Who killed Blockbuster?
Blockbuster
Blockbuster, by not buying netflix when they had the chance
So did they actually lose all their money, or was it just a thing where their franchise is now shit, but they're still filthy rich?
the internet
>>63158851
check out their website.
apparently they still have an office somewhere in california.
>>63158648
I did.
>>63158706
This
>years ago hear about blockbuster getting fucked
>2 blockbusters in my town
>go into one of them
>ask guy which store will be closing first
>guy is all smug says blockbuster is doing great 'actually'
>4 weeks later, both stores closed
YIFY
They didn't go with the times.
If they had invested in a Netflix-like service and slowly based the company around that they might still be up and running.
>>63158648
Netflix + torrents.
-netflix
-affordability of home media
-redbox
-on demand
-1000 channels on cable
-peer to peer
Why did they never set up corner things like Redbox? They wouldn't have done so bad
Also, we still have them in my city, haven't gone in a long time though. Last time I went in was probably a year ago on a weekend, yet there were still families in there
>>63159166
because companies try not to kill their primary product.
Only places like amazon have the balls to
Themselves for refusing to innovate to demands until it was too late.
>That unique smell of carpet and pop corn
>Mom lets you rent 2 N64 games, Blast Force and San Francisco rush.
>Your sister goes straight to the girly section.
>See what covers look cool.
>That clerk that already knows you.
>The douchebag that is holding up the line because he "swears" he returned the movie.
>That soccer mom renting a movie for his niece but cant remember the name.
>That skinny employee that goes around with the cart and you just know steals on the job.
>That qt clerk girl that made feel things.
It was truly a magical time.
>>63158648
I feel as though I need to clear some things up about why Blockbuster Video is closing, and why they went chapter 11 in the first place a few years ago
>Blockbuster Video used to be owned by a Jew owned company named Viacom
>Viacom are money-grubbing whores
>Viacom buys all of blockbuster's rentals and merch with loans, instead of profits
>every year use profit to pay off loans, take out new loans to buy new merchandise
>blockbuster decides to split from viacom because they are tyrants
>viacom takes all of blockbuster's profits from that year, but does not pay off the loans
>the loans were taken out under blockbuster's name, not viacom's, so the loans technically belong to blockbuster
>viacom does not tell this to blockbuster corporate
>when blockbuster finds out, there is already a shit ton of interest, and viacom has all of their profits
>desperately try every quarter to pay off loans
>1 mil loan becomes 3 mil then 5 mil, finally tens of millions of dollars are owed
>go chapter 11, file for bankruptcy
>Dish network buys Blockbuster Video, because they want to use the iconic Blockbuster Video logo to sell tv subscriptions, plus wants brick and mortar stores to sell tv subscriptions
>closes unprofitable stores that were still around after chapter 11 closings
>has 300 locations left
>all are profitable
>blockbuster is profitable as a whole again, especially in the North East
>fast forward 2 years to 2013
>Dish decides to go exclusively to streaming
>considers selling BBV
>no fewer than 3 companies are interested in buying
>but Dish wants to keep Blockbuster logo for streaming service, cant do that if they sell the company
>decide to liquidate stores, put 3000 people out of work, all over the rights to a logo
>tell employees they are being laid off AFTER telling the news networks
Blockbuster's problem was it was owned by two shitty fucking corporations.
>>63159341
I remember all those dope candy products they had that would give you diabetes.
>the sour paste
>cotton candy in the wifi
>the motherfucking wonder ball
>sour spray
>bubblegum pop rocks
>red vines and Swedish fish
>nestle buncha crunches
>butterfinger bites
>ju ju bees and those chewy candies that looked like fruit but would get stuck all up in your mouth
God I miss that the most. Even their shitty popcorn was godly if you added candy to that shit.
>>63159568
The mismanagement of Blockbuster is truly one of histories greatest blunders
>>63159705
>>63159568
is there a doc about this yet?
if not i hope there will be one in the near future
>>63159749
It should be called Late Fee.
>>63159166
There were Blockbuster kiosks a few years ago around where I live but then they went away
radio
>>63158648
Take-One-Video and Hollywood Videos was better anyways.
>That feel when going to Take One and getting a free bag of Popcorn and balloon on Friday nights
>that room they had beanbags in so your kids can watch shitty movies while you browse
>>63158648
Hubris.
>>63159341
I feel you, but Hollywood Video was way better.
>actual horror section with animatronics
>sister always went to the horror section
>cried when mum wouldn't let her get Texas chainsaw massacre
>mfw Amelia is out
>put movie in horror section
>mum thinks its scary too and doesn't let her get it
>mfw skip class
>go to blockbuster down the block to watch movies instead
Good fucking times
Internet Killed the Video Store
It's in my mind and in my car
We can't rewind,
we've gone too far
>>63160001
Oh wha oh oh oh.
DANANANA NANANANA DANANANA DANANANA OH WHA OH OH OH
>tfw irish equivalent of Blockbuster is suffering the same fate
rip Xtra-Vision you will be missed
>>63159789
Damn that sucks
>>63160061
got drunk with some m8s and went to XtraVision a few months ago
we thought it would be a laugh but actually it just made us all very unhappy
>>63159035
no they still would have died. the base company was too attached to physical media. Too many employees and managers. I was a manager at blockbuster, it was the most chill job out there if you got the right store.
