Blockbuster UK refuse to stock Training Day because Warner don't give a rental window (1 Viewer)

[Johnny G]

copied from the forum at www.dvddebate.com here http://www.dvddebate.com/viewtopic.p...c=4273&forum=2
I sent BB an email asking for an explanation for not stocking training Day.
This is their reply.
It is with regret that I must advise you that we are unable to stock copies
of Training Day to rent or buy. This is due to a significant change in
trading terms proposed by the movie's distributor, AOL Time Warner, which we
do not believe are in the best interests of our customers.
We would like to apologise for any inconvenience caused by our decision, but
hope that, in the long term, this move will safeguard the guaranteed
availability of the latest movies that you have come to expect when you visit
Blockbuster.
Thank you for taking the time to contact Blockbuster.
Personally, this is good news for me but I won't go into that. However, for the UK market, this is a pretty big set back as BB are the biggest video chain in the UK.

 

[streeter]

It's not just Blockbuster - many UK stores won't be stocking them. It's because in the UK there is no First Sale Doctrine and now DVDs are being released separately for sale and rental - rental being outrageously expensive. Thankfully we don't have this in the US!

 

[Andy_MT]

which we do not believe are in the best interests of our customers.

isn't that sweet. BB is looking out for it's customers' best interests. i totally believe this

 

[Johnny G]

can't they rent the retail version?

 

[Scott_MacD]

Oh, well.. Time to tear up my Blockbuster card in protest..
(who am I kidding, I did it months ago... Buying and reselling is much easier. )

 

[Jeff Kleist]

Translation: WAHHHHH!!! WB figured out that supporting our monopoly is less profitable than direct-sale copies!

 

[Daniel L]

can't they rent the retail version?

No.

Since every other part of the world does not have a legal precedent such as our First Sale Doctrine, a studio can actually make different releases for sale and rental.

If a company rents a "retail" version, the studios have the legal right to sue a company for renting this version. This is silimilar to what happened in Austrailia a few months ago.

Daniel L

 

[Dan Brecher]

From what I can gather, a friend of mine who works at Blockbuster and first informed me of the issues the company was having with Warner a couple of weeks ago, says this is likely to extend beyond Training Day. Blockbuster may not carry any new WB titles for the forseeable future.

Dan

 

[Johnny G]

talk about cutting of their nose to spite their face

 

[Jesse Skeen]

In the US Warner is even pricing their new VHS releases at sell-thru now!

 

[Angsty]

If a company rents a "retail" version, the studios have the legal right to sue a company for renting this version. This is silimilar to what happened in Austrailia a few months ago.

Yes, $2Warner tried this tactic in Australia too, but the federal court ruled this breached the Trade Practices Act and immediately stopped them.
A side effect of this obnoxious tactic was the defacement of the disc art for the retail version of the DVD with great big letters advising people that if they had rented this DVD, to call a 1800 number and report the "perpetrator"
Looks like they're attempting to recycle this tactic in the UK :frowning:
Angela
[Of course, many of us here in R4 wonder if the pan & scan ONLY release of Harry Potter for R4 was payback ...]

 

[Julian Lalor]

Warners have sought to enforce a dual pricing policy: a retail version to be sold to consumers for a retail price and a rental version (identical in content) to be sold to rental stores for a dramatically higher price. This was tested in the Australian market, and Warners were sued (under the Copyright Act, not Trade Practices Act). Warners lost their case and settled prior to the hearing of the appeal. The policy is discriminatory and illegal in most jurisdictions; whether it is the case in the UK depends on UK specific legislation. I'm no fan of the Blockbusters of this world, but it is Warners who are the villains here.

 

[Yumbo]

many Oz video libraries stocked retail (VHS) versions (catalogue) for rent.