Blockbuster Video-Rental Chain Will Shut Remaining U.S. Stores

[Purveyor]

By Nick Turner - Nov 6, 2013

Blockbuster LLC, the video-rental company now owned by Dish Network Corp. (DISH), will close its remaining 300 U.S. stores, ending an era for a retail chain that was once a hallmark of shopping centers across the country.

Blockbuster will shut the outlets by early January and also discontinue its DVD-by-mail service by the middle of next month, Englewood, Colorado-based Dish said today in a statement. The company will keep the licensing rights to the Blockbuster brand and use it with Dish services. It also has a video-streaming product called Blockbuster On Demand.

Dish, which acquired the chain out of bankruptcy in April 2011, had already divested Blockbuster’s international assets, including operations in the U.K. and Scandinavia. The company has been gradually shutting down the 1,700 stores it acquired. When Blockbuster was owned by Viacom Inc. (VIAB) in 2004, it operated about 9,000 locations -- before streaming video services such as Netflix Inc. (NFLX) devastated the industry.

“This is not an easy decision, yet consumer demand is clearly moving to digital distribution of video entertainment,” Dish Chief Executive Officer Joseph Clayton said in the statement. “We continue to see value in the Blockbuster brand, and we expect to leverage that brand as we continue to expand our digital offerings.”

more...

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-11-06/blockbuster-video-rental-chain-will-shut-remaining-u-s-stores.html

[HERVEPA]

1. Who knew it still existed??

[PasadenaTrudy]

50. I have one in my city n/t

[white_wolf]

2. I find this news sad.

I love video stores and I hate to see them go. I use Netflix because it's the only thing left, but I will gladly drop it for a local video store. There was something fun about browsing the aisles seeing what random movies I had and talking to the people who worked at the stores. I always wanted to work at a video store, but never got the chance. So yeah, I totally hate this.

[Yavin4]

38. There was a chain in NYC called Kims Video. While browsing the store, I saw Willem Dafoe browsing

as well. I looked at everything he looked at. I want to be cool and hip too.

[A HERETIC I AM]

3. Hell, they even tried to compete with Red Box...

By installing similar vending/kiosk machines and STILL had their ass handed to them.

The modern day version of the buggy whip maker.

[exboyfil]

11. I still find it astonding that Redbox can

generate a profit at $1.20/dvd. Consider Amazon streaming comes in at $3/ea. We still have a Family Video which I think is hanging in there. Low technology consumers who still don't stream (I have only been doing it for a little over a year) and the ability to undercut Amazon's price. Downside is older discs have often been damaged which is not compensated for by a free one next time. The rental cost is incidental to time invested. Netflix streaming gets many of the same videos as the same time as Redbox which probably also undercuts Redbox profitability. Amazon Prime student account is $39 ($3.25/mo.). Netflix streaming is $8/mo. Redbox had a streaming service which was not very good (hard to access - video streaming issues) at $8/mo. with four rentals (effectively $3.20/mo if you plan to get four Netflix movies a month which rarely happens for me). Eventually Amazon will kill Family Video as Amazon increases their library (try to rent the original Salem's Lot for example - can't get that through Amazon but the Family Video copy is showing its age).

[A HERETIC I AM]

15. Volume.

There are no fewer than 6 Red Box kiosks within 2 miles of my house.

I must admit, I have a certain bias toward the disk in hand, if you will, as opposed to streaming video. The reason is because my computer is not hooked up to my TV (although it can be) and is in a different room as well.

I don't think I am alone either. I enjoy and have used many times, streaming services, including HBOGO, Netflix, Hulu and even YouTube (in many cases you can stream entire movies for less than $2.00) but I am not sitting in my couch or Lazy boy!

If nothing else, this era of shift in this
Media should be included in future marketing curricula.

[white_wolf]

17. Volume? Maybe. But selection kind of sucks.

It's almost impossible to find anything older than 6 months on Redbox. Netflix streaming is better, but still lacking. I could find a lot of independent and foreign films at a video store that you won't find on Netflix streaming or Redbox.

[A HERETIC I AM]

20. OK...volume and convenience.

Like I suggested above, I think many people are like me in that they like to have the disk.

You can also search for specific movies by nearest kiosk on their website. So there is that.

I'm a subscriber of Netflix and the difference between what is available to stream as opposed to what's available to be mailed to you is night and day, at least regarding my interests.

[Egnever]

43. Couple of things

You dont need a computer connected to your TV to stream. Most blue ray players these days have streaming capablity for most of these services. Another option is googles dongle https://play.google.com/store/devices/details?id=chromecast it is $35 and with it you can stream from your computer to your TV.

