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Buh-bye Blockbuster

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Buh-bye Blockbuster

Old 08-29-10, 12:55 AM
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Re: Buh-bye Blockbuster

People who rent are not people who want movies to have...they could careless about having the physical product. The bottom line is convenience...they are not like me (a collector who wants a physical product to own and have whenever I wish to watch it.) There are always going to be folks who don't have a computer to shop online for rentals or to download and don't want to pay for cable/on demand, so there's going to be those folks who demand rentals. But they can't keep this business model going. The people who just want to watch the movie and be done with it are far better off streaming and downloading and using On Demand services. Heck, if I wasn't a collector and rented I would do that.
Old 08-29-10, 12:47 PM
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Re: Buh-bye Blockbuster

Originally Posted by BKenn01
I wonder how this will effect their kiosk biz? It is booming right now. I would guess someone will buy that part.
That is already essentially a separate company. NCR owns and operates all the kiosks and they just pay Blockbuster a licensing fee for the use of the name. The Blockbuster name currently gets them access to movies 4 weeks earlier than most other places though.
Old 08-29-10, 10:05 PM
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Re: Buh-bye Blockbuster

Originally Posted by Quatermass
That is already essentially a separate company. NCR owns and operates all the kiosks and they just pay Blockbuster a licensing fee for the use of the name. The Blockbuster name currently gets them access to movies 4 weeks earlier than most other places though.
Thanks, I knew NCR was involved but I did not realize that it was separate. I am responsible for getting these placed for the company I work for and I had some concerns. The people representing NCR are brokers and have not done a very good job communicating.
Old 08-30-10, 09:23 PM
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Re: Buh-bye Blockbuster

Blockbuster Shareholders none too pleased:

Originally Posted by Home Media Magazine

Blockbuster Shareholder Group Decries Bankruptcy Talk

By : Erik Gruenwedel | Posted: 30 Aug 2010

A group of Blockbuster Inc. shareholders claiming to represent more than 26% of the Dallas-based DVD rental icon’s voting shares said it is seeking legal recourse should the company file for bankruptcy, as reported in the media.

Blockbuster, citing debt of more than $980 million, is reportedly in discussions with studios and creditors regarding a pre-packaged Chapter 11 filing that could occur in the coming weeks.

Niko Celentano, who heads the group of 480 Blockbuster shareholders (www.blockbustershareholders.com), in an Aug. 29 letter to Blockbuster CEO Jim Keyes, said the group feels shareholders have been “left in the dark” during protracted recapitalization talks with creditors.

Celentano said Blockbuster’s board of directors has a fiduciary duty to negotiate in the best interest of shareholders. He lamented recent claims by Keyes to shareholders, analysts and the media that Blockbuster had “more options” available to it than it did last year.

“If this is true…have all these options [fallen] apart?” Celentano wrote.

During a bankruptcy, common shareholders typically can expect to see little or no return on their investments, analysts say.

“It is not clear whether common shareholders will be protected,” wrote Michael Pachter with Wedbush Morgan Securities in Los Angeles, in an Aug. 9 note.

Celentano said the group has stood by Blockbuster while other investors dumped their stock and that they “fully expect” to be part of the company’s future turnaround.

“We still are hopeful that Blockbuster will be able to complete an out-of-court settlement … as this would be in the best interest of all involved,” Celentano wrote.

Blockbuster shares closed Aug. 30 up 1 cent to 8 cents per share in light trading.
Old 08-31-10, 01:38 PM
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Re: Buh-bye Blockbuster

So with Blockbuster getting out of the B&M game, could we see a rise in independently owned stores? I remember back in the day, Blockbuster [and Walmart (but that's another story)] was one of the biggest reasons why the mom & pop industry closed up shop. [
Old 08-31-10, 11:35 PM
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Re: Buh-bye Blockbuster

As much as I'd love to see some mom and pop stores come up I don't think I see it happening soon, not in this economy. It's just too risky.

