Posted on 08/09/2005 8:52:51 AM PDT by Altair333
Cutting late fees slashes Blockbuster's revenue Tuesday, August 09, 2005 DALLAS (AP) - Blockbuster fell to a loss in the second quarter as its decision to cut late fees cut into its overall revenue.
The nation's biggest movie-rental chain lost 31 cents a share, compared with a 27 cents-a-share profit the year before.
The company says overall rental revenue dropped to just over a $1 billion, hurt by a steep $138 million plunge in late fees. Merchandise sales, however, were up 12 percent.
Blockbuster also withdrew its previous guidance for fiscal 2005, blaming the "uncertainty and continued decline in the rental industry."
So I just stopped going because I got tired of wasted trips to the video store only to see the movie was checked out.
Because, if you keep the DVD too long, they charge it to your credit card??
Netflix is cleaning their clock.
Try Netflix. They have sped up their delivery by a bunch.
--They sliced open their Femoral Arteries.
I haven't been to a Blockbuster in years...and I used to go all the time. I have had NetFlix for the last year and love it.
DVDs mailed to you home and you just drop them in the mailbox when you are done. You just need to create a queue and plan ahead a little regarding what you want to watch. Plus the selection is way better than Blockbuster ever was.
I have noted that too...they now have a distribution center in Omaha, so we get movies within a day sometimes (was around 2 to 3 before).
BINGO! Netflix has a selection that Block(headed)Buster can't touch. Plus, you can't beat the convenience.
that's why I quit going to Blockbuster YEARS ago...one day late and they'd automatically charge my credit card...no option to pay cash for the one day late charge (also, their system provided no way of even knowing if they charged the credit card in error....you weren't even notified of the charge for any "alleged" lateness).
Revenue is down because of late-fees ? I guess it has nothing to do with competition from the likes of Netflix.
Any comparison between Blockbuster's rent by mail and Netflix's? I was thinking of signing up for Blockbuster because I would like to get the two store rentals in the price and they gave a better description of how multi-DVD sets are queued up in order. (I could figure out Blockbuster, but I couldn't find how Netflix did it).
We have a 'Family Video' store near us, and has never charged a late fee, kids movies are free, lots of little add ons. I think they are a franchise. Blockbuster was outrageous with the late fees and places like this and Netflixs were cleaning Blockbuster's clock with customer service. It might be too late for Blockbuster, they missed a market opportunity, and are now trying to play catch up.
I go to a local store here in Minneapolis which is run by two brothers. It has a great selection of classic sci-fi and horror, as well as an even better selection of foreign titles than the local "international" video store. I'm not violently against contemporary American movies the way some people are, but I'm more interested in watching and learning about older movies and films from around the world which don't get as much attention.
by the time you figure costs and time, it is cheeper to just buy the dvd sometimes.
Given the manure that is produced and the lack of movies I actually want to see, it is not that often.
I haven't noticed any movies lately worth renting. I check out movies from our local library and still wonder if they're worth the gas.
What this says to me is, Blockbuster was in the business of collecting late fees, not renting movies.
In my neighborhood our digital cable company Comcast provides OnDemand movies for $4 - the same as a Blockbuster rental, without the hassle of driving 4 miles. Between NetFlix and cable TV on demand, Blockbuster is quickly becoming an obsolete idea. On Demand lets you pause, watch again, etc. for 24 hours.
EggsAckley!
I was with Netflix twice and went back to Blockbuster. The turnaround on DVDs were great as one of their distribution centers is just down the road from me. My problem was how they treat you after you've been with them for a while. At first everything's great, then one day you start noticing "very long wait" and "long wait" next to movies in your queue. The waits got so bad, I was watching one of the movies on DirecTV PPV that still showed "long wait" in my queue.
I now have the movie pass with Blockbuster which allows me to have to movies out at a time. It costs more, and I have to drive there, but at least I don't have to wait forever for movies.
I suspect Blockbuster's woes are more related to the crap they're trying to rent out. All those DVDs and hardly a one worth the cost to watch.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.