What went wrong?
They didn't buy Netflix when they had the opportunity.
Didn't hop onto the streaming bandwagon before it was hot.
Netflix, as you know, was originally was just a movie rental service where you got them through the mail. They had foresight and realized that with people progressively getting faster internet speeds, a non-physical subscription service would be much more lucrative.
Millennials are lazy.
My local store was horrible with managing their inventory. You could steal shit from them and they would just assume that it had been rented out to somebody and they didn't have a record of it.
I know because I would steal things from them and then ask if they had that thing.
>>71928066
Technology
>>71928066
My local kino sanctuary closed last month, the pain is still hurting
>>71928147
>leto.jpg
>>71928091
They would have driven it into the ground I'm sure.
>>71928147
What a mad man, moms gonna freak.
![enhanced-buzz-23651-1364851002-11[1].jpg](https://i.imgur.com/dEtipMF.jpg "enhanced-buzz-23651-1364851002-11[1].jpg")
00s nostalgia general?
>>71928066
They wouldn't have gone out of business if they didn't have shitty business practices. They never jumped on the streaming bandwagon when they should have
Streaming as a product and the fact it's easier to control access to media that way.
QUICK
You are going to Blockbuster on a Friday night and mommy says you can rent TWO movies and get TWO snack items
What are you getting?
(Free bucket of popcorn if the movies aren't complete shit)
Blocbuster sucked.
Shitty selection in on older titles, and they didn't even have an erotic thriller section.
Working at VIP Video as a teenager were was the best job ever. I stole so many hardcore porn tapes.
>>71928281
That fucking single serving bag of pickle
Does Netflix still do the mail rental service?
>>71928281
Can the movies be modern-day releases?
>>71928319
Not to my knowledge. I haven't used it years.
>>71928281
Streets of Rage 2 and Under Siege.
Gummy bears as well.
>>71928311
They still sell those at Publix but they aren't as garlicky
>>71928334
No jerkoff, you take your Biodome and Weekend at Bernies and you enjoy it
>>71928281
I'm so sick of you suburban utopia dwellers of the days gone past. I was lucky to get a movie OR a game let alone even consider a snack.
>>71928319
Yeah there's a lot of movies that you can rent that aren't on their streaming
>>71928392
fucking richfags
i got to look at games while my mom picked out one of their 2 dollar movies
i maybe got to rent one game once every couple months
and we never got snacks or soda
>>71928379
In that case: Phantom Menace and Empire Strikes Back on VHS, with Twizzlers and crispy M&M's.
>>71928392
>being poor
LMAO
AY YO KIDS DON'T EVEN ASK FOR POPCORN WHEN WE GET TO TO THE MOVIES...HERE I MADE YOU THESE BROWN PAPER SNACK BAGS WITH DOLLA STO CANDY STICK EM IN YOUR SHIRTS
>>71928444
check'd
How does this manage to stay in business? The one near my house is packed on Friday nights.
>>71928392
My childhood was the best. Millionaire parents just threw money at me, and I was buying and renting videogames and movies at a rate that none of my friends could keep up with.
It allowed me to have acute kinotaste in many forms of media.
>>71928483
They rent porn
>>71928483
The porn section maybe?
>>71928516
>millionaire parents
>renting games
>>71928483
They are the last holdout. I always look over and give the store a knowing nod when i drive by.
>>71928483
Yeah okay, Chris Stuckmann.
I honestly think Netflix is some sort of mass delusion that infected America, and then the coup de gras was internet piracy.
If it wasn't for both of those existing I think Blockbuster might just be merely a struggling company.
Hastings went bankrupt recently. If noone buys them off an auction they're gonna close down.
>>71928546
Yeah I had money, but unless EGM and GamePro were giving out rave reviews, I wasn't gonna waste it.
>>71928593
I heard mine was bought out but they're still open. They discontinued a bunch of programs.
>>71928439
>being this poor
The family video near us when I was a kid rented playstation games for 50 cents a night
I would literally just recycle the cans and bottles we had at the house for game and movie rentals and ride over to the store on my bike whenever I felt like it
>>71928483
No clue, the one I went to like 20 years ago is still open and rentals are still only a buck, maybe 2 for new releases
>>71928593
If that happens Im going to the one up the street and buying a ton of books and dvds
>>71928483
came here to post this
in flyover America, they live on
>>71928483
>free kids movies
>lenient late fees, often waved
>cheap rental prices
>porn
>>71928516
My dad worked at a university so I got to hang out in the game lab and test new games before they even came out as well as having access to 50,000 films, television shows and other visual media from the library
>>71928850
i would let abella danger do horrible things to me
>>71928832
I've already spent 70 bucks there today. Sad that it's closing.
>>71928066
Netflix had more selections than your local blockbuster
No late fees with Netflix
Netflix basically started streaming
Blockbuster was behind on every step
>>71928147
No wonder why AJ worked at Blockbuster. They have no standards.
Same thing that went wrong with horse for transportation, dial up internet, taxis, buying music etc
>>71928917
you and me both, brother. you and me both.