>>63158648
THE ICE AGE
>>63160154
and why was that anon?
>Business model becomes obsolete
>Stick to it instead of adapting
>Die slow painful death of competition keking you
>>63159705
I lived with a few mates, they all worked at the local blockbuster. My friend was a manager and literally stolen thousands of dollars over 8 months and got away with it...kinda. Since he did the scan coupon and taken the difference at the end of the night off camera there never was any proof he did it but they knew. He said he just took a couple hundred and since that amount was under the felony level crime he was just fired and banned
he bought lots of weed with that money, it was great weed too
>>63160263
it's not always that easy
consider that most people in charge of a company are older (generally more resistant to change) and mostly concerned with short-term profits
>>63160222
Nostalgia that became increasingly tinged with drunken regrets
>work in blockbuster in 1999
>secret service comes in, guy at entrance doesnt let anyone else in
>one at exit, wait until remaining customers finish
>bush sr comes in, manager kicks me off register
>he rents wild things and they all leave
>heard he was in there once or twice before but thats all i saw of him
>>63160323
Of course it isn't easy. But that's what happened.
>>63160312
>first day working at blockbuster
>friend who got me the job is behind the counter with me
>opens game drawer and puts a copy of ocirna or time in his pocket
>looks at me says its that easy and goes back to sweeping
>he finally got caught (quit on the phone when the manager called him in)
>caught after the hollywood video down the street called looking for their movies people returned to us by mistake
>he would always offer to return them to the store on the way home
>>63159789
Never used to myself but they were right next to the Redbox kiosks.
I went up to one once and it seemed complicated to us some how and looked almost like an old fashioned ATM.
I always just ended up using the Redbox kiosk next to it which I was familiar with instead.
>>63160420
>Poppy Bush jerked off to Denise Richards' terrible boobjob
>you let the manager kick you off
That would've been a story to tell.
>>63160618
>>you let the manager
I assume you've never had a job, or have kept one for very long
>>63158648
YIFY
>who killed YIFY?
>>63159568
>has 300 locations left
>all are profitable
>blockbuster is profitable as a whole again, especially in the North East
that actually explains a lot, my local Blockbuster was still filled with people well into 2013. I guess they had extra rental blu-rays they sold as used, so I got plenty of then-new movies for cheap there.
>>63160671
Literally the MPAA
Dad would very rarely ever rent a film. I could count the films titles he rented on one hand.
>Go to Blockbuster and look around.
>Dad doesn't believe in renting because he pays for HBO, Showtime, Cinimax, and Disney Channel (yes in the 80s and early 90s you had to pay extra for Disney channel)
>Dad buys me most if not all the Disney movies that come out and some other non-disney films when they come out a few times a year
>He will not pay $5 to rent a movie no matter how much I bug him to
>He never gave me a 25cents to play a video game at the video store claiming those things are addictive and a waist of money
>See blonde family after blonde family aka "The Chad Family" in line with their movies , games and over priced candy/soda in line waiting to pay.
>Kinda wished I to could be part of The Chad family so I could know what it's like to rent a movie / game and pick up a Pizza every friday night yet never did
Thought one day I would be able to do it with my kids. Than Blockbuster closes so I'll never get to do the Friday night Pizza and a rental movie night thing.
>tfw you will never know what it's like to be part of The Chad family.
blockbuster wouldn't rent video games without a credit card on the account after a certain time. i told them i always rented games & was never late. was one of their most loyal customers. that's where they lost my business
>>63161568
>friday night at blockbuster
>mom takes you up after dinner
>look around for new release you have been eagerly waiting for
>turn corner and see a whole wall of the new movie
>run up, all boxes are empty, no movies behind any of the boxes
>repeat process for any movie/game that is remotely watchable
>such is a friday night at blockbuster
it helped get me into classics as a kid. all the new releases would be gone so i would wander the inner isles looking at weird box covers
>>63160931
there was a blockbuster near me that just closed 7 months ago
>>63158900
I'm pretty sure the only one left in the country is a small one in Fort Pierce, FL. I went inside and it was really depressing, just a ton of movies for sale, one guy sitting at the cash register, dim lighting, empty gumball machine, etc. It felt nearly like a frozen place in time.
Apparently they're still alive for being a Blockbuster in name only, and because the owner sold most of the floor space to a Verizon store to keep rent down.
>>63158648
Changing times, shifting market, inability to react. If something wipes out a whole category of businesses (which is what happened to video stores), those are usually the culprits, rather than mismanagement. Blockbuster, Hollywood Video, Movie Gallery, etc., they all thrived on the fact that most people didn't really keep large libraries of VHS cassettes, especially in the '80s and early '90s (go back far enough and they did good business renting VCRs as well as movies, because those fuckers were expensive). The rise of DVD shifted a lot of buying habits (the once rare act of buying whole seasons of TV series became "normal", for instance), and also lead to new competition in the form of Netflix (in its original DVD-by-mail format) and RedBox, both of which cut out the costly storefront operation - RedBox cornered the new-release rental, Netflix got a lot of the back-catalog business. Then throw in the rise of streaming and, well, the rest is history.
Fuck why can't we just go back to the early 2000's.
It was the perfect mix of 90's comfy culture and modern internet memes without reddit.
