So those petitions we signed for Blockbuster to stock Widescreen were for nothing? (1 Viewer)

[SteveK]

Steve/Clint- Yes, I was definitely joking about kids not being able to stand the black bars. But unfortunately, that's exactly what studios seem to think, since many "family" titles are released only in Fullframe and not even offered in widescreen. Why it's so difficult to ALWAYS offer widescreen at least as an option is something I've never quite figured out.

With most kids, I doubt they even notice the black bars. So much television programming these days (at least the commercials) is presented with black bars that I doubt they notice or care.

Perhaps I should have used a sarcastic smiley of some sort, as I most definitely was kidding.

I keep thinking that if only television and studios had RESPECTED movies from the beginning, we wouldn't now be facing the widescreen battle on DVD. If only VHS had been released in widescreen and movies shown properly on television (even if only on premium channels like HBO), people would understand...if it's a movie made after 1955 or so, chances are it's widescreen. Just like chances are that it's in color. I want to tell people...you're not watching television, you're watching a movie!

Steve K

 

[Qui-Gon John]

A snail mail letter to the company is easily worth 100+ online signatures

Well I've written 2 snail mail letters to their corporate office and have not even gotten the courtesy of a reply.

 

[Jerry Dreiss]

Frank, thanks for the clarification. I work retail myself and have seen customers take out their frustration on sales clerks (like me!) for no other reason then they were in front of them. I doubt management would care if she displays bad customer service skills, as long as she doesn't steal and shows up on time.

On to OAR: could it be that Blockbuster's customers have voted with their wallets already, and that's why they are only stocking P&S titles now? Decisions like this aren't made in a vacuum. Almost anyone who logs onto HTF will be wide-screen advocates, but we may only represent a small percent of BB's customer base.
The dangerous thing is that without the support of BB there will be less incentive for folks to purchase 16:9 screens. It's almost down to Best Buy now to show people the advantage of wide-screen sets and wide-screen software.
I'm not saying to give up, still write and vote with your wallets. If they have suggestion boxes use them. Steer family and friends to OAR friendly rental places.

 

[Frank Zimkas]

On to OAR: could it be that Blockbuster's customers have voted with their wallets already, and that's why they are only stocking P&S titles now?

I really don't think that this is the case. If it were I would've expected Blockbuster to not offer WS versions for sale. Remenber this was FS only for rent, WS if you want to buy.

 

[Bob Hill]

I think some of the problem is still the ignorance off many rental store and retailer employees as to what are the differences between fullscreen and widescreen and the merits of OAR. It is pretty hard to "convert" the general public when they are not presented the information by either the retailer or directly on the disc from the studio. I gave up on Blockbuster ever getting this a while ago and now only rent from Netflix.com.

 

[Lanny_B]

A snail mail letter to the company is easily worth 100+ online signatures

Okay. So, where can I send something anyway? And, here's the key, I think this would be effective if everyone on the HTF did this at once. If they're flooded with snail mail all of a sudden, that would be hard to ignore. Could we organize something like this?

 

[Aaron Cohen]

I refuse to have any respect for someone that goes into Blockbuster and gives them money in exchanging for a rental of a full-frame version of a dvd. I would go so far as to agree with Ebert in saying that no movie lover has any business going into a Blockbuster in the first place because of their full-screen crap but I know many of you still like to rent because buying is expensive. But please for the love of god, go somewhere else. Blockbuster is scum. I hate it. If you work there, I hate you.

 

[David James]

"I refuse to have any respect for someone that goes into Blockbuster and gives them money in exchanging for a rental of a full-frame version of a dvd. I would go so far as to agree with Ebert in saying that no movie lover has any business going into a Blockbuster in the first place because of their full-screen crap but I know many of you still like to rent because buying is expensive. But please for the love of god, go somewhere else. Blockbuster is scum. I hate it. If you work there, I hate you."

Nice, very nice

But with all due respect, actually, nevermind. There really isn't anything more to say. Those comments speak for themselves :rolleyes

 

[Aaron Cohen]

Yep. And I hope to see many more future quarters of decreased rental sales for Blockbuster. They seem to be pointing the finger at lower costs for dvd's....maybe years down the line they'll start looking that people want widescreen films?? Nah. The owners are morons.

 

[Colin-H]

Wow. You actually think some clerk who probably makes no more than $10 per hour can actually change the store’s buying policies? The best that could possibly come of that is her mentioning to her manager, “some asshole complained to me because we don’t have The Bourne Identity in widescreen.” The manager will then laugh and forget about it. There is usually at least one level between the people checking out your rentals and the people making the purchasing decisions.

The best thing you can do is ask to talk to the manager, then ask the manager how to lodge a formal complaint. Acting like a child is not the way to go about things.

 

[Adam_WM]

Okay. So, where can I send something anyway? And, here's the key, I think this would be effective if everyone on the HTF did this at once. If they're flooded with snail mail all of a sudden, that would be hard to ignore. Could we organize something like this?

Blockbuster, Inc. Corporate Office
1201 Elm Street
Dallas, Texas 75270

 

[Frank Zimkas]

Acting like a child is not the way to go about things.

