Re: Battle Royale (Arrow Releasing)--October 2010?
 

There are many, many unethical ways a business can double their profits. They could put Robert DeNiro on the cover. "Woops! Sorry- he's not in the movie!" They could label it a 4-disc set. "Woops! Sorry- our contract manufacturer forgot to press the fourth disc!"

The fact is, they stuck these "collector's edition" numbers in our faces.

*Look at this! Look at this! Buy NOW or LOSE OUT FOREVER!*

When they hit the figurative marketing CAPS LOCK and then can't back it up by delivering what they're shouting about, they deserve to have a little back in their faces, too.

We hold them to it if they sell us a pan-and-scan disc under the claim "Widescreen Edition". Why should this be any different?

Re: Battle Royale (Arrow Releasing)--October 2010?
 

I wonder how many people are thinking these exact words about what you're saying.

Re: Battle Royale (Arrow Releasing)--October 2010?
 

Here's the deal. I got the exclusive news on the LE for Twitch back in October. The initial idea was to ave a 5,000 print run. The same day that I posted the news on Twitch the article circulated all over the place and Amazon was inundated with orders. The very next day, I got an e-mail from my contact at Arrow telling me that they had to up the order to make sure that they could have some copies of this in stores, otherwise the BD LE would have sold out online and it never would have made it to shelves at all in the UK.

If you are complaining that you didn't see that the print run was bumped up, then you must not have been paying attention very closely because the change in number happened almost immediately, and in fact, I reposted my article on the LE as soon as I found out.

It is not bullshit, and Arrow is a company to be commended and not "called on it" as the mistake is yours, not theirs.

Re: Battle Royale (Arrow Releasing)--October 2010?
 

I know! Expressing my opinion on an internet forum- what a douche I am!

Re: Battle Royale (Arrow Releasing)--October 2010?
 

It's just speculation that their pre-order process got "out of control". However, their announcement of the run increase clearly states that they wanted enough copies so that the product would actually reach store shelves, and thus not be sold out before being released. So even if sites like Amazon only sold the amount they had been allocated, Arrow wanted to increase the number.

Edit: And zombeaner's post above confirms my reasoning.

What's the better solution?

Considering that the people complaining about the run increase on this thread are you and.... well, you, it seems like their solution of a one-time increase in the run, changed well before the item's release, and only shortly after announced, was the best one for most of the customers.

Re: Battle Royale (Arrow Releasing)--October 2010?
 

There you go, by your own words.

Order of events:

1) Arrow makes an offer

2) Customers accept offer

3) Arrow rescinds offer

Again, how exactly is this not BS?

Re: Battle Royale (Arrow Releasing)--October 2010?
 

That is pure hyperbole! When I ordered my copy (which was early), I didn't even know it was a limited set, and I didn't find about it until they upped it to 10K. If they were "in my face" about it, I would have totally known. You are so making an issue out of nothing. Anyhoo, I question people's motives who buy out of and are motivated by scarcity, which you seem to be.

Re: Battle Royale (Arrow Releasing)--October 2010?
 

Right. So, don't name a number for your 'limited' run if you don't intend to honor it. It's not rocket science. They don't write "Avatar" on the box cover, either, do they?

Honor their commitment and, if they want units on store shelves, use the non-limited edition release. You know... do what they said they were going to do.

Re: Battle Royale (Arrow Releasing)--October 2010?
 

No.

Arrow makes an offer.

Customers accept offer in huge numbers

Arrow extends offer to accommodate

You can whine all you want. Cancel your order, whatever.

10K is still a decent limited edition, compared to what some other companies do (um, The Stunt Man LE from Anchor Bay was 120,000 I think)

You really want to call them on this? You've got bigger issues.

Re: Battle Royale (Arrow Releasing)--October 2010?
 

Where is the goddamned ignore button?

Re: Battle Royale (Arrow Releasing)--October 2010?
 