>cant find a movie on the shelf
>ask them to check the newly returned rentals from behind the counter
>its there
no feel quite like it
>>63159705
>mismanagement
>not jew schemes
>>63158648
There is one 5 minutes walk from my house in Brisbane should I go and apply for a job there?
sometimes Australia is blessed being behind.
>>63161568
That guy in the middle looks a bit like Nolan.
>>63160214
>Ctrl+F "ice age"
Good job, anon
>>63160616
>>63159789
The blockbuster kiosks were more expensive than the redbox ones. Thats why they died
>>63162986
>There is one 5 minutes walk from my house in Brisbane should I go and apply for a job there?
>sometimes Australia is blessed being behind.
when the stores start replacing video tapes with these things called DVDs - then get a job there and enjoy free rentals and all the juju-b's you can steal
>>63161568
>le I put my adorable daughteru in flawless white dress expression
This nigga got his shit figgured out
>>63162490
i want pics
>mfw a couple of family videos still open near me
>they're always empty
I feel bad for them honestly their only clientele is old people
THE ICE AGE
>>63164019
Of what?
>>63164458
the last blockbuster in america. i want to see the wasteland
>>63158648
Karma wrecked their bitch ass for ripping people off with late fees. A well deserved death
>>63158648
Cubesearcher killed Blockbuster
>>63164088
Those places always break my heart, whenever I pop in one the owners give their best to serve you and it always guilts me into buying something. Same deal with restaurants that are in places with no foot traffic.
>>63158648
>be me
>be oldfag
>start using Blockbuster in 90s
>half of DVDs skip, stall, won't even play
>get pissed
>complain
>manager swears all DVDs are tested before they are rented out
>while listening to his lies, customer complains to kid behind counter about DVD skipping
>kid gives free rental and puts DVD on pile to be put back on shelves
>they all lie to customers, no fucks given
>fuck that shit
>go home and get emule
>never go back to Blockbusters
>Blockbusters is kill
>don't give a shit
>>63162634
>>63161568
>>63160420
>>63159568
>>63159341
I was born in 1997, what is this?
You're going to say "underage!!!" or "It was still popular in the early 2000s, how could you not know about it?", but the thing is, I don't remember anything from ages 3-6 other than floating shapes, colors, and drinking from a sippy cup.
I don't really know VHS, but DVDs are more my speed, and even those are starting to become obsolete.
Even though it was only 9 years ago, 2007 was so nostalgic and different from today. I remember renting DVDs (no streaming, just good, sturdy physical discs the old-fashioned way) of awesome shows SpongeBob, Drake & Josh, and The Sweet Life Of Zach And Cody from Redbox and all the kids in the school screaming quotes from those shows (I'M READY I'M READY I'M READY, LEEDLE LEEDLE LEEDLE, HUG ME BROTHA). I remember sipping my capri-sun and eating a Pop-tart, listening to Soulja Boy on my first generation iPhone.
Now I turned 18 and am starting college, and it feels like my life is about to collapse.
>>63164630
fucking kids,GET OF MY LAWN
>first mobil was an iPhone
>kids these days will never understand the comfyness of no internet.
>>63159035
Blockbuster had a streaming service.
No one used it though.
Oldfag here...
Blockbuster was a parasite on locally-owned video stores, some of which were terribly run, and some of which were oases of film - before the Internet, these stores are how people learned about movies that didn't show at their local theater. Most small cities and larger had at least one really good video store that had huge selection of old, foreign, independent, etc. Blockbuster put an end to most of those stores.
Blockbuster introduced the 3-day rental for $3, until then you rented it for a night and it was $2, but a night is all that was needed typically. Blockbuster was a ripoff, but because it was bright and shiny it ran a lot of smaller businesses out of business. Per usual, we get the world we deserve.
My local blockbuster was getting brisk business right until the end. I still don't know what old people are doing today, did they just give up watching movies altogether?
I don't even know how netflix took off. Getting movies mailed to you is even more archaic than blockbuster.
>>63165190
>I still don't know what old people are doing today
Oldfags is kill
>>63165190
>want to watch point break
>sign on to netflix to have it delivered
>tracking says it will be here next Tuesday
Nice
>>63165190
It seems like Netflix basically just got its start by people trying it out once and then never again, but failing to actually cancel the service. And then when they figured out a streaming platform and got put on all the consoles and bluray players, that was the end of Blockbuster.
>>63165190
>Getting movies mailed to you
why
and did you mail them back? that's pants-on-head retarded
we did family, i really wish we didn't, we need film libraries and shit like that cuz now i'm stuck having to fuckin buy everything if i want blur ray quality, that torrent shit comprimises quality and rips off the artists nigga
>>63159115
correct answer
>>63164019
Didn't take any and I don't live near there anymore, it could be closed now for all I know. Actually, I just looked it up now and I guess it closed back in May.
>>63158648
the vending machine known as redbox
and the internet with torrents
>>63165580
Here's a pic of their store, they had that "We're open" sign up for a long time, it was all faded when I saw it last year.
>>63158976
you are a douche
On top of everything else, renting video games became harder for blockbuster to do since most modern video games require installations and downloading of updates, making the whole process less appealing.
The fact that modern consumers have no option for trying before they buy saddens me. I have a lot of nostalgic memories of going to blockbuster to rent n64/gcn games.
>>63165190
>I still don't know what old people are doing today
What is Redbox?
there's a "Family Video" by my house that seems to be doing ok
>>63165405
>how did cavemen start fires?
