Blockbuster Looking To Close 960 Stores
Sep 16, 2009 by Bruce SimmonsNot sure how many of you get your TV series or movie fix from Blockbuster. I know I don’t when there are so many other …
Not sure how many of you get your TV series or movie fix from Blockbuster. I know I don’t when there are so many other options these days more readily available to me than Blockbuster.
…Which is probably why the rental chain is looking to close up to 20% of their stores, to save themselves $30 million annually.
Once they do this, they’ll be looking to take on competitors like Netflix and Redbox with their own Redbox-like business model, of which they’re looking to have about 10k kiosks by the end of 2010 offering up those services.
Even if this is going to help them, I think they need to start getting their blue sign in our faces on the internet onto the sites we surf (hint hint)… otherwise I’m not sure kiosks are going to be their savior.
I know this one great site called Screen Rant where their advertising dollars would be pretty well spent…
Source: Hollywood Reporter
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Any news on what this means for blockbuster online? I like their mail-rent service.
i didn’t catch that they addressed the online business, which I’m thinking is near immune to these other product outlets there require multiple physical locations and costs associated with them.
My pure, uneducated guess is that the online aspect of the business would go untouched.
Thanks Bruce
Makes Sense.
I have noticed that my friends and I have been getting a lot of “come back to blockbuster online” emails with another free trial/50% off first month. I’m sure their online service is suffering also, but who isn’t these days.
Anyway, hope they stick around.
I honestly shed few tears over Blockbuster’s plight!
Back in the early 90′s, they set about gobbling up any and every entertainment outlet around that could compete with them until we were left with only Blockbuster’s view of what we should consume. And in the process, we lost some really good smaller chain record/video stores that never returned.
So now Blockbuster is taking a hit from some smaller companies that have risen from the ashes.
I call that Karma!
It’s the food chain cycle, the big business version.
Screen Rant? What is that, some type of site to get window fixtures?
Not feeling very sorry for Blockbusters. I’ve had problems with them in the past charging me for late returns when I returned the movie the same day.
My only problem with blockbuster is the forcing of blu-ray upon us when you can go to other stores and get the unrated regular dvd for rental for cheaper or about he same price. Plus their online is failing a bit as Im almost outta online movies to rent.
Hey gang: Good feedback on the online part of the business… and other aspects. Thanks.
@ogb
I’m sure they’ll be focusing on the online side of the biz.
Vic
Good to know. I have way too many shows in my queue and don’t feel like switching to Netflix where it feels like nothing is ever available.
This is definitely a business that has had to evolve with the times or go under. My area is saturated with Red Box already.
I’m not a netflix subscriber either. If you watch a lot of movies, they cant be beat but I don’t like the idea of recurring bills. I use redbox. Why pay $4.99 per night when you can get it for a buck?
We only have one more video store left and they are slowly going under.
This is why I say that online buisness can really hurt the economy. Stores with lots of employees get closed down and a website with only a few get opened up.
I love that some one said they won’t be crying for Blockbuster. I say who cares about blockbuster what about the people who worked for the company who will have to lose their jobs because their store is gone. You my be holding some little grudge against the company for being the big dog in the 90′s, but the store clerk who is losing his job right now didn’t do that.
They already closed down the Blockbuster store near my house. It’s too bad because it was really closeby. It was within walking distance even. They closed down a nearby Hollywood Video as well. I think Netflix and Redbox have caused the death of Blockbuster and Hollywood Video.
Don’t think it hasn’t been fun, Blockbuster..
because it hasn’t.
Good bye,,,!
Your alterations to cinema/film are reprehensible,,, this is your doom,,,
P**s off,,,,!!!!
And die Blockbuster,,,
@Daniel- yes Netflix & Redbox have caused job losses but consider how many small businesses went under because of Block buster & Hollywood video. Every business has to evolve. Netflix had a better idea & so did Redbox. They have good business models.
I once had a late fee at Block buster and they sent it to a collection agency! They didn’t even bother to tell me about the late fee the next time i rented a movie, they just sent it out! That was years ago but it shocked me.
Isn’t it amazing how one stupid err on the part of an employee (ie: erroneous late fees, etc.) can impact your opinion of an entire franchise?
When Hale-Bopp came through I got pictures of ALL the comet tails. It didn’t seem that many were aware of the 3 or 4 tails from the thing.
I took my pics to Ritz Camera… came back a few hours later to find my images were treated as exposure errors, like blank, behind the lens cap pics, so they weren’t processes properly and lost forever.
