something more than those other services which from where I stand seems pretty easy to do..
Mortar that is.
I understand your position. But I travel for work and Redbox had Attack The Block. They’re not that bad.
Yes, I agree. But they should have specialized in “adult entertainment” movies, and renamed themselves Cockthruster. I’m here all week, folks…
I cursed them and their 46-hour 3-day rentals.
To rail against Redbox is just silly. Since when are new releases appealing to the lowest common denominator? I canceled my Netflix account the day my top four movies in my queue had “very long wait” next to them, but when I went to Redbox (for the very first time) I was able to rent all four of them right there on the spot. If that’s the lowest common denominator, then baby, I don’t wanna be high(est).
Better than what I said, Frogger.
Here is why I will always support Netflix. Death Race 3: Inferno Blu-Ray is available for purchase in the brick and mortar stores today for $20.00. Red Box doesnt have it. NetFlix has it on Free Instant in HD. $7.99/month. Also, Netflix has tons and tons of complete runs of TV shows (old and new) and old movies, like Navajo Joe. Red Box doesnt have any of that. Netflix FTW. You are dismissed. Pop Quiz tomorrow.
Netflix has me by the balls. I watch it obsessively. It has completely replaced my need for TV minus the occasional sports event. If Netflix don’t have it, Redbox will. <Rise of the Planet of the Apes, Driven, Attack the Block i had to get, at the time, at Redbox> Yea there’s 1 Family Video here and 1 VERY foreign-film heavy rental place, Premiere Video, here in Dallas, but hell Netflix has all the same Asian stuff that store has.
So without Redbox, how else would I have gotten the chance to watch Dredd/Looper/Prometheus etc….
I can’t seem to find those movies on Netflix.
I don’t understand how Family Video can make any money. WIth its deluge of coupons and quarter rentals and what not. THey are still opening stores. Get out while you’re ahead FAMILY VIDEO!
Well, i was on vacation in L.A. in 1995 and in N.Y. In 1999 and i have to admit that fpr me, born and raised in a little town in Germany it was Magic to go to a big Blockbuster Rental Store…-)))
Yes..i’m that kind og geek who goes to a blockbuster when he is on holidays-)))
I always thought that every Moviegeek must be happy to have such stores where you can get nearly everything..and back in that time they have a cool thing…if one special NEW Movie was not available you havr gotten one pther movie for free…is that still actual?
Well for me …and im thousand miles away it makes me sad to hear that they’ re in trouble….
Sorry my poor english…
Good to see DISH taking a hit, they’re run by a huge douche.
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