>flint and wood?!
>that's loincloth-on-head retarded
>old ways were so dumb
You wouldn't have the nice shit you have today if it weren't for the old ways, dipshit.
Post yfw you rented from Blockbuster and never had to return in because they closed down
To me, Blockbuster never recovered from the "No late fees/Return it whenever" policy when they made the switch to them placing a hold on your credit card for the full price of the movie and you got the hold taken off when you brought it back. That made the whole process a lot more complicated for people - particularly poor people without credit cards or kids that are renting movies/games with their family Blockbuster card.
This was right around when Redbox was starting up and people just eventually realized that was a hell of a lot easier and all the good movies were never at Blockbuster anymore because nobody ever brought them back promptly.
>>63165835
are you dense?
why not just walk in the store
>>63158648
piss poor customer service
they an heroed
>>63165965
lol yea they fucked themselves bad didnt they. But they were greedy fucks.
>>63166054
it was a very substantial change to the business model that wouldn't affect upper class or upper middle-class people - those would be the ones working at Blockbuster corporate - so I don't think they really thought about it as that drastic of a change. When you combine that with smaller, leaner organizations that could undercut them on price (by this point New Releases were like 8 bucks to rent) it created a perfect storm that they never recovered from.
>mfw my local blockbuster's still going strong.
I worked there in 04-06 and it was a great job. Shit pay. But we could order ANYTHING at COST. I got Mr Show for $4 a season. I got Oz- all of it- for $24 and HBO was expensive as fuck on DVD back then.
They used to get these "insider" magazines and I remember reading the article about dvd vending machines. They were trying to develop a DVD that disintegrated after 48 hours so that there would be no such thing as late fees. Ultimately, Redbox happened and Blockbuster and Movie Gallery both went extinct. Video stores are relegated to inner city hipster havens or college towns as an ironic choice or small hillbilly towns where more people have DVD players than internet.
The answer is Redbox. And then Netflix.
>>63166253
>>63164496
We've still got a couple in my town as well.
maybe I'll go in tomorrow and get a new card, ask if they're getting shut down any time soon
>you'll never be 11 again and have mom or dad drive you to blockbuster to pick out one video game and one movie and some candy on a Friday night ever again.
>>63166462
>>63166462
Fuck those threads. You're all fags.
I'm writing a show about employees in what is basically Blockbuster. Anyone here in the thread that used to work there feel like answering any questions I have about how the business was run?
>>63166914
Shoot.
>>63166973
Thanks so much.
What would be considered a good day, profit-wise? Like, how much money would you have to bring in for the day to be considered successful and profitable?
Was there like a daily plan for how much money you anticipated to make like other stores?
Was there a specific day new DVDs would arrive at the store? What was the shipment to the store like in general? I work in a clothing store and we get shipment every day, but I imagine it'd be a lot more infrequent for a video store.
Thanks for this, man, I'll probbaly have more when I remember them
>>63164630
>I was born in 1997, what is this?
When the fuck did this "I was born in 1997" /tv/ meme start?
>>63164630
>I was born in 1997
>I don't really know VHS
>Even though it was only 9 years ago, 2007
>physical discs the old-fashioned way
>awesome shows Drake & Josh, and The Sweet Life Of Zach And Cody
>Gives 1000 specific detail while making sure to point out what age he allegedly was when shit came out
>Trying this hard to make 90% of /tv/ feel old
2/10 bait bro
>>63167452
1997
>>63167452
Old BR meme from a dead BR chan whose name escapes me.
>>63160671
Just you wait, Axxo will rise from the ashes!
It's not bc Blockb didn't change with the times its bc their prices were not competitive. 5bugaboos for a new release or vidya and 3 for a classic was outrageous
>>63158648
The radio star
>>63164630
>just turned 18
It's only downhill from where you're at senpai
>can still eat anything and not gain weight
>highest test levels that will rapidly start dropping after age 20
>boner still works reliably
>>63164927how old are you, oldfriend
Basically true. Blockbuster was the Walmart of video rentals. They'd come into town and drive out all the local mom and pop stores. Everyone would bitch and moan, but no one could stay away because of the low prices.
>>63167398
$10k was a huge day. Payrates were minimum wage. Movies arrive on Fridays or Mondays, employees can rent early. Release dates are always Tuesdays. That's still true with or without rental stores. Even Walmart puts the new shit up monday at midnight. Every six months, there's a cycle count. You would scan every single item in the store. Took all night. Had a cool boss that would play music I had never heard that was amazingly good and different. We'd laugh and laugh all night. Lotta fun.
Literally 3 people in the store max. A manager or asst manager and min wage team members, probably high schoolers.
>random local video stores
>encore! video opens up with massive oversized place
>everyone abandons old stores
>hollywood video opens up. wow tv sets playing stuff everywhere.
>everyone abandons encore video
>blockbuster video opens up
>.. etc
>redbox
etc
lel internet
>>63169002
How much dope smoking occurred among the employees?
>>63168817
I'm 41 (no, I never plan on leaving).
Interesting - I never thought of their prices as low, I always thought of them as really high, but I grew up in the plains where everything except for Blockbuster rentals was cheap as fuck. My hometown had about a dozen video stores - a year after Blockbuster, there were maybe 3. There are now zero, but there are several Redboxes - still funny that Blockbuster couldn't crack that riddle.
