Best Buy to Eliminate DVD Inventory & Anime

Re: Best Buy to Eliminate DVD Inventory & Anime

Well, I don't use Best Buy for anything, so it doesn't bother me. I will still continue to order my DVDs online. It's relatively quick, less expensive, and the return policies are much better.

Re: Best Buy to Eliminate DVD Inventory & Anime

And that's probably why they're doing this. Why incur B&M-related distribution and carrying costs when most folks are just going to make their purchase based on the lowest price? And now, with CC out of the way, it isn't a competitive concern to do away with DVDs.

Re: Best Buy to Eliminate DVD Inventory & Anime

You couldn't prove that by me. I went to my local Best Buy bright and early on Sunday to get the $14.99 Amadeus Blu-ray featured in this week's circular. Not only did they not have it in stock, the clerk who looked it up in the store's inventory computer informed me that they had none on order, would not be getting any, and if I really wanted it I should order it from the Best Buy web site. In the end, I opted to spend 10 minutes at customer service wrangling a raincheck, so if/when it does come in, I'll get it at the sale price and not have to screw around with shipping. BTW, this happens to me with regularity at this store - at least once every four or five weeks. And, it's always the same thing. I make a special trip to the store for an advertised Blu-ray disc and they don't have it in stock.

Re: Best Buy to Eliminate DVD Inventory & Anime

I posted a topic thread in the Bargains & Deals section noting that most Borders stores are now dropping media (CDs and DVDs). I found this out from a local Borders employee after getting an email announcing 30% off of all media through March 1. In other words, they're clearing inventory out.

Sure, we mostly buy DVDs online now for the best price (with the exception of first-week releases at Best Buy, etc.), but there was still something about the opportunity to browse in a B&M when you weren't in a target-hunting mode, but just wanted to see what you felt in the mood for on an impulse purchase. Those days are going.

Re: Best Buy to Eliminate DVD Inventory & Anime

Well Borders can kiss my butt; they are totally overpriced on all their dvds anyway.

Re: Best Buy to Eliminate DVD Inventory & Anime

I buy 99% of my dvds online anyhow, so it's not that this news is particularly distressing to me on a personal level. The bigger issue, IMHO, is that this can and probably will hurt the DVD industry in general. I've been told, or read, that WalMart is cutting back on their TV on DVD shelf space in particular. Add to all this news the apparent fact that DVD sales fell again last year and we might have a problem. I certainly hope that studios and independents are able to weather the storm, but I must admit I'm gravely concerned about this hobby I've come to love so much.

Gary "I don't see how all this info is anything but bad news for fans of TV on DVD" O.

Re: Best Buy to Eliminate DVD Inventory & Anime

Agreed, except for the fact that they email coupons every week for 30-40% off most of the time to Rewards members, which often brings the prices down comparable to the best you can do online (and without waiting for shipping). I imagine that they will have some great clearance prices soon on the stores dropping media.

Re: Best Buy to Eliminate DVD Inventory & Anime

Can we change the title of this thread to something more accurate? 'Eliminate' would mean that they're getting rid of DVDs all together.

Re: Best Buy to Eliminate DVD Inventory & Anime

CC might be out of the business, but they still have to compete with Target and Wallmart. I think the display cases at Best Buy are a major turn off to the casual consumer. It's like a maze inside them. Most of the time, you can't find what you're looking for. People seem more comfortable scanning the new releases as they enter the store and then just keep on moving. They're not great browsing spaces.

Re: Best Buy to Eliminate DVD Inventory & Anime

OK, so i went to one of the web sites that Mark mentioned. Its not as bad as his thread title sounds. The way Mark says it BB is out of the DVD business. In fact they seem to be out of the crap no one heard of, and sits on the shelf for 5 years business. Anime, and B and C titles seem to be whats affected.

While i agree anime seems to be the hardest hit, they wont stop selling it outright, but they are cutting the number of stores that carry anime.

I have to tell you, as a big anime fan myself, i have been hard pressed to find many good shows and movies. If its not Ghost in the Shell, or Cowboy Bebop, i cant say its thrilled me. In the last few years anyway, Japan has been holding on to the BIG titles, and selling the US license for about the cost of the show to produce. I know anime bootlegging has gotten out of control too. That means the DVDs sit on the shelf. Also, a single disc can cost $30 in store, but if you wait for the box set, that comes out a year or two later, it will be $30 as well! So, i see people waiting, not buying the single disc release.

