Mouse busts Blockbuster (1 Viewer)

[Jeff Kleist]

http://www.variety.com/index.asp?lay...&categoryid=18
Disney's claiming that Blockbuster has screwed them out of about $120 million under their revenue sharing deals

 

[Paul McElligott]

Well, guess we won't be able to rent Treasure Planet at BB this year. Darn...

 

[Joe McKeown]

Blockbuster screws Disney... I find myself not knowing how to feel about this. Part of me is thinking "Damn blockbuster screws everyone"
But there is another part of me thinking "Ha HA! someone got Disney for a change!"

 

[Peter Overduin]

I remember the good ole days when DVD fans vilified BB as the purveyor of all that was wrong with the format (DIVX; late to endorse the format, etc.) and swore to never grace their stores. Disney was only slightly less/more castigated for supporting DIVX, issuing poor transfers, etc.

This is one of those conflicts where there are no protagonists. Neither have any claim to the moral high road.

 

[streeter]

Peter, I agree that there is no lesser evil in this case. But, I think that since Disney is already doing so badly, it is Blockbuster that really could use the blow. It's a nice 1-2 punch after the earnings mishap last week (which was IMO a small, temporary blow to BB).
Therefore, I put my support with Disney.

 

[Dave Scarpa]

Well BB was my only rental Option until recently when A Hollywood Video opened near, what a change HV carries the WS versions of the films in depth, they have decent Foriegn/indie collections on DVD, also their Rental period is longer and you get the Artwork with the film. Bye bye Blockbuster.

 

[Jan Strnad]

Killer Whale vs. Giant Squid. Who do you root for?
Jan

 

[Bill McCamy]

I like calamari.

 

[Lewis Besze]

Disney came a long way,for supporting DVD in a right way.
What BB have done right ever?

 

[Scott Weinberg]

Well said (despite the broken English ), Lewis. Disney continues to churn out a few wretched Full Frame DVDs a year, but they've also delivered some phenomenal DVD sets.
Blockbuster is a blight, pure and simple.

 

[James Zos]

Yeah, I gotta go with Disney on this one. BB is pretty damn evil. Before I went to the web exclusively (more or less) for rentals, BB used to clean out my wallet with its late fee policies...I remember once I turned in two DVDs at the same time, well before the 12 p.m. deadline, and the next day they told me that one of them had been turned in late and they tried to charge me a fee...Maybe THEY checked one of them in late, but they were both in at the same time, so no way was I paying a fee. They finally backed off, acting like they were doing me some big favor. "Well, we won't charge you this time..."

 

[streeter]

Whoa, a new development:

BB is 'striking back' with a nasty move. It is breaking street date (since Friday) on a **major** new release title from Disney that is supposed to be out on Tuesday. We're not supposed to mention steet date violations, so I won't mention the title... but it should be very easy to figure out. Administrators, if you find this post violates the terms, please delete it. But this is an almost-nationwide violation. It's of massive proportions, so I don't think it applies. Maybe this warrants a new thread.

 

[Francois Caron]

BB violated a street date nationwide? Have you confirmed this is occurring in many stores and not just at a local store? Whenever a retail chain in my area breaks the street date on a popular title, all the other merchants are required to break it as well in order to avoid lost sales. I can imagine the chaos that would ensue if this incident occurred on a nationwide level.

 

[Chris_Morris]

A poster in the review thread stated that their local BlockBuster store had it out and the manager told them it was an "emergency order" to put it on the shelves on Friday, so it does appear to be nationwide.

Chris

 

[streeter]

Francois:

Yes, it's nationwide. BB stores all over the country have them out.
I would call Blockbuster first just to make sure before making the trip over - some may be running behind.
I wish there would be some harsh consequences for BB but probably nothing will happen. They are causing millions of dollars in losses for other stores because many people will rent/buy it there first. It is likely that the early rental will prevent many impulse buys next week.
Other stores are allowed to also break street date if another store in their area does. I think this definitely has something to do with the Disney lawsuit - otherwise I doubt it would be nationally.
I don't think there is any fine that BB would have to pay. I think those fines were only when they were doing revenue sharing, but I may be wrong. Breaking street date is not illegal - it's entirely voluntary. However, stores selling or renting movies generally don't violate street date because if they are reported, it may effect how early they get the next shipment of movies.

 

[Jeff Kleist]

Disney WILL find a way to punish Blockbuster

Frankly, I think the entire industry is getting sick of Blockbuster and their monopolistic practices and the games they play

 

[Sean Laughter]

So what are the chances of Disney giving BB new releases late because of this? IMO, it seems BB has the expendable service as they have no business if they have product to sell or rent. My favorite scenario coming out of this whole thing? It would be other studios joining Disney and denying BB product in a timely manner (well after street date).

 

[James Reader]

Paramount are unlikely to act against Blockbusters though

 

[Sean Laughter]

Obviously, but I guess they better hope alot of people are just waiting to see Star Trek: Nemesis on video

 

[streeter]

Yes, wouldn't it be great if Disney and Warner joined up and gave BB a spanking? And then they also finally made Roger Rabbit 2? It won't happen. Disney will just ignore this. BB is too much income to them.
Maybe if Lieberfarb was still there. (I still say it's good that Lieberfarb's gone, because he wasn't just anti-BB, but anti-rental in general.)