There are other options as well roku boxes offer hundreds of streaming channels and runs around $100. Hell many of todays TV's come with streaming ability built into them.

The disk is dying, clinging to it will do you no favors. There are many ways to get streaming on your TV now with no computer connected the options will only widen as we go forward.

I realize this can be confusing for many but surely theres a kid somewhere in your life that could set one of these options up for you with little trouble.

[A HERETIC I AM]

44. On the other hand...

I might just travel enough coupled with the lack of fuck giving that it is of little concern presently.

But I do appreciate the tips, honestly.

On edit to add that the TV I currently own, which I bought about a year ago and had almost all the bells and whistles available was the first TV I had purchased since 1992 or so.

Seriously. I was so out of the techno loop it wasn't funny.

[Egnever]

55. If the TV is less than a year old

and has all the bells and whistles it likely can stream all on its own.

As a traveler I would think a netflix sub or some such and a tablet are damn near required at this point lol.

[Hestia]

60. We have roku players and love them - but (!) hate that I have to pay $1.99-$2.99+ for old movies -

circa 1980 still in this day and age for streaming. I mean really - Buffy the Vampire Slayer is $1.99 on amazon? It seems that if movies are still being aired somewhere on some channel, you have to pay for them but can watch them edited and lots of commercials. A lot of movies you have to pay for even if you have prime on amazon.

I watch netflix for the old tv shows that I never watched when airing - I worked 2 jobs and didn't have time to watch tv. We stream Hulu for convenience on some shows because we are busy when they air.

I signed up for Blockbuster on Demand but found the ability to search on their site to be impossible and more expensive than Amazon. The reason we signed up was to give amazon competition but Blockbuster seems to have shut that down on their own.

Here is an article about a local video store still going strong:

http://www.arktimes.com/arkansas/obscure-titles-and-a-well-stocked-x-rated-section-have-kept-rao-video-alive/Content?oid=2775513

[pstokely]

58. Redbox is turn-key and low overhead

Redbox doesn't even need cheap labor

[KurtNYC]

4. But...but...but those are MUSEUMS !

[Hassin Bin Sober]

28. LOL!

[RockaFowler]

31. Oh so funny!

[tridim]

5. Wow. I built about thirty Blockbuster stores back in the olden days.

I can't believe I'm still around to see their demise. They were huge back then, we made tons of money as their architect.

Fun fact, the trim on Blockbuster stores (and most mini-mall stores) is painted Styrofoam. So cheesy, but I didn't have a choice.

[A HERETIC I AM]

18. Interesting

I'm no architect, but I am fascinated by the details on older buildings in downtown, small town America.

Being able to see the variety of made in stone architectural ornamentation in the various regions of the country is one of the reasons I have grown to love being a trucker.

[Vashta Nerada]

6. I thought they all closed years ago.

[Katashi_itto]

7. Good ridannce, arrogant pricks.

I hope they fell hard

I bounced a 15 dollar check to them in their heyday and ended up getting sued for 300 hundred. No matter it was a mistake, no matter I kept trying to pay the check, they simply refused and kept going with it.

[white_wolf]

8. I'm not so much sad to see Blockbuster gone as I'm sad to see video stores gone.

Blockbuster, like most huge chains, tended to suck, but I'd still prefer them over Netflix. I'd give almost anything to have an independent local video store like we used to.

[Katashi_itto]

9. I agree there. When I was a kid in kansas City

We had an awesome store. Stocked with foreign films, indies, obscure titles. I really learned to love film there. Ended up becoming a indie filmmaker because of that place.

Just discovered they too are going out of business

http://www.yelp.com/biz/sro-video-store-kansas-city

"You only have a week or two left to say goodbye to this KC gem. SRO is, sadly, going out of business. They are selling all of their movies, and have been for several weeks, but now they are really trying to move them out the door. I've already visited several times to bid farewell, and gather up some old, and new friends to bring home. I would much rather have them live at SRO, though.

I will miss: the staff, walking there with my son and how excited he gets about going to the video store, beer night, checking out the month's daily deals, perusing favorite sections (new releases, staff picks, documentaries, foreign, and kid primarily), running into neighbors and friends there, listening to what music is playing, talking with people, and a whole host of other things.

I guess my destiny is Netflix. Ugh...how horribly impersonal."