Never went back to the franchise. All because of one under trained “yahoo-brained” staff member. And deep emotional pain about it.
I never went back either.
@bruce- that sucks!
Its sad to see Blockbuster and many other video rental stores fall. I hope tehy manage to keep the blockbuster exprience going because for me personally going to blockbuster to rent a movie is an experience. I love being in there and looking around at which dvd is right for me and whoever I may be with. You could then go and look around the store and check out the posters and collectibles that they have or brouse around and grab some snacks for your movie. It’s an experience. It really saddens me to see these places close down because of the internet and things like netflix.
Tweeb those small business are going under even more now than they were when Blockbuster put them down. Also when Blockbuster was putting them under usually there would be another blockbuster opening somewhere to balance out the job lose.
Your story sucks to hear and I’m sorry that happened to you, but you can easily find a story like that with about any company or franchise that exists some one has had some major problem with every business you just happened to have it with blockbuster.
I think this site is secretly filled with a bunch of women sporting men’s names who like to argue. So here it is ladies…
@Daniel- why are you sorry that it happened? I couldn’t of cared less after the initial shock wore off. I went there EVERY Friday for movies until that happened. Then I went to another business (Hollywood video) because of it. Likely it was an oversight but it pissed me off at the time. So i paid it (at Blockbuster) and went on with my life. No biggy.
I know the economy is currently hemorrhaging jobs. I was stating that big franchise corporations put many small mom and pops out of business. It’s the natural order of business. Evolve with your customers or die. There is no emotion attached to it, it’s just the way it is. It’s business.
What ever you say tweeb. I choose to give a crap about people and the economy in general. This is no where near the same as a small business going out. This is a corporartion slowly getting rid of thousands of jobs. This is a major trend and is helping full the huge unemployment rate.
@Daniel…LMAO! I didnt say i don’t give a crap. But-
welcome to capitalism.
Tweeb your missing the point entirely. This isn’t about capitalism it’s about the worlds movement towards digital. This is only the begining the more we open up every thing online the more we will lose real businesses and jobs.
Yeah that’s why I don’t buy anything online,,, its real easy too.
Netflix, amazon, ebay can all bite me.
Only time I buy things off Ebay amazon or any other online store is if a real store doesn’t care it so like rare items or things of that nature.
I’m a capitalist. I buy my stuff wherever I can get it the cheapest. And 90% of the time, that’s online. Why pay $170 for memory at Best Buy that you can get from newegg.com for $60? If you have too much money to spend, send some my way…
Ebay, on the other hand, I have stopped buying through them unless the price difference is significant from getting the same item on Amazon.com or whatever the next cheapest is. The majority of the time the item is more expensive on ebay anyway, but they anti-gun stance means I don’t help them profit. There are a few companies that I don’t deal with, most of the time it’s for customer service issues or political issues, but that’s about it. Most of the time it’s all about price shopping.
About Blockbuster, I rarely rent anything, but my friend rents from them all the time becase he has the monthly plan, so I just watch movies with him instead of renting them myself. I might join their online rental thing just to watch all of Stargate Atlantis, lol. Have neglected that, now have to watch all of them from the beginning, damn this will take a while…
I buy online all the time. I don’t have time to shop. I’m too busy filling out paperwork for the government. Mostly tax forms.
Cheap+fast=online
I’m with Ken on ebay. There are so many stores that have popped up and they are sometimes more than retail on products. Though I will plug the faucet discounters on ebay. They have some really great prices on their faucets.
I got your point Daniel. I didn’t I didn’t care about it but there is nothing that I can do EXCEPT continue to grow my businesses to create GOOD paying jobs for folks who want to work.
There is a lot that goes into running the business machine than most people realize. Cutting labor expenses if you can is key. Here is an example for you. If i pay an employee $11.50 per hour I have to pay the gov’t and insurance companies about $12.00 per hour ON TOP of that employee’s $11.50 per hour.
So that one person is costing me about $25-26 PER HOUR. Think hard about just how much the gov’t is costing the people who only earn $11.50 per hour. I would much rather see that money go to my employee so that he could have a nice house, car, health insurance, etc…etc..
Consider how much he gov’t is costing YOU. If I didn’t have to pay that much to all the hands involved in paying one guy’s hourly wage, he would be making a lot more.
Tweeb what does that have to do with anything? We arn’t debating taxes or what the government makes you do. I’m just talking about physical jobs. We are getting to the point to where so many businesses are moving to online that we are losing more and more jobs every year.