>>63158757
They had a streaming service and didnt have to buy Netflix. If only they could have vamped up their streaming service to be better than Netflix. Remember, there was a time people got pissed over Netflix taking down the profiles and eventually the reviews. They would have loved to jump ship if only there was a suitable competitor.
There's a Family Video two minutes from my house that is still in business. I don't think they even have an adult section and it's definitely not a money laundering op or a sex theater or any of that stuff, just a regular video store.
It puzzles me how they're still alive but I don't want to ask and seem rude.
>>63169002
Awesome. What genre was most popular?
What was an average day's profit?
>>63169110
None. At a fast food restaurant, more than you'd ever believe but only after 11pm when the kids are all gone.
At a blockbuster, zero. Shit closed at 9pm. Now, sometimes, people would take their thirty min breaks.and come back high and just put up movies for an hour so they didn't have to talk to people
At a video store, the manager counts everything and the tm's literally put away movies, stock candy, use the register. That was it.
>>63169300
Customers like anything with a celebrity on the box. It's all about cover art. You could tell the popularity of a movie by how fast we tried to sell it.
Also, people can't read
Hidalgo... Hildadango.
Gothika... Gotcha
Those are real fucking mispronunciation
As someone with taste, stupid hollywood garbage is the most popular genre. Nowadays, there would be a section for SUPERHEROES
>>63164513
>rent movie
>return it the day they fell you to return it
>no late fee
This is only complicated if you have trouble doing sile stuff like tying your shoes.
>>63166393
>a DVD that disintegrated after 48 hours
There was Divx (not the codec) that was sold in stores like Circuit City and Best Buy around 1999-2000 and flopped soon afterwards.
>Netflix and redbox killed blockbuster
>Netflix and redbox are shit now
We were fools
>>63169991
Truly. At least Blockbuster had SELECTION.
I just remember renting ps2 games from gamefly and getting balto DVDs in the mail from netflix.
>>63169877
some people do shit like rent stuff and never watch then hang onto it like retards.
>>63170115
Blockbuster had very little selection, friend - they ran all the stores with selection out of business.
>>63169740
Personal question
What position did you hold at Blockbuster, how many hours on average did you work a week, and how much did you make per week?
>>63164927
In Chicago we had a small video store that I always went to. $2 for 2 days.
Rented at least 2 or 3 movies per week there in the late 90's
Great little store. Now its a hipster cash only chicken place.
xbox trying to ban rentals entirely with its activation stuff probably scared them all shitless.
>>63158900
They have 50 stores open, but they are only open because it's owned by Dish Network
>>63160214
underrated
>>63159640
>added candy to popcorn
lol Americans
>>63160312
DUDE WEED LMAO
>>63158648
>xbox trying to ban rentals entirely with its activation stuff probably scared them all shitless
damn I totally forgot about that
>>63170386
TMs got 20 or less. Managers were 40. The place is ran by a manager and 2 assistant managers who never work together.
>>63170386
TM: Min Wage
Asst: Min Wage plus $1.50
GM: Min Wage plus $4
>>63164927
The best video store I ever went to was a locally owned place in Minneapolis that had just a ridiculous selection of foreign and obscure stuff. I got concerned when a Blockbuster opened up nearby. Turns out, what actually killed them was they never upgraded to DVDs. All their stuff was purely VHS. They probably thought their selection was unique enough to keep them in business. Damn, I miss that store.
>>63169877
Jesus fuck, this. Rented movies for 20 years and never had a problem returning a movie on time. Is paying attention to a due date really so difficult?
If you want to hate on Blockbuster, hate on them for editing movies, not renting porn and having a shitty cookie-cutter selection of older stuff.
>>63171127
Louisville had this place called Wild and Wooley video... They had an.unbelievable selection of weird obscure shit and local movies and stuff. Even had a porn room that exclusively had porn parodies. The Sapornos, Bitanic, Seinfeld XXX
>>63171127
There was a store like that in NW Oklahoma City - they had the entire Russ Meyer catalogue, lots of Todd Browning, blaxploitation, Japanese monster movies, and what seemed like every French and Italian movie ever made. I assume it's no longer in business, but I learned a good deal about movies from what was in that store.
Who killed Hannibal?
>>63158648
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=__Ki5pVrTFM
>>63164513
Late Fees weren't a rip off. They stopped accruing once you hit Retail Value.
As someone who had to argue with you a decade ago, you're a fucking moron. Why would we let you keep it for free? Do you fucking call redbox when you don't stick the dvd back in the slot on time and bitch? You don't think rules should apply to you?
And for that one guy writing a show... You could leave notes on accts so that the next time they came in, you could read messages from the last person they dealt with
"Lies about late drop off, do not issue any more credits"
"Rude. Do not offer discounts again."
Sometimes, we'd just try to make eachother laugh.
"Scraggly and Pete"
"His hair!!!"
"Staring Problem"
"Beached Whale"
"Likes dick in his butt"
>>63164927
We have a local video store and it's profitable since people love the feeling of going and renting movies instead of using a online service.
The whole face-to-face experience is worth it every weekend.
>>63171400
Just youand I
>>63171581
I miss local video stores. We have Hasting's Entertainment, which among other things buys, sells and rents DVDs and BluRays - they have a fairly solid collection, plus they sell vinyl records, graphic novels and all sorts of weeaboo shit. I haven't seen a family-owned vid store in ages, though.