****

"I've been living in New Orleans for 10 years and one of my fondest memories of living in Kansas City was this movie store. Even in the days of VHS, they had always been kind to me (as a child) and my parents who frequented there as much as three times a week. I remember playing wih toys at the top of the steps waiting for parents to pick a movie. Everytime I walked by (on purpose of course) the thriller horror film section I would run away when I saw Chucky! So, all in all I just want to say that some businesses will never go forgotten in our memories and hearts because they touch us with their kind staff and sometimes sarcastic hospitality.
Peace love and SRO"

*****
For 4 years, I've been coming to this video store to buy some movies, to get magazines that the employees order from for good use (scrapbooks, photo albums, etc.) and to hang out. I've received a movie fan award from this place which happens to be the most proudest moment of my life. Two weekends ago, I went to its closing party to remember this wonderful place. I had a great time. I showed off my scrapbooks and drawings to the staff once again. I cried a few times because it was closing. In my opinion, this was the most wonderful video store in towm because it changed my life and my creativity. R.I.P. SRO Video 1985-2011

[tridim]

21. Just noticed the other day that the indie video store in Westport is still open.

It's probably the porn section that keeps them in biz.

[Katashi_itto]

45. Hehe, well I am for anything that keeps indie video stores open :)

[Scootaloo]

52. I would SERIOUSLY doubt it's the porn section...

[tridim]

63. I guess. I haven't been in that shop (or any video store) for 20 years.

Things might have changed.

[pstokely]

56. There still a porn theater open on Troost

but they just show porn from a disc on a projector

[tridim]

62. Heh, yea. I drive past that place fairly often.

I'm so glad all the theaters/shops are gone on Main.

[pstokely]

64. Except for Bazooka's in the crossroads

nt

[pstokely]

57. Would porn had kept Blockbuster open?

they never had porn

[penultimate]

12. That would be a difficult business to run these days

Can't beat redbox and streaming these days. I don't think the few nostalgic people seeking the small video store experience would be able to keep it profitable. Maybe as a hobby-type portion of an already established business though, aye?

I remember every Friday my family and I would go rent a movie at this small video store back in the early to mid nineties. Crappy VHS tapes that sometimes just didn't work because of abuse or whatever. heh...

[Skittles]

47. I honestly feel if they had not treated people like crap when they were on top

people would have had more brand loyalty - as it was, when alternatives became available their customers fled

[Katashi_itto]

49. You are absolutely right! I remember at the start all my friends and I loved them, then they

went bad. They built up tons of outright hate. In the last half I didn't know anyone who didn't have a bad experience with them, who wasn't actively rooting for them to fail. I even wrote them after they took me to court and said "I ill cost you 20 times what you got out of me and will a constant beacon of bad PR for you."

I can safely say I influenced around 40 people to shop elsewhere.

[penultimate]

10. creative destruction at work

[LongTomH]

14. Destruction, anyway!

We're seeing a lot more destruction than creativity IMHO.

[penultimate]

40. In this case I think the replacements are pretty creative

Particularly in the case of Redbox. It sucks that people lost their jobs from Blockbuster and other such companies going out of business, but the alternative would be to restrict new companies with innovative products from coming into the market. I don't think I really see much long-term benefits in that.

[TlalocW]

13. I think I heard

That the people who started Netflix actually brought the idea to them, wanting to partner with them, but Blockbuster laughed in their faces. If that's true, BB deserves their fate.

I have a lot of fond memories from high school of going to a Blockbuster with my best friend, spending 30 minutes looking for a movie then leaving without one and going to a Dairy Queen to get a Peanut Buster Parfait.

Wait, maybe it's fond memories of Dairy Queen I'm experiencing...

TlalocW

[white_wolf]

16. I think Netflix offered to sell for 50 million.

It was sometime in the early 2000's when Netflix was still a mail only service they tried to get Blockbuster to buy them for something like 50 million. A small sum to Blockbuster back then. Another problem with Blockbuster was that they leashed all their property as opposed to simply buying it even though it would have worked out better to simply buy it. Blockbuster deserved to die because of stupid management decisions like that, but I'll still miss video stores.

[Tommy_Carcetti]

19. While Blockbuster in its heyday was a big soulless corporation, I'll still have a bit of a soft spot

We'd go out to eat, and afterwards head on over to the video store and peruse the selection for about 20 minutes. Usually enough copies of everything in stock, you could read the descriptions of the movies on the boxes at your own leisure. It was just a fun, relaxing activity.

Going to the Red Box, and feeling rushed to choose something before the 5 people behind you start huffing and puffing, and hoping that the 1-2 copies of that movie are actually on stock--that's just not the same feeling. Neither is pointing and clicking online and getting a movie in the mailbox.

Maybe I'm not mourning the loss of Blockbuster per se, but I am mourning the loss of the video store experience. It's just one more thing where we lose that sense of personal touch and community.

