http://www.statesman.com/business/co...2323700f8.html


Grocery company says poor sales led to decision to stop selling the Disney product; environmentalists cheer the move




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By Amy Schatz


AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF


Thursday, January 29, 2004


Disposable DVDs might not be the future of movie rentals after all.

H.E. Butt Grocery Co. said Wednesday that it will stop selling Walt Disney Co.'s disposable DVDs within the next three weeks, citing poor sales.

"The sales on the DVDs were very soft," said H-E-B spokeswoman Kate Rogers. "They started off with a very small selection (of movies), and sales were very slow. They expanded to a few more titles, and we wanted to see if sales would improve. But they didn't.

"The price point definitely has a lot to do with it," she said.

The so-called EZ-Ds retail for about $7 and are targeted at consumers who don't rent DVDs because of concerns about racking up late charges at video stores.

In September, Austin became one of four test markets for Disney's disposable DVDs, which self-destruct 48 hours after the packaging is opened.

The DVDs also are sold at Central Texas locations of Walgreen's, Toys "R" Us, 7-Eleven and Suncoast Video. It's unclear whether other merchants will follow H-E-B's lead.

Local environmentalists cheered H-E-B's decision.

"Most Central Texans realized that Disney's disposable DVDs are Dumbo, and we're glad that H-E-B agrees," Robin Schneider, executive director for the Texas Campaign for the Environment, said in a statement. Environmental groups complained the DVDs would end up in landfills and that Disney's recycling program was inconvenient for consumers.

A spokesman for Buena Vista Home Entertainment, the Disney division selling the disposable DVDs, could not be reached for comment. Buena Vista officials said in September the disposable DVD program could be expanded to more cities after the initial six-month test.

[email protected]; 912-5932

There's actually a grocery company that goes by the name H.E. Butt?

Yep and they do very well.

Do they sell lettuce?

I know I'm not the only one that had the word "flop" in my head when I first read about these things a few months ago.

Haha, what a ridiculous name

hope this means their demise (not butt - disposable dvds)

uhm, i'm no business genius, but wouldn't charging $7 kind of defeat the purpose of labelling your product as a money-saver vs. rentals and late fees? even if i rent a new release for $2.50 and return it late, that's only $5.....I know people are stupid, but thank god they aren't THAT stupid.....

No surprise here.

Same here

Thank the gods. When are these people going to learn that nobody wants this crap.

Or buy it used for about the same price.

Something to consider is here in Dallas where Blockbuster is headquartered there are essentially no choices in dvd rental. You either rent from Blockbuster or Hollywood Video and that's it, there are no other choices. There are no mom and pop video stores here. It has been several years since I have even set foot in a blockbuster (thanks Netflix! ) but as I recall they were charging ~$5 for new releases.

when I was first in San Antonio I thought the chain was pronounced HEB, like short for Hebrew -- and I wondered how they get away with stuff like this in Texas, but than I was informed it was H-E-B

Man, Disney is stumbling this year.

1) Their theme parks are attracting less tourists

2) ABC is still ranked 3rd or 4th

3) Brother Bear falls short of expectations (or maybe due to the lack of marketing, Disney had little faith in this to begin with)

4) Proposed sequels to Bambi II, Mulan II and III, and Peter Pan III in the works

5) Roy Disney steps down

6) Pixar disses them

7) AND NOW: their disposable discs bomb hard


What the hell is wrong with Disney.

I participated in a marketing focus group for this crap almost three years ago. They should have learned from me, because I told them it was, without a doubt, the most idiotic thing I had ever heard of. I mean, it made Divx look good - it was that bad.

I saw these at a 7-11 in Austin and was wondering what was up with them....

And yet, they produced Pirates of the Caribbean, Freaky Friday, and Spy Kids 3D, three blockbusters over the summer. Brother Bear performed inline with expectations. They produced $1.5 billion in total domestic box office revenue alone, smoking the nearest competition (Sony and WB). The parks are down but so is tourism in general.

They are definitely having a tumultuous year, but certainly not a "stumbling" year.

One word: Michael Eisner

That is true, but Disney is known as THE definitive label for animation (or once was), and that is why, in my opinion, the failure of Brother Bear and other recent flops should be the most pain-inflicting sting for the company.


And Disney didn't even market Brother Bear that strongly last year - it's almost as if they've given up and have lost faith in themselves.

Just love the fact that Pixar is tired of carrying them on the animation side and will go on their own after 2005.

Gee I never expected this

To Quote Chappelle Show
"Disney be *****in up"

Seriously, this doesn't surprise anyone here does it? $7 is a joke for a movie you throw away.

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