>image search
fucking knew it. i seriously dont know why i still come to this shithole
oasis video was my rental spot. still in business I think.
not pictured but its in the same strip mall
>>63159341
>That soccer mom renting a movie for his niece but cant remember the name.
Bullshit. Transfolk weren't accepted when Blockbuster was in full swing.
>tfw you live in the darkest timeline where NetFlix and RedBox won
RedBox only carries newer movies. NetFlix has such a dogshit selection that I don't even bother searching for the movies I wanna watch anymore because 95% of the time they aren't there
Seriously how the fuck are you legally supposed to watch older movies that aren't on NetFlix anymore?
>>63171815
you arent.
youre only supposed to consume new media or rereleases.
its the american way
>>63171815
>Seriously how the fuck are you legally supposed to watch older movies that aren't on NetFlix anymore?
Buy them on VHS on Amazon for pennies? That's what I do.
>>63172078
over the air tv channels play tons of these things, otherwise hit up hipster fiilm shops
>tfw when there's one video store left in my town.
>it's the first one that opened and outlasted all of the other chains
>>63171815
torrents.
>>63172248
how is that possible
>>63172341
maybe someone else bought it and they just didnt change the name.
the free market.
>be me 9 years old go to rent a game on friday.
>run into my best friend/neighbor which is weird cause his family is too cheap to ever rent games so i just come over to his house and game with him.
>15 person lineup moving slow as hell, me and him begin to play some tekken in the store.
> just before we leave my dad and his sikh dad are grilling the fuck outta the manager.
>when we get back home overhear dad explaining that both of them had the exact same bill of "$65" for a non-returned game/movie. they basically told block buster to suck their dongs for trying to run scams on them.
Everything went better then expected...i swear i didn't mean to leave pokemon snap ontop of the car...
>>63165818
Saskatoon fag?
>>63172472
I once left a copy of Bullet Proof Monk in a holiday home for TWO YEARS and ended up having to pay TWO HUNDRED POUNDS in late fees
thanks Chow Yun‑fat
>>63165656
>Not I assure you, WE'RE OPEN
One fucking job.
>>63167452
its code word for underage. people say 1997 in 2015 because then it would mean they just turned 18. its usually bullshit bait. Next year people will say "i was born in 1998 what is this?" and others will respond
COME ON ITS 2016
>>63171815
goodwill or savers or any shop like that
they have dozens of dvds, new and old for less than 2 bucks
you'll find some weird and bad shit, just like going to any video store
You can always give it to someone else, donate back, upload it, or sell it once you're done if you don't want to keep it
>>63172341
>>63172400
Same guy's been running it the whole time, apparently. Of course, he had more stores in the heyday.
http://www.duluthnewstribune.com/content/last-surviving-video-stores-duluth-outlasted-chains
>>63158648
Blockbuster for being the biggest rental fucks of all time. They jacked their prices up exorbitantly. Always twice the price of ANY local rental store. God, it sucked and I was glad when it died.
>>63172534
no lel
>>63171815
It's this thing called DVD. You got to sites like amazon and they have old movies and shows on dvd or even Blu-ray or 3D Blu-rays . You pay them and you get to legally enjoy older content .
It's that simple...
>Inb4 but anon I can just steal which is more simple
I said the other anon said legally tho...
>there used to be a video rental a few blocks away from me
>on a weekend we'd walk there and my parents would pick out some movies
>usually comedies or stuff like that because dad likes comedies
>I would gravitate to the 2 arcade machines
>Marvel vs Capcom 2 and Metal Slug
>the MvC machine was so loud you could hear the "Capcom Q sound" all over the store whenever the demo reset
where it was is now an animal hospital that has slowly swallowed up most of the storefronts on it's lot. the empty lot down the street from it got turned into a gas power plant years ago
the Blockbuster that we used to go to when the other place eventually closed, is now an Autozone. I remember playing Megaman Anniversary Collection there on the PS2 they had set up with it
I remember when they closed and sold everything. how sad that was. it was all so empty. I bought a dvd or two, that i could get my hands on.
man, RIP Blockbuster
>you saw Blockbuster die in your lifetime
>>63164630
My life honestly shit the bed when I left for uni at 18. It's been 5 years and I'm still not the same person (turned into a complete suicidal druggie). Good luck to you tho man. Even if you're meme'ing
>>63172869
What if I don't want to purchase them?
>>63173112
>What if I don't want to own them?
Than you don't own them unless you steal them.
>>63172971
This to be honest familia
>>63158648
I think I killed Blockbuster when I rented Saved! and never returned it. They green lit all kinds of projects expecting the funding to come when I finally paid my late fees but I never showed and their debtors came to collect.
I'm sorry, guys.
>>63172971
>My life honestly shit the bed when I left for uni at 18
Do you even english Based Dank Tyron ?
>>63169991
>>63171815
>>63170115
>he seriously doesn't know about netflix disc rental
they havealmosteverything. Are you fags really all that new that you never heard of netflix until it was a streaming service?
>>63159341
>Blast Force
the fuck. do you mean blast corps?
thx yify
10/10
>>63159035
They did, but it launched like 2 years too late and completely half-assed.
>>63159035
>>63174484
Blockbuster actually had a partnership with Enron back in 2000 to start a video on demand service over Enron's fibre network, but like everything Enron did it was a 100% scam.