>>71928147
who /devilish/ here
>>71928243
Remember me?
>>71928281
Army of Darkness and Aliens
Bag of popcorn and peanut butter M&M's.
>>71928593
i work part time at one. supposedly FYE has made a bid. but who knows, they may buy it just to liquidate. certainly close down a percentage of the stores.
>>71928066
>>71928850
we have netflix in the midwest too though. everyone i know has it.
>>71928483
They have a different business model. They purchase the land on which they build and then rent the other retail spaces out to other businesses which drive foot traffic like fast food and restaurants. I wouldn't know the figures but I imagine a large percentage of their revenue comes from commercial property leasing. Video stores can certainly still be profitable today, they just need slim overheads and to be in an area with a high demographic of poor people and terrible internet access.
>>71928066
Piracy dinndu nuffin. Cant prove anythang.
>>71928945
blockbuster was offered the sale of Netflix when it was burgeoning. They refused. Perhaps because of lack of foresight or they couldn't generate enough liquid cash after being stuck with Viacom's debt. Regardless, it was a massive blunder.
>>71929097
Remember these?
>>71928444
>crispy M&Ms
Confirmed for patrician taste.
>>71928243
That's not funny. My bother died that way.
>>71930344
I disagree. That makes it funnier.
>>71930344
>tfw you're too oldfag and no one gets the reference without googling.
>>71928281
Who rents a movie, I'm getting a game nigga
>>71928281
Can I give one one of the snacks or one of the movies if I'm having a friend staying the night?please mommy?
>>71930506
>go to store to rent a playstation game
>get home only to realize your friend borrowed your memory card and you can't save the game
Some of my best moments were during nights like that.
>>71930159
i'm the anon who works at hastings. it's weird, our store is pretty profitable and it's mainly from the rentals. it's not even an issue of internet, most people seem like normies who don't know an option besides redbox or renting on itunes.
but most of our base is definitely lower income. i imagine they have maxed out credit and so they can't use netflix or redbox or anything like that. they come in with a herd of children and rent a few kids movies and buy some popcorn.
the best customers though are the old men who come in literally every day and rent a new release DTV action movie. usually seem like lonely old men who live alone. if you ask them about their rentals they don't even seem to enjoy them. we had to ban one of these regulars from the store when he started cursing out one of my employees. supposedly he cried when we told him he couldn't come back.
>>71930295
I was never really into them desu
>>71930683
aww c'mon he's just a lonely old man. If he apologizes then can't you let him back in?
>>71930683
>theres people out there that buy action movies to watch so they can drown out their crying
>>71928066
I dont really miss it but i do have fond memories of going there renting games and movies along with buying junk food.
>>71931178
well to be fair, it's really to protect the employee. the dude is/was an asshole anyway, always starting shit and being rude. i was always super nice to him and so he was nice to me. smother him with kindness.
but the employee, i don't remember what she said but he went off calling her a bitch and saying "shave your mustache" and all kinds of other shit. so from a management standpoint, you have to protect her and give her a safe workplace environment.
>>71931394
Did she shave her mustache though?
>>71928119
*puts your mouth on my dick*
>>71931601
*unzips dick*
>>71932146
*teleports behind you*
*unzips katana*
they didnt go digital
>>71932359
They did, just way too late.
>>71928281
>TWO snack items
Fatass detected, just eat what we have at home.
>>71928243
>tfw these got banned at my high school because kids were heely-ing to class and down the halls all day
Good times.
>>71928066
>grow up in the 2000s
>this one massive relic of an 80s video store was still in business
>they finally close in like 2009
Who /videoezy/ here
>>71932529
In Calgary? Casablanca's?
>>71932603
Sorry, I only /hollywoodvideo/
Normalization of the internet ruined everything
>>71932835
fuck, casablanca's was awesome. i remember when i was little and i had to walk down the horror section to get to another part of the store i'd close my eyes because the dvd covers were spooky
then i moved and all the blockbusters closed down. when i went back to that part of the city, i was sad to see it close too
costs less than 2 dollars to rent a movie.
>>71934232
I also get cheap ps3 games here. One thing I want to add is that the snacks are atrocious. Small and pathetic, don't even stock gummy sweets and m&m's.
>>71928243
I had a gf that wore those everywhere despite being a sophomore in high school.
she was the best.
>>71928309
no shit, and they blockbuster was hella expensive too
>>71928483
And they keep opening new stores....I think it could be a money laundering operation
>>71928117
I heard they did try to ride on it, but it was too soon to change the gear. Meanwhile they didn't see the wave of the streaming got bigger.
>>71928483
It's a front for drug running and slavery rings.
>>71928914
Funny you should mention because my dad worked at McDonalds so I got to hang out in the burger lab and test new sauces before they even came out as well as having access to 50,000 fries, shakes and other menu items from the kitchen
>>71928917
Like cuck you in front of her basketball american co-star?
>>71928147
Are you a nigger or white-trash?
