I wouldn't count on that. Though there are probably more printings of the rock than do the right thing right now.

You're being screwed on "Do the Right Thing" -- it's all over New York City as far as I can tell, Tower, HMV, Virgin, Laserland, etc., all have it in stock in plentiful supply....DVDplanet sent out my copy, got it last Wednesday...

I don't know why anyone thinks we're running express into the ground...it is absolutely nonparalleled for a multi-million dollar company not to get a single new release for now 3 weeks, not replenish old stock, etc....what is unforgivable is Express trying to take our dollars, still accept preorders, etc., when it is no longer a going concern as a dvd retailer....they are the ones trying to be slick, not us for pointing out that people should NOT preorder "The Rock" from them, as they will never get it, and end up having to pay a higher price when they have to reorder it after it's streeted...LOOK AT THE SITE. I'd say less than 25% of titles listed are in stock, and NOTHING is getting replenished...100 people posting on this board won't "run it out of business", the fact that it has no dvds to sell is what will run it out of business...

I have to say that I really used to like express, in the beginning, back when they were Dvdexpress. I first used them in early to mid 1998, and they were very reliable. Until I found out about Reel they were the only place I would deal with, although I have not shopped there in over a year. Their prices were not the best, but this was before the golden age of coupons. At the time anything was better than retail. I hate to see all these sites fail.

I used to use DVDexpress almost exclusively, then I found out about Reel.com, after they went out of business I switched back to Express.com but have never really been pleased with their service. Now I use Amazon.com exclusively. They are not the cheapest, but they are one of the only options left that ship internationally and have good service.

Geno

So do I... After DVDExpress changed to Express I took the Express route out of that place...

Well, I have some friends who are ex-employees of Express. They have laid off more than half of their staff (t least warehouse and customer service staff, I don't know about the corporate staff) so their building is half empty. Others have quit because they found better jobs, and some are currently looking for better jobs because most of the employees that I've talked to don't think that Express will last long either, although management has not told them anything in regards to their financial situation.

A little comment on the GameCave merge, from what I have heard, the reason for the merge was because Express (DVD Express at the time) was losing a great deal of money. Maximum Holdings gave Mike Dubelko (CEO of DVD Express) money to have the two companies merge. There have been embezzlement (sp?) accusations made against Max. Holdings now, but at the time, the merge was done to save DVD Express. Of course, this is just what I heard. If there are more official reports out there, them please politely correct me :p

I seem to recall a lot of people praising reel.com as the be all, end all, of dvd etailers awhile back. Any time someone pointed out a problem, you'd get some company rep disguised as a member here or someone hoping to curry favor with them make personal attacks on the one with the problem.

This comes to mind since express.com "used" to be the best etailer out there. The prices weren't the best and the shipping was a bit less generous than some of the now defunct companies (or companies that have since raised both) but they always took care of me and everyone I know in "real" life (as opposed to cyberspace, anonymous complainers).

There's no doubt that the company is all but gone. Nothing new in stock, csr's that remind one of reel's last year and a half, and all the other problems associated with a company about to fail. How many of us can honestly say, even former loyalists, that we use them as our main source of dvd's?

Also, if Jonathan wants to speak his mind and appear less objective-leave him be. It's just a website and he's just an unpaid guy having a good time. He's a lot more intelligent than a few of his associates here who feel the need to close threads for piss poor reasons.

So, who'll be the next to fail and help the B&M's out there finally smack etailers to realistic pricing models? ;)

Express.com IS done!
 

Just to end this thread, I read here that Express.com filed for Chapter 11 March 7th.

http://biz.yahoo.com/rf/010309/l09319421_2.html

Revised: Okay, I haven't found any other confirmation, and their website is STILL up.


[Edited by Rascal on 03-09-01 at 12:04 PM]

Looks like VideoTropic is quoting a similar story from Reuters regarding Express filing for Chapter 11 protection. And Variety's http://www.videobusiness.com site has a similar story.

But, hey, it's only Chapter 11 reorganization, they could resurrect themselves!

I still remeber that the creator of dvdexpress.com (Mike or something) is a member of this forum and he posted few messages long time ago. At the begining of dvdexpress.com, he replies all non-oreder related emails from the customers. Until it became bigger since buying the name dvd.com, the nightmare began ...

Not over yet!
 

