Went by the Blockbuster closest to me yesterday and saw a handwritten closed sign hanging in the door. I didn't stop, but the only other note on the door was instructions on returning movies in the drop slot/box. I haven't been in the store recently, yet never saw any indication that it was shutting down for good (other than the lack of people in it and the knowledge that Blockbuster was going down fast). The fact that there were instructions for returning movies makes it sound like it happened all of a sudden.

If Blockbuster never existed, would all the mom and pop videostores that Blockbuster ran out of business over a decade ago, still exist in today's climate?

No. The Moms and Pops wouldn't be able to compete with the Netflix, kiosk strategy any better than BB would.

The grocery stores would also have been a big factor. I think they took as much business away from mom and pop stores as BB, at least in some places.

Ditto. I never really rented VHS from Blockbuster. I used to buy their PPV but never really rented. I did however rent frequently from the grocery store. They had all the new releases and was convenient.

Well... I went to a blockbuster yesterday - first time in well over 10 yrs. Rented 3 movies, and the cost was more than the monthly cost of my Netflix account.

I can understand why BB is losing business.

This is not true, I know of a few mom & pop stores that still exist and appear to be doing great. They are now mostly located in smaller towns though, which may have some effect. Everyone (?) knows rural mail delivery is sometimes unreliable, so Netflix isn't an option for small town folk... and Redbox/Blockbuster Express would never think to place one of their kiosks in a small town. When you want to rent a movie, you don't want to travel to get one.

I travel to small towns a lot for work. As long as they have a Mcdonalds or Walmart they have a Redbox. It saved me more than once from a night of boredom when I had poor/no internet connection and ran out of Netflix movies to keep me occupied.

Does anyone know if there are any Blockbusters in Fayetteville, Arkansas or Arkansas in general? Any help would be great. Thanks.
-Thamten

then i guess every town has a redbox now

thats a big number of stroes going down!

Most things cost less online. I can generally find retail movies and books cheaper on amazon.com than I can at Best Buy and Borders. Brick and mortar stores have higher overheads. This is a shock to you now exactly why?

I mean, I am not defending the prices. But ten years ago (if I recall right) most rentals were 3.99 (and the brand new releases were only 2 day rentals) and the favorites were 1.99, so I really don't see such a major leap in price here over ten years.

I think a fairer comparison would be Netflix vs. Blockbuster online.

we sell books too.. lots of em lol and their only closing big stores. little hometown ones are staying. which is good for me so i can keep my job. honestly blockbuster is a fun place to work. free rentals.. fun employees.. but man.. the customers.. you all do nothing but complain. fee's this. fee's that. dont be late and you wont have that problem. thats why we have problems cuz we keep letting stupid people like you guys get away with "well i dont wanna pay that. im just gunna go to netflix." GO AHEAD. it'll come back for you though.. they sell their accounts to collectors.. and when they come knockin.. you'll come pay that balance and you'll be pissed you didnt in the first place. have fun with netflix and red box's though.. you never get a brand new disc. if its broken? they keep sending it around till some one complains.. and then that person gets mad cuz they dont get their movie. STORES ARE BETTER. unless your on a ps3 or ondemand or something.. thats different. ok im done with my complaint rant all you want.

I am amused by the concept of customer's ditching Blockbuster for Redbox because of the fees. Oh, try to find somebody who will listen to your whining at Redbox when you get charged a dollar per day for your rental.

The shock is that some people still choose to pay these prices when there are alternatives.

The one closing by me in West Islip lowered it's prices to $3.99 for all previously viewed. The selection is pretty scarce. Picked up In Bruges and Bender's Game.

Remind me again, who was the one who came up with the "no late fees" and then got in trouble? And who set the due date as NOON on the day of return? And how often do you get a brand new disc at Blockbuster anyway?

I will agree with you that there are deadbeat customers at Blockbuster, though... that was one of the terrors of going in there, having to wait in line behind someone pleading their case on how they lost the movie but didn't want to pay for it...

LOL there has been PLENTY of times when ive gotten to blockbuster when they opened on tuesday and my "new releases" had smudges/fingerprints/scratches/ and other shit all over it! The employees there take even worse care of the discs than the actual customers!

the one thing thats always bothered me w/ ppl that rent movies are the ones that bitch about the late fees. when i go to rent a movie, i have intentions to either watch that movie as soon as i get home or later that day/night....not 2,3, or 4 days later.

No late fees was a good PR move but killed the inventory.

Not all of them.

The store closing here in Muskegon dropped their prices on all PV DVDs to $3.99, but haven't dropped the prices on the PV BD's at all; still 15% off.

If this store had closed a year ago, I would have picked up a lot of DVDs, but now that I have a PS3, buying DVDs isn't the same.

notice i said "the employees THERE" referring to the ones in the stores that ive been to... calm down! lol

Does Blockbuster still offer any subscription programs not tied to the online program? I think it used to be $25 for one out and $30 for two out at a time.

The store closest to me is down to its last 8 days. PV Blu-rays are still 15% off the $29.99 and $16.99 prices, which is just absurd. I would think anyone would know that $25.50 is a rip off for a used Blu-Ray, but about 1/3 of that section is gone.