I haven't seen this posted anywhere, so I thought I would pass on what I have heard.

I was browsing the DVDs at WalMart yesterday. A woman called over the employee from the electronics section with a question. She wanted to know why she was quoted $14.99 for T3 over the phone when the actual DVD was priced $19.99. The clerk told her the fullscreen version is $14,99 while the widescreen was $19.99. She went on to say that the pricing came from corporate and she is awaiting clarification why the pricing is that way.

Now, this clerk could be talking out her ass, and the store just had tons more FF than WS to get rid of, hence the pricing. She was very quick to bring up corporate, however. Anyone else notice this pricing structure this week? Could this be a very bad cloud on the horizon for all WS enthusiasts?

I certainly hope not.

I can see it now though: "Well, it costs extra to put those little black bars on the top and bottom."

or

"Well, seeing as though you're only getting 2/3 of the movie, it costs 33% less."

Yes, this could be very bad for OAR advocates buying at Walmart. Another reason why I still buy from DDD.

That is very likely what happened. Both are the same price on the website. If it were a corporate decision it would probably show up there too. This was probably due to a Dept Mgr who fixed the price due to their low price guarantee and forgot to change the widescreen price as well.

This happened at a Wal-Mart in a town I used to live in with Spider-Man. The FF was pricematched to BB and CC and the WS was the full Wally World price. I said, "Screw it" and went to Best Buy where I should've gone in the first place.

I seem to remember seeing the WS T3 at Wally World the other night for less than $16, but there was competition not far from there.

In other words, this sounds like it's more of a case-by-case situation and nothing to get up in arms about (yet).

well you should have said (since the movie is super35) that since we are getting less picture, widescreen should be lower in price.

This happened recently at my local Walmart with 28 Days - the FS version was the lowest I found at any B&M, but the WS wasn't. I have only seen Walmart do this - it's anyone's guess as to why - which means I shop elsewhere.

Well, one of the WalMarts around me had two of their standard little "low price" signs up in the DVD section showing T3 for $14.09. (This was the lowest B&M price I found around here.) One of the signs said "Fullscreen" and one said "Widescreen."

Mind you, I have seen different "low price"s at different WalMarts, depending on the nearby competition. So if your particular WalMart doesn't think they need to compete on the price of a Widescreen version...after all, those Wide-Screen Wackos all pre-order online, so why bother, right?

(Yes, I bought the WS of T3 in WalMart. Do I have to turn in my official WSW badge? )

Yeah I have seen this. The FS version of Die Another Day was $2.00 cheaper than the WS version at a Wal-Mart in Orlando. So I tend to err on the side that it wasnt a mistake.

fullscreen is almost always cheaper the wide at my local walmart.

1. The studios are not setting different price points for WS v. FS. This is a retailer's choice.
2. The sales charts clearly indicate when there is a choice WS is outselling FS.
3. Wal-Mart isn't exactly the movie enthusiast's store of choice.
4. Retail pricing is typically based on supply and demand, seems that if FS is being priced lower it reinforces point #2, WS is selling better.
5. WS prices are not going up, we're still paying the same price per movie we've been paying for the last couple years.
6. If Wal-Mart is pricing FS below WS, couldn't that indicate that Wal-Mart has noticed that their customers are recognizing FS is an inferior product, and as such it needs to be priced lower to sell?
7. When's the last time we saw a title be released in a modified AR and not in OAR? How often does that occur? Contrast that to the frequency we now see OAR only releases. Then compare that to 3 or 4 years ago.

What I see here is not bad news for WS, it's bad news for FS.

Walmart doesn't have corporate prices to my knowledge as price varies from store to store, unlike Target, Best Buy, Circuit City, etc...

The Walmart I go has sometimes accidently lowered the price on just one of the two versions, but it's by accident. They intend to have the same price.

Having different prices seems kinda stupid to me since they're obviously willing to sell the DVD at that price and the cost to them is exactly the same for a fullscreen or widescreen DVD.

It is a conspiracy, WM is doing this to try and inflate the P&S sales to fulfill thier prophecy that the masses want P&S DVDs.

Some Target stores will also lower the FS price if they've had a run on the WS and are overstocked with FS.

This is exactly what I thought too. Beleive me, I am not some conspiracy wacko, I was just passing on what I have heard.

But...

WalMart, whether or not it is the "movie enthhusiast's store of choice," is the #1 retailer in the world. If they DO go in the direction of not discounting WS versions, that could have far-reaching effects both with retailers and suppliers (studios). Where they lead, others may follow.

That said, as stated in my opening post, I feel like this particular WalMart altered the price, and the clerk was just full of BS.

My Local Wal-Mart did that with Scarface..charged 3 bucks more for the WS edition. But they didnt do it with T3..I was expecting them too though

i don't know about walmart but the indiana jones set (after the first week sale) at best buy had fullscreen 1 (one dollar) more than the widescreen.


reminds me when kmart gave me a completely free (long story) dvd of the mummy returns, but it was full screen. i took it right to suncoast and asked to exchange it for a widescreen and the guy was like, no problem but you'll have to pay the difference. i was kinda stunned but didn't say anything as he went to get a copy.
as it turned out they were both priced the same. but it had me scratching me head alot afterwards. how can anyone justify a price increase of decease based only on OAR?

You used to live with Spider-Man?!? Cool!!!

You beat me to it.