Blockbuster lost a shit ton of money and scraped the idea for a while.
So they were ahead of the curve by quite a bit but like most industries the first to market/innovate isn't always the one that prospers.
>you will never enter a blockbuster during a summer day and browse the horror section, looking for the most gruesome cover, again
>>63165969
>tfw i had that phone back in like 2005
>>63174829
y is doggo sad ;_;
>>63172869
>2005
>Drive to Blockbuster, rent a few movies, back home within 40 minutes
>2015
>Buy movies at full price plus shipping, wait 4 business days for them to arrive
Isn't progress great? And shit, even if you don't care about actually buying them and just torrent it you're still limited to a certain popularity level especially if you want it fast.
>>63164927
We had a local video store like that too. Was great. They sort of survived when the Blockbuster moved in a couple miles from it. Got to rent and see so many movies I would have never even knew about because of that store. They did do 3 day rental, but you'd get money credited to your account if you returned the vhs early.
>>63158648
The blockbuster in my town only closed this year. I live in Australia so I assume shutting them takes longer than in the USA.
>>63175024
netflix disc rental
>massive selection
>ships in 2-3 days
>$8/month
>>63175024
>2015
>rent, purchase or stream a film instantly from any number of digital services, for free if you choose to
>get multiple DVD's sent to your house at once and get a new one sent after you return one
What the fuck are you bitching about
>>63173543
Just canceled mine, was a good resource when i had too many notices from pirating and when the library didn't have what i was looking for.
http://www.yelp.com/biz/four-star-video-vineland
there's still a mom and pop video store in my town
i don't understand how
>>63175119
I'm in Canada.
>>63175024
>Redbox
>$1 rentals
Yes, so bad.
>>63158648
I remember my family usually avoided Blockbuster in favor of the Hollywood Video chain. Our Blockbuster only really seemed to rotate through the more recent releases, was more expensive, and had a crappier selection overall. Redbox is a pretty shitty trade-off, though. Would have definitely taken Blockbuster over that garbage.
>>63175179
Its only filled with movies from the current year though.
>>63164927
>Blockbuster introduced the 3-day rental for $3
I never saw an issue in this. When I was a kid my mom would pick up a couple movies on friday, we'd watch them whenever and bring them back monday
>>63175179
>Redbox
>Anything close to the selection a full store had
Did people really go to Blockbuster just for the latest releases? They never wandered around for 20 minutes looking at box covers and and picking things that looked interesting?
I don't know how, but where I am living now there's still a local video rental store in business. Called Video Memories. Never been in it, maybe I should sometime.
>>63175166
nice dubs ryan
>tfw you'd "accidentally" walk past the adult section
>be in college
>looking for a summer job
>apply at local Blockbuster down the street from my apartment complex
>have me go across the fucking city to another Blockbuster just for a fucking interview
>manager says to just browse while everyone else arrives
>standing around for almost 30 minutes
>ask what's going on
>manager says interview started 10 minutes ago and forgot to notify me
>enter interview late
>couple of smug film school dropouts conducting interview
>they ask nonsensical questions unrelated to the job
>answer as best as I can anyhow
>at this point know I'm not getting the job
>wasted an entire day for nothing
>just a month after the local Blockbusters all shutting down
>already have work as customer support tech earning 2.5 times what I would've earned at Blockbuster
>walk in to buy some cheap vidya
>mfw I see those same two assholes at the cashier desk looking as if their world ended
>>63175724
>>63165710
Fuck man, I bought one of my favourite games, Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door, brand new from my local Blockbuster that is now a pub. I even re-played it for the umpteenth time over the summer. It's weird to look at that game on my shelf and remember that I bought it at Brokebuster.
>>63159568
This is 100% accurate. I was a closing supervisor for my store when it closed in 2013. I actually got to close on its last rental and store closing sale day (Which was a fucking day before my birthday.)
It was awesome working at that store, I still drive by that old store everyday.
>>63175754
>>63175724
samefag harder dude
>2005
>be 17 year old pretentious filmhead
>smoke pot all the time
>go into work baked with coworkers twice my age
>talk about films with them all shift
>recommend films to customers
>steal those weird candies blockbuster always had
>went to college and then the store closed
that was the best time of my life and i'm glad i was able to experience it.
truly the greatest job i've ever had
>>63174829
To be fair BBV only had the main stream hollywood flicks on their shelves. You wouldn't find something like Killer Klowns form Outer Space or the movie DOLLS at a BB video store.
>>63176030
Not true, at least for me. My Blockbuster has a massive horror and sci-fi section. I'm guessing because the manager was really into that stuff... he was also a Juggalo. Hell, that's where I first saw Dolls.
>>63175024
Don't pay attention to those other hipster anons in their early 20s. I get what you're saying anon.
If anything it gave you a reason to go outside.
Not many stores out there that make you wanna leave your house sometimes. Blockbuster was one of them. Just one less store that I used to enjoy going into that I'll never be able to go into again.
>>63175179
>>$1 rentals
Not to be nitpicky but it's no longer $1 anymore.
I picked up image related last week and it was like $1.58
>>63176161
I'm not sure if the Blockbusters in my area ever even lasted long enough to have Blu-rays. I just remember VHS cassettes, which were gradually pushed into their own smaller section of the store as DVDs took over. By the time my local Blockbusters were liquidizing their assets, it was entirely DVDs that were on sale.
