Article about how Blockbuster Video went out of business

Discussion in 'Visual Arts' started by PaulKTF, Oct 19, 2016.

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  1. rebellovw

    rebellovw Forum Resident

    Location:
    hell
    I never liked ballcrusher video - saw nothing great about them - other than causing the knowledgeable stores to go out of business. Good riddance.
     
  2. PaulKTF

    PaulKTF Senior Member Thread Starter

    Location:
    USA
    The Mom And Pop video stores sucked- limited selection, cramped, sometimes dirty, smelly, and run down. I have no love for the old Mom And Pops. At least if you went to Blockbuster you stood a decent chance of finding what you were looking for.
     
  3. rebellovw

    rebellovw Forum Resident

    Location:
    hell
    Not the ones I went to in Alameda, Oakland - BallBuster was all about the late fees - no thanks - loved Netflix from the start.
     
  4. PaulKTF

    PaulKTF Senior Member Thread Starter

    Location:
    USA
    Your Mom And Pops didn't have late fees?

    And yes, Blockbuster made money from late fees... just like every other video store did.
     
  5. rebellovw

    rebellovw Forum Resident

    Location:
    hell
    Not as harsh - and mostly waved. In the 80's 90's we hated BB for that very reason. If I recall the video had to be back before 9PM - whereas mom and pop had a slot and you could drop off any time that day. It gouged us - and if it didn't gouge you - you must have been very lucky.
     
    Sneaky Pete likes this.
  6. PaulKTF

    PaulKTF Senior Member Thread Starter

    Location:
    USA
    I rarely returned a video late that I can recall. :shrug: My Blockbuster had a return slot and I think most of them did.
     
  7. Splungeworthy

    Splungeworthy Forum Rezidentura

    Thank you, I think, for this trip down memory lane.
     
  8. Higlander

    Higlander Well-Known Member

    Location:
    Florida, Central
    Great memories, but Netflix for the most part is far easier.
    Far far cheaper overall for my 15-20 movies a month, a lot less time driving back and forth, and no car wear and tear and wasted gas.
     
  9. Higlander

    Higlander Well-Known Member

    Location:
    Florida, Central

    Not considering how cheap they are.
    Thousands of movies for 10 bucks a month, what do you expect, every movie ever made?:D

    I would call their selection sketchy if it was maybe $25 bucks a month.
     
  10. rebellovw

    rebellovw Forum Resident

    Location:
    hell
    Slots no good when you have to return by 9.

    Hate them and love the smells in mom pop stores and record stores.
     
  11. PaulKTF

    PaulKTF Senior Member Thread Starter

    Location:
    USA
    What does that even mean?

    When I had to return a video I either went into the store and returned it to the front desk, or put it in the return slot in the side of the building, or put it in the return box that was outside the store (if there was one).

    You had to keep track of when a video was due back and make sure you returned it by that time/day. I almost always did that (but not always of course).
     
  12. seed_drill

    seed_drill Senior Member

    Location:
    Tryon, NC, USA
    I don't rent movies, but weirdly, there is still a Family Video open near my office.
     
  13. PaulKTF

    PaulKTF Senior Member Thread Starter

    Location:
    USA
    Yeah, Family Video apparently does very good for themselves (to my surprise). Go figure. :)
     
  14. rebellovw

    rebellovw Forum Resident

    Location:
    hell
    Let me explain once again - if you have a bunch of videos or one - and you want to avoid paying late fees - they were due back before 9PM - otherwise - you paid late fees. What is so hard to understand?

    Ballcrusher sucks because:
    • Poor selection - ex Video Station in Alameda had way more horror/sci/foriegn and even porn if you were so inclined
    • Expensive - other mom and pop would have specials - ex 5 for 5 or .99 movies - that I believe ball crusher ripped off after a while -if they even had that.
    • Unknowledgeable staff - usually some high school kids working the register - "do you have this movie - or recall the name of this movie with this actor? uhhh no sorry" - I'm talking pre-google days here..
    • Corp atmosphere - ex calls - you didn't return this movie last year - you owe $$$ - collections - opps we found it - sorry sir....
    • Late fees - others charged fees but really noticeable at BB.
    They were the panda express, wall mart of the video experience - I'm so glad I was able to experience what a private store had to offer and the atmosphere - you will never sell me on BB.

    Bahhbye BB.
     
  15. PaulKTF

    PaulKTF Senior Member Thread Starter

    Location:
    USA
    You had a problem returning videos on time and got dinged by late fees a lot, didn't you?
     
  16. rebellovw

    rebellovw Forum Resident

    Location:
    hell
    Yep - that 9PM policy was a great revenue trap for them (I'm glad it didn't pay off) - caught be constantly.
     
  17. PaulKTF

    PaulKTF Senior Member Thread Starter

    Location:
    USA
    I think you're just trying to blame Blockbuster for your inability to return videos on time. :laugh:
     
  18. bartels76

    bartels76 Forum Hall Of Fame

    Location:
    CT
    It's funny that renting physical product was/is cheaper than digital. You think the cost of shipping, employees, manufacturing, and other overhead it would be the opposite. I happily go 2 minutes down the road to Redbox and rent the new releases that are $4-5 cheaper than what is streaming from my living room.

    Same goes with ITunes. Most catalog CD's are like 3.99 - 4.99 and less expensive than what it is on ITunes.
     
  19. rebellovw

    rebellovw Forum Resident

    Location:
    hell
    I will still always prefer mom and pop over BB. I have no fond memories of BB. The experience was never anything special - about as exciting as buying toothpaste at walmart.

    My fun 80's memory filled video tape renting experience wasn't Blockbuster - they came along much later and became forgettable.
     
    ianuaditis likes this.
  20. Claus LH

    Claus LH Forum Resident

    Blockbuster dropped off our rental list rather quickly when it became clear that they were pushing 60 copies of "Terminator" at the expense of depth of selection.
    We had a Barnes and Noble in town that had a killer rental selection of 'Real Cinemah'; it seems now almost like a hallucination that one could go and get Criterion Bergmans and Bertoluccis for $3/night.
     
    Zep Fan likes this.
  21. PaulKTF

    PaulKTF Senior Member Thread Starter

    Location:
    USA
    We had a Hollywood Video that stocked Criterion titles (!). It was so cool...
     
    Texastoyz likes this.
  22. The Panda

    The Panda Forum Mutant

    Location:
    Marple, PA, USA
    Bright sign at our Blockbuster by the slot that more or less said if we are closed, your movie will not be logged until tomorrow. aka You're gonna get a late fee.
     
  23. The Panda

    The Panda Forum Mutant

    Location:
    Marple, PA, USA
    Our Hollywood video had a porn back room.........:sigh:
     
    Benno123 likes this.
  24. PaulKTF

    PaulKTF Senior Member Thread Starter

    Location:
    USA
    I think ours may have. I know we had an independent video store that had one (separated by big saloon swinging doors) but I was like 10 the last time I was there so I was not interested in porn, but was interested in video games. :laugh:
     
  25. Michael

    Michael I LOVE WIDE S-T-E-R-E-O!

    LOL...I still see those horrible DVD/BD cases in the used market...they suck and always did...
     
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