As far as old movies, and TV shows, Best Buy has been crap when it comes to having any stock on them. I dont even know if they ever got Adam-12 season 2, because i got mine from Amazon. If they ever do stock older titles, it sure isnt on release week.

If they want to stock A titles, so be it. I have no problem ordering online. Saves me a trip.

But they are NOT getting out of the DVD business.

Dont even get me started on their Blu-ray prices! I only buy from them if its a GOOD sale, or i have a Reward Zone card burning a hole in my pocket!

Re: Best Buy to Eliminate DVD Inventory & Anime

But Rick, what you said actually confirms my concerns. If places like Best Buy are going to be taking classic TV off their shelves then that can directly impact my favorite portion of the entire DVD market. If the B&M stores stop stocking those type of dvds, then the studios may very well have to start scaling back their output in those areas. So that is alarming, at least to me.

Gary "does that make sense?" O.

Re: Best Buy to Eliminate DVD Inventory & Anime

That's what I'm saying Mark, although I was specifically thinking of vintage TV as opposed to new releases. I believe the older material would be the first casualty. New shows would be the last ones to get the axe.

Gary "there's no way all these variables don't add up to at least potentially bad news for vintage TV on DVD" O.

Re: Best Buy to Eliminate DVD Inventory & Anime

Oh i agree 100% Gary. You know BB has always been bad about stocking anything from Shout! Factory, one of my favorites for a long time. I also really liked BCI, which BB did stock many of their titles, and we know what happened to them.
I always thought they should cut down on the number of direct to video, or worse, lasted at the theater for one week titles.
I am sure some of the classic TV titles we do see in store, are only stocked because the studio tells them, "you want Iron Man, you gotta take 100 units of B titles too!"

Shout! doesnt have the pull that Paramount, Universal, or FOX has. Makes me wonder if the big studios will even take a hit at all. Not that they were stocking 30 year old shows very deep anyway.

Re: Best Buy to Eliminate DVD Inventory & Anime

Yep, we are on the same page here Rick. Thanks.

Gary "I'm hoping Amazon might see this as a place where they can really prosper and the studios will still give us some 'direct to e-tailer' vintage releases - that might be the only way left to make classic material available in a physical media form pretty soon" O.

Re: Best Buy to Eliminate DVD Inventory & Anime

This isn't good.

Re: Best Buy to Eliminate DVD Inventory & Anime

Y'know, I kind of wish the studios could get away with doing classic TV the same way Marvel Comics does their Masterworks (reprints of old comic books, for those who don't know)...

Manufacture enough for the pre-orders, with some extras for people who don't know a release is coming out or can't afford it at this time, and that's that.

Of course, there are probably many reasons why that is not possible (and I'm sure I'll soon be told most of them), but it would be interesting to see if it could be done.

I guess the other way would be making more material available through Amazon's Burn on Demand program.

Re: Best Buy to Eliminate DVD Inventory & Anime

Exactly. 'Eliminate' means to remove or get rid of. They're reducing their inventory. There's a huge difference between the two words.

Re: Best Buy to Eliminate DVD Inventory & Anime

This is mixing two classes of show. Smallville, NCIS and Bones are current when it comes to DVDs. all their seasons outside the latest have been released. They're still considered New releases that get promoted when the come out right before the new season. CHiPs and All in the Family will have the problem of fighting for the limited shelf space. They won't have the same level of promotion since they're later seasons.

This condensing plays more into the Complete Season set is what a store wants to put on the shelf for their inventory. Last time I went to Best Buy and poked through the TV section, most they had up there was the latest release and only a select few series like Seinfeld and Family Guy had their older boxsets.

Re: Best Buy to Eliminate DVD Inventory & Anime

Scott, same here. 99% online buyer. The only issue here that concerns me is that, my perception of posts at HTF and some e-mails from one in the know, is that we online buyers represent a very small % of the TV/DVD sales. Maybe the online-buying trend is on the rise. I hope so, since the online buyer (my read on it) seems to be a more-informed shopper of these shows (edited, removed music/scoring, etc).

Hopefully, more potential buyers out there are switching to broadband 'net connects that helps online shopping big-time. I was fortunante that I had DSL available back in '04 when I first connected on the 'net at home and recently changed over to FIOS speed.

Re: Best Buy to Eliminate DVD Inventory & Anime

"Cutting back" is not the same as eliminating. "Eliminating" means to totally get rid of something. For example: I'm cutting back on food, but not eliminating it.