You are making one heck of an assumption! The only childish actions were those of the employee. I treated her with more respect than she treated me, I saw no need to vent my frustrations on her. Perhaps her manager will get the message from her. Had the manager been there I would have spoken to him/her! Don't assume to know what happened, get the facts before you make your comments.

 

[Lew Crippen]

I’m with all of those who are voting with their wallet.

What can I do? I'm just one guy, and if I just don't show up I'm easily forgotten about.

Even if you think that you are just one guy, Blockbuster’s earnings are not close to what they predicted and their share price dropped shapely since their last quarter financial results. Of course there are many reasons for this, but given their current financial state, reasoned discussions with management and snail mail to the corporate offices, followed by renting at the competition, including Netflix will either be effective in forcing a change to their policies or they will no longer dominate the business.

It is likely that members of this forum (and others like the HTF members) are already a substantial reason for their decline in profits. This is because many of us buy, not rent DVDs. Blockbuster’s economic model is not set up to make a profit out of sales. Hence, they are a declining business.

 

[David James]

"It is likely that members of this forum (and others like the HTF members) are already a substantial reason for their decline in profits"

That's an interesting question. I wonder if anyone has any facts to back that up?

 

[David Wilkins]

Quarterly earnings ARE built one customer at a time. The support, or lack thereof, does count. Don't sell your individual actions short.

 

[Qui-Gon John]

Okay. So, where can I send something anyway? And, here's the key, I think this would be effective if everyone on the HTF did this at once. If they're flooded with snail mail all of a sudden, that would be hard to ignore. Could we organize something like this?

Here is the person and address I wrote to:

Viacom Inc.
ATTN: Mel Karmazin, President/COO
1515 Broadway
New York, NY 10036

 

[Lew Crippen]

That's an interesting question. I wonder if anyone has any facts to back that up?

I don’t have hard facts at my fingertips, David, so put the following in the IIRC category.

When DVDs were first about to be released (and immediately after), the manufacturers and studios were heavily lobbied by Blockbuster and others representing the video rental industry to price DVDs at close to VHS prices. You may recall that VHS (and Beta) movies were quite expensive ($25–$45). The reason for this is that the cost of movies on VHS made rentals very attractive to the average consumer. Not surprisingly, the rental industry thrived under this economic model.

DVDs hit the market with a very different price point: they were quite cheap, compared to the cost of renting. By paying only a few dollars more, one could own a copy of the movie. Predictably, many have purchased movies instead of renting them and continue to do so. Add to this that fact that VHS tapes have dropped substantially in price since DVDs have become generally popular, which means that many average consumers are now buying videos instead of renting them. Note that here I am speaking of titles which are of interest to the general public, such as ‘Harry Potter’, where large numbers of purchases are made, not titles which are of more limited interest.

This of course hits the rental stores hard, as many movies that used to be rented (and rented multiple times) are now purchased, resulting in reduced rentals. To this problem for the general rental chains, is the fact that they are also unable to compete in the sales of mass market DVDs to the general public. This is because mass marketers like Target, Best Buy and their ilk, are willing to sell DVDs at very reduced prices, and in fact at price points with which the Blockbusters of the world either cannot or are unwilling to compete.

So these mass market rental stores are getting hit two ways: reduced rentals and they are not able to compete effectively in the sales area.

Now all of this is documented (such as the attempt by the rental industry to get higher prices for DVDs) or is informed analysis that I have read in various financial pages and publications, though I admit that I have no direct quotes.

To the above, I would posit that the mass rental industry faces a further challenge, given that (for example Blockbuster) they are having difficulty in responding to the specially market, an area already covered quite well in major cities by independent, single (or very small chains) stores who have a real interest in movies and have a stock of titles designed to appeal to more eclectic tastes. And Netflix is also some competition in this area, though, numerically not significant.

All of the above contributes to their current stock problems.

I think (no proof) that members of this forum, many of whom number their collections in the several hundreds, and who have influenced other, non-collectors to buy, not purchase, to be a very visible tip of the iceberg when it comes to the mass rental market problem.

 

[David James]

A lot of interesting points Lew, to which I would also add that as you review the business financial filings you'll see a drop in sales, revenue and profits for lots of companies.

My point is simply this...
Tell the vendor (Blockbuster in this case) what it takes for them to get your business. Realize that the world doesn't revolve around HTF members and their opinions and those that disagree are not the devil incarnate. These companies are in business to make money, period. They will base corporate decisions to maximize profit and growth and not on how best to screw HTF members.

I remain curious about the financial affect forum members have. I saw one source which said well over 12 million copies of the Spiderman DVD were sold. I wonder how many were to members of this and other forums?

 

[Lew Crippen]

I am in complete agreement with your points as to how best to address ‘Blockbuster’, David.

It is true that a many companies are facing reduced earrings and profits. However, a good many analysts have written that a major reason for Blockbuster’s lowered performance is due to DVDs being purchased, not rented (per The Dallas Morning News among other sources).

 

[Colin-H]

Sorry, man. “Rude little turd” sounds a bit childish to me, and “I was not able to contain my frustration” implies that you did vent your frustration. My assumptions were not baseless.

My point is this: the meaner you are to people in situations like this, the less likely they are to do you a favor by passing your complaint on.