There are rumors Netflix or Comcast may buy Blockbuster out for pennies on the dollar, which would be a real smart thing for Netflix because then they could have stores for people to go back to when they need to return their movies or have a problem. But regardless of what happens, I see MASSIVE store closings in the future in either scenario.
Old 09-01-10, 10:21 PM
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Re: Buh-bye Blockbuster

Another nail in the coffin

http://www.nasdaq.com/aspx/stock-mar...-due-wednesday
Old 09-02-10, 07:19 AM
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Re: Buh-bye Blockbuster

Originally Posted by supermike07
So with Blockbuster getting out of the B&M game, could we see a rise in independently owned stores? I remember back in the day, Blockbuster [and Walmart (but that's another story)] was one of the biggest reasons why the mom & pop industry closed up shop. [
Not a chance. Redbox is fine for the people who want to rent in person, Netflix is great for people that can wait a little while. There is no reason for a middle ground anymore.
Old 09-02-10, 09:34 AM
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Re: Buh-bye Blockbuster

Originally Posted by calhoun07
From that article:
Billionaire Carl Icahn is among the former Blockbuster investors who lost big as the company suffered over the years, losing most of the more than $191 million he spent buying a stake in the No. 1 video-rental chain.
Holy crap!
Old 09-02-10, 08:07 PM
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Re: Buh-bye Blockbuster

Originally Posted by Draven
Not a chance. Redbox is fine for the people who want to rent in person, Netflix is great for people that can wait a little while. There is no reason for a middle ground anymore.
Except Redbox can't and won't carry everything...there's quite a few older titles, indie titles, niche titles that they will never cater to. And, believe it or not, not everybody in this society wants to order things on the Internet. Surprising, I know. There's actually people alive who like to shop at stores.

There is room for middle ground. Obviously it's never going to be what it was years ago, but there's room.
Old 09-02-10, 08:33 PM
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Re: Buh-bye Blockbuster

Originally Posted by calhoun07
Except Redbox can't and won't carry everything...there's quite a few older titles, indie titles, niche titles that they will never cater to. And, believe it or not, not everybody in this society wants to order things on the Internet. Surprising, I know. There's actually people alive who like to shop at stores.

There is room for middle ground. Obviously it's never going to be what it was years ago, but there's room.
I don't agree with that. I agree there are some people who want older stuff, but as you said...that's niche. Can't run a business on that. I'm sure Blockbuster makes nearly all of the money they do make on new releases and games, then maybe kids movies, then catalog titles a distant second. You can buy many of them for what it cost to rent anyway.

Netflix is great for me because I have movies I want to see, but I don't want to deal with the hassle of going to a store in the hopes they'll have them. Plus, I don't need them tonight. People that do want a movie to watch tonight probably want a new release and can just go to Redbox. I think anyone else is in the minority.
Old 09-02-10, 09:19 PM
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Re: Buh-bye Blockbuster

Originally Posted by Draven
I don't agree with that. I agree there are some people who want older stuff, but as you said...that's niche. Can't run a business on that.
That's why I continued my thought with "And...."
Old 09-02-10, 09:52 PM
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Re: Buh-bye Blockbuster

Originally Posted by calhoun07
There is room for middle ground. Obviously it's never going to be what it was years ago, but there's room.
I agree with you, but it will definitely be a niche.

It won't play well in suburbia, where busy moms need the latest schlock to hypnotize their kids, but in more avant-garde locations with substantial populations like NYC, Seattle, SF, and any big college town, the market is ripe for these types of outlets.
Old 09-02-10, 10:41 PM
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Re: Buh-bye Blockbuster

Suburbia is where most of the Blockbuster stores closed already.
Old 09-03-10, 12:34 AM
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Re: Buh-bye Blockbuster

Originally Posted by calhoun07
Suburbia is where most of the Blockbuster stores closed already.
....and that's where Redbox and Netflix come in.
Old 09-03-10, 04:45 AM
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Re: Buh-bye Blockbuster

Again, Blockbuster needs to move more towards SALES than rentals if they want to keep the rest of their stores open. They should become the "go-to" place for everything that gets released, including new catalog titles, and they should try to get ahold of some of that clearance DVD stock that Big Lots and Ross have been getting too.
Old 09-03-10, 05:14 PM
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Re: Buh-bye Blockbuster