Re: Best Buy to Eliminate DVD Inventory & Anime

Ohh, i wouldnt of used food as an example...cause eventually you DO eliminate it!

By the way, glad to see the usual suspects Scott, Gary, and of course Mr. "high speed" Willis!

Hi guys.

I think we ARE a small minority.

Re: Best Buy to Eliminate DVD Inventory & Anime

Thanks, Rick "Boldly go where no man has gone before...", into the world of FIOS... If it wasn't for my dinosaur PC, the speed would be even faster (20/5 subscriber, typical speeds are 14M/2M), big improvement from my DSL days.

imo, if we on the 'net were a larger % of the pie, the TV/DVD mkt would be a different place. However, that said. I think that the online community, led by our resident heroes at TSoD and the HTF'ers here, made a big difference with the recent Fugitive issue. I referenced a TOS tribute to you on that thread in case you missed it

"In every revolution, there's one man with a vision"

Re: Best Buy to Eliminate DVD Inventory & Anime

Oh, yea, better check it out.

Sometimes the small minority makes a difference.

Do we have ANY B&M stores that cater to the non-mainstream public, for movies, TV and music? I cant think of any, cept maybe Boarders.

Re: Best Buy to Eliminate DVD Inventory & Anime

More on the Borders plans here:
Borders To Shrink Music Shelf Space



They are cutting back on media and the company is cutting back as a whole. This company is not doing well:

Borders Group Cuts 136 Jobs, Or 12% Of Corporate Work Force
Friends are telling me to expect store closures in the future.

Re: Best Buy to Eliminate DVD Inventory & Anime

To be fair, Borders has never really been that stable. Their prices on media has always sucked and they pander to a consumer that only uses the internet to look at email. They never caught up with the idea that people buy stuff online because it's cheaper and without sales tax, and that selling anything for a premium price is suicide even when the economy is doing well. I'm a short distance from their world HQ and it's obvious that they don't have their heads on straight when they have three stores in the Ann Arbor area alone. The place is just there for college students or the higher-end consumers who simply don't know better. That's not a business model, that's a suicide note. It's not surprising they're going to be closing down some locations.

Best Buy, however, is just getting lazy. Again they're pandering to the consumer who has more money than sense, and a failing economy smartens people up right away. Sticking with large ticket items (that are optional, you don't need a HD TV to live) and overpriced appliances isn't a way to remain solvent. They used to have some good deals on their DVDs, but that isn't going to remain so if they limit their selection. A wide selection may take up space, but at least it provides an incentive for people to walk into the stores and browse.

It seems that brick & mortar stores are still having problems really facing what the internet can do for consumers, and still can't overcome it. It's been a good ten years. No wonder they're failing now, they don't even know the first thing about running a business.

Re: Best Buy to Eliminate DVD Inventory & Anime

You may want to consider ordering on-line from Walmart if you have a Walmart near you. I order from Walmart and use site to store. They ship it to your local Walmart and you pick it up there. You don't have to pay any shipping cost.

God Bless!

Robert

Re: Best Buy to Eliminate DVD Inventory & Anime

Another problem coming from the reduction of DVD inventory in B&M stores is that the studios are also taking the hit by missing their forecasted revenue budgets that they depend on. DVD sales are down significantly and while Blu-ray is doing pretty good, it's not compensating for the DVD slide (and is still very overpriced on software). VOD, on the other hand, is doing very well with cable providers along with Netflix and Redbox. People are preferring to stay home and get their movie and TV entertainment that way during a tough economy where so many people are getting laid off. Plus, for every business that gets into trouble, it affects other businesses that supply them or benefit from them in other ways, a chain reaction. (Watch what happens when an anchor store in a strip mall or shopping mall goes down the tubes these days, the smaller stores around it are not far behind).

TV on DVD is not immune to this unfortunately, even though it's comfort food in tough times (and good times too, of course) for many folks including myself. I think right now the supply is exceeding the demand as people watch their dollars carefully. Stores are reducing inventory, so your favorite (older, slower-selling) titles are harder to find, as stores use that space to sell more popular current shows or video games and other more popular electronics software/hardware. Interestingly, it seems like both Universal, Shout! and Sony have slightly increased their classic TV output this year so far compared to '08, while CBS/P has started to pull back a little bit. 2 different strategies, it will be interesting to see where things go from here.