Stores that break Street Dates?
 

This is my first post on these boards, hoping this is the right area, but here goes. I was wondering if other members had stores in around them that broke street dates. I have one store in my area that always has DVDs out before the release date, sometimes earlier than others. Thursday I stopped by this store and they had Road to Predition and The Osbournes complete 1st season. It wasn't just last week they have DVDs and CDs early every week. Anyone else have a store around them like this?

Yes... FYE and Coconuts.

Several stores in NYC regularly break street dates, sometimes by more than a week.

I picked up Grave of the Fireflies at a Best Buy almost 3 weeks before the street date. Wal-Mart has broken street dates on occasion. Unfortunately, these places don't make it a regular habit of it, so it's still a crap shoot finding stuff early.

FYI: If a store near you breaks street date, I wouldn't advertise it here if you want them to keep providing that service.

The Wal-Mart near me used to do it all the time, but they've since wised up and it's been a while since they've done it.

Word!

Most definitely. I don't know how it is in the world of movie buying, but in the areas of action figure collecting and sports cards, getting caught breaking street date meant that the company wouldn't ship future product to you until the street date, meaning that you get it 3-5 days after your competition does... which can be an eternity in business.

Thats what I thought, not to change the subject, but last April when the new Star Wars toys were about to hit, I stopped by Wal-Mart to check for some older toys that might have been stocked and found all of the new EP2 toys on the racks. I loaded up my cart and when I got to the check out when scanned the toys had been added to the system as being not for sale. The cashier was confused and she called the manager and he explained to me they had been place on the floor by accident, and they could be fined etc. I wasn't sure if this was common with movies in areas or not. Thanks for the info from all of you.

No, but I wish I did!

I have seen BB do it a few times, got Are You Being Served the Movie a whole week before the street date. Kmart put out the original Armageddon release 10 days early when it came out. Kmart has also put out Exorcist:VYNS a few days early. FYE put out the Fog about a week early. Places I have never found early releases are Fry's, Target, and Walmart.

i always found it odd how people would advertise which stores did this. as they can be fined for doing so, making sure they will stop the common procedure. good luck but really an extra week or 2 doesn't hurt anyone. unless someone has a gun to your head saying you have to have that 8 mile dvd 2 weeks early. ;)

I'm sure the studios would love for us to keep an accurate record about which stores break street date. My suggestion is that if you find a store that does put out stuff early, don't advertise it to everyone and you will still be able to get your stuff early.

Yup, shipping to stores late does happen.

Yes, fines are assessed and they can be hefty.

If you'd like to keep a list I won't object. ;)

I had an interesting experience at Sam's Club today. They had King of the Hill Season One out a week early. It was under $26, so I decided to purchase it and cancel my Amazon pre-order. When the cashier scanned the DVD set, the register displayed, "Unable to sell." She called over a supervisor. She said that someone in the DVD department put the set out before it was supposed to be sold. They could not sell it and would go remove the other box sets from display. It was funny to me because I was telling my husband while we were in line that Sam's was breaking the street date. He said to me, "They don't know what that means. Only you and other movie nerds know that lingo." :)

That's funny about Sam's Club.

Many people (including me) bought Miller's Crossing and Barton Fink over a month before street date at Sam's Club.

I didn't hear of anyone being denied the sale at the register.

Perhaps they were "informed" of their previous error, and implemented the new POS prompt that will not allow pre-selling of titles.

Does anyone know the penalties that have been imposed ?

Depending on the Studio they can range anywhere from $25,000 - $100,000 per copy sold before release date. Most of the times the Studios will just make sure that the stores do not receive their stock of the movies as early as before, sometimes not shipping them to arrive until the day before, or day of release. Other times they will start shipping to the stores after release date so that the stores will not have them at all on the day of release.

My local Wal-Mart do this pretty offten. There is also a guy at the local Jockey Lot that has the DVDs on the Saturday and Sunday before they are to come out on the following Sunday.

It's amazing that street dates are NOT broken more often.

I'm sure the competition is more tough out there on "the street", as opposed to the cushy offices where these "studio" pronouncements come down.

It's all about making money, isn't it ?

For example, if the music business is supposed to be so "bad", why are the store so "afraid", to break street dates ? Makes you think, huh ?

Yes, sometimes it does seem amazing that stores don't break dates more often, but they must remember that there are eyes out all over the place. If they sell a copy of a movie early to an individual, they just never know who that individual might be.

It's amazing how stores have no leg to stand on, or words for that matter, when someone produces a receipt that is clearly dated before a movie was to street.