[white_wolf]

22. I'm glad to see I'm not the only one who will miss the video store experience.

I hate using Redbox. It's a stressful experience. You have to wait in line outside, hurry up and find a movie you want(and hope it's in stock) before the people behind you start glaring at you. It's just no fun. Netflix is just kind of soulless and impersonal. I know it's more convenient, but when did we decide convenience was the most important thing?

[Tommy_Carcetti]

23. I'm really worried the book store might suffer the same fate.

Pretty soon, we'll all be like those people on WALL-E, siting around in our hover chairs and oblivious to the people around us while a personal computer tends to every single need.

[RebelOne]

33. I have never experienced a line at Redbox.

I get the movies at my local Kroger and there are two movie-dispensing machines. Usually there are only one or two people using them.

[Tommy_Carcetti]

34. Never?

That's it, I'm going to your store.

Without fail, I'm either behind someone or in front of them.

Being behind someone is just as bad, if you see them pick out the movie you want, and then you get to the box and they are all out. You see them pick out the movie you want, and it's a slow motion, "Nooooooooooooooooo!!!!!!!!"

[Skittles]

48. go at one in the morning

never seen anyone then

[yuiyoshida]

24. I was sad the day TOWER records died...

I used to love to go there for movies and cds. Its long gone, the way of the Wooly mammoth.

[Initech]

27. The sad thing is Tower Records kind of killed themselves.

They were charging $18.99 for albums when Best Buy was charging $9.99 for the same album, and they refused to bring down their prices to compete, not to mention iTunes is practically dominating the competition as well.

[Tommy_Carcetti]

30. Buying a physical music album is another great tradition I'm worried about losing.

Nothing beats the feeling of buying a CD, bringing it back to your car, ripping the plastic wrap off of it, and sticking it in your car's CD player for the first time.

For all my favorite artists, I try to keep up the tradition and buy physical, not download. I have an MP3, but the songs on it are all ripped from CDs themselves.

[Initech]

37. Yeah I try to do the same thing.

But it's so hard anymore when it's so much easier to buy music from iTunes. I got a new vehicle last year and it has a USB port so I just keep my iPod plugged in and I don't need to worry about carrying a bunch of CDs around. Plus my Samsung Galaxy Tab, I can carry that around and keep my entire music collection on it as opposed to carrying the physical CDs. The nice thing about living in Southern California is that I have access to Amoeba Music, which might be the last actual record store standing.

[pstokely]

59. Some new cars don't even have CD players

and they will still selling new cars with tape players less than a decade ago, even selling CD changers in cars less than 5 years ago

[yuiyoshida]

32. This place went out of business too a long time ago..

Kinda sad... Some where I still see those doggie signs..someone had collected them and refurbished them.

[NightWatcher]

25. I worked at video stores all throughout college

It was a weird weird time, but they will be missed.

[Initech]

26. Oh ha ha! Video stores are so old that they're attracting ghosts!

[Mr Dixon]

29. Sweet

No tears for block buster, they were the beginning of the end IMO. I never liked them it was soulless store, once Netflix stood up it was game over. I use my PS3 for NETFLIX and I have no problem with it at all, also heard they may join the cable companies to offer their service. The more options the better IMO.

[trublu992]

35. Great, What the hell took them so long?

These bastards were the worst.

They threw their weight around when they were the only game in town and threatened to put negative

information on my credit report because I was late with a video. HAHAHAHAHA!

[PoliticAverse]

36. I blame all those people who didn't rewind their DVDs!!... n/t

[Yavin4]

39. Funny. The young ones won't get it.

But us old people will.

[Initech]

41. But this exists:

http://www.dvdrewinder.com/

[madrchsod]

42. family video..

http://www.familyvideo.com/

doing a very good business in my town.

[Purveyor]

46. We have one of those here in town and they are pretty good but kind of far for me to drive. I

also agree with some of the others that some good memories were made taking the family out for dinner and then a visit to blockbuster from a weekends worth of vids.

[Katashi_itto]

51. They look great!

[white_wolf]

61. There are several in my state, but none within in driving distance.

I wish they would open one here, but I'm not holding my breath. I have a friend in Minnesota and apparently Family Video is really big there. I'm considering going to school up there so that's one point for Minnesota.

[sakabatou]

53. It still existed?

I'm surprised.

[johnd83]

54. Every blockbuster I ever used was a poorly managed dump

that swore I didn't return videos that I had already returned. Good riddance...

[JaneyVee]

65. WHAAAAT? I just bought 3000 shares!!!

[Liberal_in_LA]

66. they gave a half hearted try at rental machines in 99cent stores in los angeles

Must have lost their shirts over that