Originally Posted by Alan Smithee
Again, Blockbuster needs to move more towards SALES than rentals if they want to keep the rest of their stores open. They should become the "go-to" place for everything that gets released, including new catalog titles, and they should try to get ahold of some of that clearance DVD stock that Big Lots and Ross have been getting too.
I just don't see that happening. They make the smallest profit margin off their retail DVDs/Blu-Rays as it is now. That's not going to save them. I doubt that those clearance DVDs are making big bucks for Big Lots either. It's more of a way to get people in the door to buy other things that are more profitable for them.
Old 09-03-10, 05:17 PM
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Re: Buh-bye Blockbuster

Originally Posted by BuckNaked2k
....and that's where Redbox and Netflix come in.
And if they can get broadband into more areas the way they want to it's going to really impact rental like never before. There's still a large segment of society that doesn't have broadband to stream movies but once they can why would they want to rent movies? If I was a renter (and I never really have been) I would be all about streaming and digital media.
Old 09-06-10, 09:02 PM
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Re: Buh-bye Blockbuster

As for sales, BB can't compete with Walmart/Target/Best Buy when it comes to prices. If someone can save $5 going to Walmart, they'll go there. The market for the rare stuff WM/Target doesn't carry probably isn't large enough to sustain a store.

They really need to just become another version of Netflix or Redbox & compete that way. They'd at least have an advantage with name recognition.

BTW: Is there a video game version of Redbox? If not, maybe they should go in that direction if a lot of their $$ comes from game rentals. Games are all DVDs now so packaging should be no different than a movie.
Old 09-06-10, 11:38 PM
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Re: Buh-bye Blockbuster

Originally Posted by resinrats
As for sales, BB can't compete with Walmart/Target/Best Buy when it comes to prices. If someone can save $5 going to Walmart, they'll go there. The market for the rare stuff WM/Target doesn't carry probably isn't large enough to sustain a store.

They really need to just become another version of Netflix or Redbox & compete that way. They'd at least have an advantage with name recognition.

BTW: Is there a video game version of Redbox? If not, maybe they should go in that direction if a lot of their $$ comes from game rentals. Games are all DVDs now so packaging should be no different than a movie.
1) they are not trying to compete with other stores for retail sales. They literally make the smallest profit margin off retail product. When they are in trouble with the studios and need to raise revenue to buy movies for new releases, the retail is the first crap to go back. So does anybody care that Blockbuster isn't competitive with retail prices?

2) Blockbuster has name recognition all right...a NEGATIVE name recognition. It stopped having positive connotations long ago.

3) Gamefly is the game version of Redbox. Blockbuster offers game on their online rental service now, though...but I am not sure how well it works.
Old 09-07-10, 12:07 AM
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Re: Buh-bye Blockbuster

Originally Posted by calhoun07

2) Blockbuster has name recognition all right...a NEGATIVE name recognition. It stopped having positive connotations long ago.
I can understand this board, but the general public? Just because people don't go to video stores doesn't mean they will avoid the company if they have a use for it.
Old 09-07-10, 12:32 AM
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Re: Buh-bye Blockbuster

I don't rent movies. But I buy them like crazy from my local Blockbuster. You can't beat their prices on used DVD's.
Old 09-07-10, 03:20 AM
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Re: Buh-bye Blockbuster

I can- NEW DVDs for $3 at Big Lots.
Old 09-07-10, 06:17 AM
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Re: Buh-bye Blockbuster

Originally Posted by calhoun07
3) Gamefly is the game version of Redbox. Blockbuster offers game on their online rental service now, though...but I am not sure how well it works.
Gamefly is the game version of Netflix. There is not a Game version of Redbox that I'm aware of (ie. game rental from a kiosk).
Old 09-07-10, 08:34 AM
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Re: Buh-bye Blockbuster

Originally Posted by resinrats
I can understand this board, but the general public? Just because people don't go to video stores doesn't mean they will avoid the company if they have a use for it.
I think much of the general public has had it with Blockbuster for a while.

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