>>71930295
got me
>>71928281
My Blockbuster (considering I live in the middle of fucking nowhere and it was tiny) had an AMAZINGLY well-stocked foreign/arthouse section.
So with that in mind, films:
>La Balance
>Kwaidan
Snacks:
>Peanut M&Ms
>More Peanut M&Ms
>>71928483
They bank on nostalgia-addled hipsters and faggot /tv/ buttheads.
>childhood mom n' pop video and game rental store closed down right when I graduated highschool
I rented so many games from there over the years, from n64 to xbox 360. all sorts of movies and etc and they always had tons of snacks and shit available
it was like the last nail in my childhood's coffin
i just want to put a quarter in the gumball machine again and get the white gumbball that gave you a free rental
>>71932603
One near by me is bretty gud and still has plenty of people. They had to move to a way smaller store like two years ago though. The big old store they used to be in is still empty.
>>71928945
>Netflix had more selections than your local blockbuster
it really doesn't bugertard
>>71932603
nope they all closed down
>>71928593
worked there for years. greatest job i've ever had, in terms of the people i worked with, but john marmaduke can suck a big fat one, even though he's long gone
i'm throwing a bonfire the day they go out of business
even if someone buys them out (haven't they exchanged hands like five or six times now since they originally sold?) it's only a matter of time
soon
>>71928281
My brother has brought back so much American candy from his holidays there and the only one I've ever liked is Swedish Fish
>>71930683
>that one guy who rents a softcore porn and brings it back a few hours later
>tweakers coming in and selling shit they lifted from walmart an hour ago
>porn mags always a warzone
>sorting through buybacks and finding a crack rock
>the futility of attempting to alpha any section in the store
one time a guy took a shit in our music department and left the turd laying there on the carpet. makes sense because that place is a toilet
>>71929097
Oh man some of my best hack shoes were adios
get back while i jester
Torrents won
Fuck video stores.
>>71934896
cool
>>71928850
WI isn't a flyover state buddy.
>>71930465
I know that feel bro. No one remembers the great references, just edgy memes.
>>71928066
They ignored Netflix instead of trying to buy it or develop a competing service.
The fact that it was bought out by hedge fund retards who thought it would be an infinite dividend dispenser that would not require any reinvestment into the business didn't help either.
>>71928483
Big in the Midwest where technology hasn't advanced far enough for Netflix.
>>71936956
the standards have changed. i understand buybacks used to be accepted with a wink and a smile from crackheads because buybacks created employee hours. that's been abolished, so i turn anyone with stolen shit or whatever away. one of my favorite parts of the job.
porn mags you're right. some dickhead smashed our window with a hammer and now we have mags closed off. we say it's because there's glass in the magazine pages, but really its because we're all tired of dealing with that.
>>71942910
>porn magazines
It's before my time but why.
If your at your pc desk you have both hands free to wacky your willy anyway you wish. The logistics of needing to hold a magazine bothers me.
Not to mention the cost factor.
>>71928483
Rent 3, Get one Free/ Rent one game, Get one free deals, Prices being not shitty, Late fees being way more lax, not requiring a credit/debit card to rent, Pornos, and candy deals.
Ask a Family Video employee anything?
I can tell you what Killed Blockbuster also.
>>71942994
>When u large pizza and free rental.
You guys are ok.
>store closing sale
>still fucking 9.99$ plus tip for a fucking previously viewed dvd
>>71943016
Those ones with the Marcos are the best, but ALWAYS fucking packed. I don't work at one of those sadly. Real talk, use that Pizza and Movie deal often,Also, there is going to be a deal on that Half Off membership very fucking soon, so don't renew until this coming tuesday. Thank me later.
What was the last piece of media you bought/rented from there?
For me it wasTekken Tag Tournament 2 for the Wii U
>>71942980
old guys usually. tradition and comfort, i imagine. they're like $10 an issue now.
since we can't donate porn, we have to throw them in the garbage when theyre back issues and all that. so i have to pen the seal on each issue and tear the cover off to mail all the cover barcodes back. it's weird because the magazine formatting looks from another time just with recent pornstars.
>>71928066
the fact that you needed more paperwork and ID to get a blockbuster membership than a bank account or student loan
>>71930683
>redbox
Redbox has always been shit though.
>>71928224
Well if they did then it still wouldn't be around to completely steal their market.
next to my gym
>>71943342
Where is that at?
>>71928392
what retarded parent would buy snacks and soda at fuckin blcokbuster where that shit is three times as high as the rite-aid next door. goddamn morons
>>71928546
This. I know a surgeon who makes 700, 000 a year and they buy movies at 20 bucks a pop like its candy often accidently buy the same movie. They throw extras at me whenever I see them no millionare would be retarded enough to rent movies and risk late fees esp in the 90s
>>71928066
>Good games/movies constantly sold out on weekends
>$6 for two nights (or worse)
>late fees
>rewind fees
>piss stains all over the floor
Fuck anyone who was nostalgic for that crap.
