E-Mail from Blockbuster regarding HD-DVD (1 Viewer)

[PatrickMD]

I got this e-mail from Blockbuster Online today. I don't know what I'm more upset about, that they're basically calling me an idiot or that they seem to not want to sell a new product...

Dear XXXXXXX,

Over the last few weeks, your Queue has included DVDs in HD format, a new DVD format that cannot be read by regular DVD players.

You may have added HD DVDs to your Queue without realizing that you were selecting a new, non-standard format. To make sure that you won't receive a DVD in a format that you're not able to view, we have gone ahead and removed all HD DVD titles from your Queue.

If you did intend to select HD format DVDs, we apologize for the inconvenience. Just re-add the titles you want to your Queue and we'll ship them to you as soon as they are available.

 

[Tom BL]

Wow, that's really dumb. It's bad enough that they wrote to point out what you're ordering, but to actually remove them from your queue? That's ridiculous.

 

[PatrickMD]

I should also add (and I'm sure many Blockbuster Online members have experienced the same thing) that they keep switching the HD titles in my queue to SD without telling me or giving me the option of doing so. I don't find out until the wrong disc arrives in the mail. It's fine to give me the information but let ME make the decisions about my account, Blockbuster!

 

[Paul McElligott]

Go ahead and be pissed about both.

"We think you may have ordered Filet Mignon without knowing what it was, so we've replaced it with ground chuck."

 

[Garrett Lundy]

Dear BlockBuster Video,

In recent weeks I have upgraded to a new credit card, a credit card wich may not be compatible with your regular banking agent. To make sure you do not receive a payment you may be unable to receive, I have gone ahead and cancelled my subscription.

If you did intend to lose a customer, I apologize for the inconvenience. Just re-add the titles you want to your website and insert them directly into your anus.

Thank You, former subscriber.

 

[Paul Hillenbrand]

It sounds to me that Best Buy must have gotten a lot of complaints from people who thought they were ordering DVD's:rolleyes

Still, it would have been much more appropriate just to clarify the difference, rather than removing the order.

Paul

 

[Jesse Skeen]

You wouldn't believe the number of people who have bought SACDs then brought them back when they don't play on their regular CD player. Haven't seen this happen with HD-DVDs- yet.

 

[Edwin-S]

Weren't SACDs supposed to have a red book CD layer that would allow them to be played in ordinary CD players?

 

[Garrett Lundy]

Only the later 'hybrid' releases. Most of the '1st gen' SACDs were 2-channel SACD only.

 

[Shawn.F]

I walked away from Blahbuster about eight years ago and haven't rented or bought from them since and I don't regret it one bit.

 

[Marc Colella]

Even hybrid SACDs can have problems with players. There are DVD players and DVD-ROM drives that assume the discs are DVD movies and tries to play the SACD layer.

Hopefully Hybrid HD-DVDs offer better compatability.

 

[Ryan-G]

I hadn't considered this before, but I guess it's possible that one of the facets of HD-DVD that was theorized to be a strength is in fact turning out to be a weakness.

It's title that many have theorized would provide better recognition to consumers than Blu-Ray may very well be confusing poor J6P who might think "Well, DVD is DVD! I can use it!"

Be interesting to see how this turns out...

 

[Steve Schaffer]

Hybrid HD-DVDs have the SD on one side and the HD on the other, pretty hard to mess that up.

 

[JediFonger]

good thing i have Netflix, which has begun to list BR as well!

 

[Paul.S]

LOL re your post #5, Garrett.

Hopefully Netflix won't pull any stunts like this. That would be very annoying given that, as I'm sure many others with large Queues have done, I manage where I put some titles. To not only have to remember and re-add all HD DVDs but to also move them back to where I had them in the Queue would make me demand *they* reinsert them where I had them or they'd likely lose me as a customer.

 

[Bruce Hedtke]

If I'm not mistaken, with Netflix, you have to enable your account to recieve HD discs but once you do, if you choose a title and it's available in HD, they'll send you the HD disc as a first option.

Bruce

 

[JediFonger]

yes, and you can default to HD-DVD or (in the near future BR) or plain vanilla DVD.

 

[BrettB]

It sounds like the problem is that they don't have a good way to deal with the situation unlike Netflix. It sounds like maybe they have to delete them to reset.

What's the latest Patrick?