The 'limited edition' marketing gimmick is pure hyperbole. Just because you didn't notice and/or fall for it, doesn't mean they shouldn't prioritize honoring the commitments they make to their customers.

How many times do I have to say that I am not?

Re: Battle Royale (Arrow Releasing)--October 2010?
 

Nobody's calling you a douche for having an opinion. Just saying your opinion is lame ;)

Re: Battle Royale (Arrow Releasing)--October 2010?
 

I don't understand the big deal here. I'm with the previous poster in that I don't even care about the numbering (as long as I get one in the first batch of 5000 anyway).

Re: Battle Royale (Arrow Releasing)--October 2010?
 

I understand the point you're making about bait-and-switch tactics to drive sales (Freaks and Geeks comes to mind, though it's a bit different), but changing a limited edition quantity from 5,000 to 10,000 once to offset capitalizing hoarders and compensate for a rush of demand -- all within roughly a week after the item went up for sale -- just isn't the same thing. They're giving the people who really wanted to purchase and enjoy the set a chance.

Re: Battle Royale (Arrow Releasing)--October 2010?
 

All over the rest of the internet.

Re: Battle Royale (Arrow Releasing)--October 2010?
 

The "offer" was 'buy one of these that we're only making 5,000 of'. Adding 5,000 more is not extending that offer, it's wriggling out of their commitment after the offer has been accepted by the customer.

Re: Battle Royale (Arrow Releasing)--October 2010?
 

BTW, I just checked. I made the announcement October 20th and updated it with the new number October 22nd, less than 48 hours later.

Re: Battle Royale (Arrow Releasing)--October 2010?
 

What is this "acceptance" you're talking about? You're babbling, man.

Re: Battle Royale (Arrow Releasing)--October 2010?
 

i didn't buy this because it was limited edition. i bought it because i love the film.

Re: Battle Royale (Arrow Releasing)--October 2010?
 

Exactly, this is the choice Arrow had:

Stick to the 5,000 copies so that the customer could make an extra $2 when he resells it

Or

Extend the offer and make twice as many customers happy with what is still a very limited edition of a very anticipated film.

Seems like a no-brainer to me.

Re: Battle Royale (Arrow Releasing)--October 2010?
 

It's an extremely mild example of it (which is why I've repeatedly said that it isn't a big deal to me, but people keep implying that I should justify my position), but it is bait-and-switch because Arrow are the ones who set the expectation by using the limited numbering in the first place. If they'd never said anything about numbers, there would be no claim for them to fail. However, they made the claim and then failed to live up to it.

If a salesman is standing next to a yellow truck and says "Hey buddy, I got a nice red truck for you right here!", that's BS. If he just says, "Wanna buy a truck?", that's not BS. See?

Re: Battle Royale (Arrow Releasing)--October 2010?
 

The customers. Who made the purchases. Of the discs.

Re: Battle Royale (Arrow Releasing)--October 2010?
 

Me, too. It doesn't mean they should be misleading when they sell it, though, does it?

Re: Battle Royale (Arrow Releasing)--October 2010?
 

The thing is that the change was made before the item was released. It's akin to a cover change, or a change in specs, made by other manufacturers well before a release date. It's a little annoying, sure, but nobody has actually "bought" the product yet, and pre-orders can be canceled. In fact, as a customer, you should always approach pre-orders with the possibility that details may change, and you should make an attempt to keep on top of the news on the item.

But all that's still true of the LE, even with the increased run. In fact, since the increase in production was specifically because of higher-than expected demand, this LE will most likely still sell out in short order. And Arrow has made it clear that this was a one-time increase in the LE's numbers, and won't be going back to the presses for another run of LEs when it sells out.

Re: Battle Royale (Arrow Releasing)--October 2010?
 

You forgot option C: Do not try to deceive the customer with an artificial claim of scarcity you have no intention of honoring, anyway, in the first place.

That's the no-brainer, IMO.