Just in case any of you forgot/didn't know - Chapter 11 is a restructuring bankruptcy, not a liquidation like Chapter 7. With Chapter 11, the government takes a look at the company and it's business model (in this case Express.com) and determines if the elimination or reduction of it's debt will allow the company to survive. If the court feels this remedy won't help, then it denies the request for Chapter 11 and the company (Express) is as good as dead - unless of course, they can find additional funding.

It might be several weeks before any of us hear what the court's ruling on Express will be, but friends of mine in the know have told me that the government will most likely accept the request due to their solid business structure. My sources also tell me that Express had tied all it's money up rebuilding it's infrastructure while the funding they were counting on to buy inventory with, disappeared due to the dot.com blowout and investor panic. It's a sad case of a company trying hard to do all the right things and having everything around it fall to pieces. I hope they survive! I guess we'll see.

"Sound business structure"?!? I have been as big a supporter of Express's as anyone but they don't have enough customers willing to pay more now, nevermind after a Chapter 11 reorganization. By drawing out the problem for so long, they have effectively ended any hope that they could return to a prominent place online.

Further, why the heck should they get to blow off paying for their debt's that were based on a bad business model in the first place? If they invested too heavily in infrastructure, they should sell some of it off to finance future schemes, not rely on cheating people by having those debts dismissed (or reduced greatly).

It's sad that they failed but they did it to themselves.

It think "orangeblue" is someone affiliated with express.com after reading his/her post and especially since their color scheme is orange and blue.

every interaction i've had with express has been unhappy..
so this "going out of business" thing doesn't bother me a bit.
-di doctor-

I received the following response from Express.com when I asked them if my pre-orders would be filled.

Dear Express.Com Customer,

We have filed recently under Chapter 11 of the Bankruptcy Code as the final step in a reorganization of our Company's business. As you may be aware, the last eighteen months have been extremely difficult for all Internet companies. We feel fortunate to have survived, where many have failed.

In order for us to continue operations in this economic environment, we found it necessary to commence with a formal reorganization plan so that we may quickly accomplish our goal of financial stability.

We value your continued patronage. **Please keep in mind that all your purchases will be filled in the same fashion as in the past, and your credit card will only be charged when your order is shipped from our fulfillment center.

Thanks for your interest and understanding.


Sincerely,

Robert Koenig
http://www.express.com

Hopefully everything will be okay.

But let's say they do eliminate their debt (rather than paying it off) and emerge from bankruptcy. How are they going to get product? Who would have the guts to deliver product on credit, especially after the company has gotten out of paying their distributors this time? And who is going to invest in the company to keep it from falling to the same fate later? The business needs more cash to continue to operate (more than they did before the bankruptcy, as a matter of fact, since all their orders to distributors will likely have to be paid before they'll ship product). Who is going to be willing to invest in this company now? If the company was having trouble lining up investors before the bankruptcy, how are they going to get new investors now that the company is worse off.

So, even if the reorganization plan (not business plan) is accepted by the courts (and remember that creditors have input in the process, too. The plan that Express submits will be gone over by a committee of creditors. There will be neogotiations and votes. It's a drawn out process. It isn't just Express.com coming in and saying, "We want to elimate our debts. We think we've got a great business model" and having the judge rule on that plan), that doesn't mean the company can actually continue to operate.

Here's hoping they somehow come up with a few cases of The Rock Criterion today. Hey, I can dream can't I?

Update:Well, I decided to give them a call. Went right through to someone in no time. When he pulled up my order, he said that The Rock was supposed to come in today, and that they should have it no later than Wednesday. I've got my fingers crossed.


[Edited by AndyCapps on 03-13-01 at 01:33 PM]

the latest to show the inevitable...
 

http://www.nypost.com/technology/26337.htm
its just a link...not my fault.

Has anyone gotten anything shipped to them within the last two weeks from Express. If so, was the product new releases which were pre-orders or older titles which had already been released. Just trying to find out alittle more about what is going on. Just ordered some titles with my $25 GC from FMC and was only waiting because was supposed to get another GC from Sklif.com but decided to order while I might have a slight chance.

Ty

I ordered the Deal of the Day and they arrived with no problem.

Hook
Lady and the Tramp

they are shipping anything they still have sitting in the warehouse. another one of the original dvd companies that i remember well when i first joined Dvdtalk dies :( first reel.com now express.com next 800.com??? I hope 800.com survives because of all three they are a very good customer service oriented company.

800.com used to have good customer service but they started to cancel orders without notifying me that some time limit expired for fulfilling them. They also changed a few other policies that have led me to avoid them. It's a shame too.