>>63162024
I can't imagine the people that would go to blockbuster right when it opened to rent a new movie and fuck everyone else over
>few years ago
>cousin and I check out a blockbuster that's having a going out of business sale
>as soon as we walk in the employees are all over us, practically begging us to buy something, anything
>shake them off and look around
It was literally nothing but waist high piles of shit like Mars Needs Moms. It was a huge store, and we were probably in there for less then 10 minutes.
It used to be like an outing going to the video store. Would spend a good 45 mins or so browsing the covers and renting 10 weekly movies on cheap days.
>>63158648
The internet
>>63168625
This. And once they got real competition they had to cut their prices in half, sometimes by 75%. You're gonna bleed as a company when you're making half of the profit you used to and you aren't gaining any new customers.
>>63177115
Yeah no.
>>63159568
>>63177462
All of that shit is basically inconsequential if they were actually making money. They weren't. The Internet destroyed their business model.
>>63176161
You are so blinded by nostalgia that you forget how they fucked you with late fees. How can you rent a video saturday night and it is late if its not back before sunday at noon? How is that 'a day'? Fuck blockbuster.
>tfw 30
>tfw only rented videos from super markets
>>63165580
>>63165656
I'm from near that area, been in that story many times. A best friend of mine worked there a while, we used to grab all new anime on release between like 2001-2005.
>>63164630
>>63171023
fuck Kikerosoft
>>63171689
thinking the same thing
>>63171815
torrent or go to Best Buy / FYE? Walmart? they have old shit
>>63172570
>TWO HUNDRED POUNDS
so what, like 6 bucks?
>>63165818
Family Video is such shit, they thrive off the demographic of poor trash who either haven't stepped into the 21st century or cannot afford to.
All of their help work less than twenty hours a week and they will harass you and even your family or boss (I personally have had this happen) if somebody is late on a return. A boss getting call about some fucking DVD being a day or two late is what pissed me right the fuck off with them and I never went back.
still goin strong. blockbuster was literally across the street and is now a mattress store
>>63178126
>still goin strong
But how?
>>63163644
Brisbane?
>>63178126
I see a fellow St. Catharines fag is here. I went in there, huge selection and it's great.
>>63175779
I wish there was a pub where my local blockbuster was. It's just sad space now.
>tfw it's a Friday night and you get to go to Blockbuster for movies and vidya
It was just extremely comfy as hell wandering around looking at all of the movie covers. The place had a distinct smell too.
>>63177514
>>63177542
If you weren't a piratefag I'd respect half of what you have to say. Some 20 something born in the late 90s wants to tell me how fucked life used to be before he was even born mean while he steals everything he wants and claims the moral high ground.
>>63164630
>DVDs are now "the old fashioned way"
damn kids get off my lawn
>>63178237
I used to rent VHS from Blockbuster. I've gotten into arguments with the employees because they were idiots about their dropboxes and made sure not to empty them till after 12, so they could fuck a bunch of people with late fees. They were crooked and generally a shitty business model. They had no competition for a decade so they got away with this and they became arrogant.
I'm glad Blockbuster died.
>>63178146
not sure, probably what an anon said earlier, some people just like the feeling of going into a place and renting something. or just old people who dont know how to use a computer
>>63178170
represent!
>>63158648
Check this out nigs:
http://www.cnet.com/news/blockbuster-is-back-10-new-stores-to-open-this-year/
>>63170666
I need more info about this hipster chicken doe. What neighborhood?
>>63178292
>Update: Dish Network Corporation has got back to me and it looks like the story is bunk. A spokesperson told me: "Contrary to media reports, Dish Network Corporation and Blockbuster L.L.C. have not entered into any licensing agreement for the Blockbuster brand in the UK, nor has it made any statements on the subject." The original statement has also been removed from the website of Crash Entertainment Group. I've been chasing Crash for clarification and will update this story if I hear back. The original story follows.
>>63178291
>not sure, probably what an anon said earlier, some people just like the feeling of going into a place and renting something
Indeed fellow St. Catharines fag, nothing like getting out of the fucking house and looking at a a great selection and picking something to watch.
Staying inside the house and streaming it is fucking retarded. I'd rather be active and go into the video store. It's an experience.
>tfw you buy the big popcorn and mnms as you leave with your rentals...
I gotta go there again soon now.
>>63174783
So Enron killed the american economy AND Blockbuster? Why aren't these guys labeled as terrorists?
how is there not a market for video and game rentals? It still seems like it'd be useful.
Here you go guys:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3TrPwOrf4sM
There's still a Blockbuster literally two blocks from my house.In Mexico
>>63164630
C'mon nigga, I'm not even much older than you, but I get nostalgic when people talk about Blockbuster. Spending over an hour with my brothers arguing about which movie we should get.
It also sucks that there isn't really anywhere to rent international or arthouse movies anymore. The one last place in my hometown closed recently, it kinda forces people to torrent shit, cause who had fourty bucks to fucking buy a Criterion release or import movies.
>>63178361
Me and the bae did this last week. Walked into a Family Video and browsed so we could find something to watchCouldn't decide on anything enough to bother spending money on it. Left without renting anything and went home to torrent/stream shit instead anyways
>>63178371
>having to rely on shitty redbox to try out games I don't want to pay 60 dollars for
ree as fuck 2bh
>>63178401
Jesus Christ.
