Manzana

I haven't seen anyone discuss what just occurred at Blockbuster B&M. I was about to start a 1 month 2-out pass for $14.99 (they were running a $10 off special for each of the 3 passes -1 out for $9.99, 2 out for $14.99, or 3 out for $19.99 - for many months), and I decided to call first to make sure nothing had changed. Sure enough I was told starting June 1st with no warning Blockbuster B&M only offers the 2-out pass for $24.99.

Has this happened nationwide? More important, does anyone think it's a sign that Netflix may soon raise prices for their 3 out $17.99 plan?

mbs

Unless your store is different from mine, that original price you quoted was only for the first month. I had the 2-out plan and paid $14.99 the first month and $24.99 every month after. When I had the plan, I went every day and got new movies. It was well worth it for me. I guess you lose $10 on the first month, but it's not a price increase save for that first month.

I did overhear one of the employees saying the 1-out and 3-out plans were to be discontinued. I think the 2-out was much more popular, so perhaps culling the others makes things more efficient.

I don't see how these would be related. For the record, I doubt Netflix increases their prices, as BB.com has them beat by $3 and offers two in-store coupons. I know in my area (Madison, WI) where Netflix has a distribution center, they beat BB hands down. But one of my friends in Minneapolis gets BB discs just as fast as netflix. Unless BB.com decides to call it quits, I just don't see Netflix raising prices.

Goat3001

Yes they got rid of the 1 and 3 out plans starting June 1. And you only get the $10 discount for the first month. I got the 1 out plan in the middle of May and rented almost everyday.

Gizmo

Yeah, the 1 and 3 plan are now dead, and the 2 plan is the only one left...Oh well. The only reason I rent from a BB B&M is because I get two free rentals a month with my online account.

Manzana

The $10 discount Blockbuster used to have on each plan could be used once every 6 months per store per plan. That meant you could get the 1-out plan for 1 month with discount, the 2-out plan for 1 month with discount, then the 3-out plan with discount, then go to another store a couple miles away and repeat for 3 months after which point you could go back to the previous store and repeat again. The rep I talked to told me this is the main reason he heard they discontinued it... because so many people were bouncing between plans and stores to save $10 per month.

chemosh6969

I don't get why people even use Blockbuster when they can go to Hollywood Video and get 3 at a time for $9.99 per month

Manzana

chemosh6969, the simple answer to your question is it depends on what you want to rent. If it's old catalog titles that your local HW Video happens to have or new releases that have been out for over 3 months, then HW Video works fine for $9.99.

If, however, you want to rent the latest new releases or catalog titles that HW Video doesn't have, then you have to go somewhere else. Blockbuster's catalog titles are pretty weak too. Both stores have whittled most catalog titles down to 1 copy each, and after a few years they get damaged or lost and they rarely replace them. I've looked for some pretty basic old movies you'd think every store would have, and often they don't have them.

mndtrp

I've been thinking about getting the Hollywood Video plan to supplement my Netflix plan. I've recently received a dvd drive on my computer at work. Since I work nights, I have plenty of time to watch 2 or 3 movies a night (obviously depending on work load, which is usually minimal). Netflix doesn't keep up with that without massively increasing the price, and Blockbuster is the devil.

ianholm

There are no Hollywood Video's in my area