I recently recieved an email from Blockbuster letting me know that they were now charging more for all tiers of their Blockbuster.com delivery service. This upsetting news was immediately follwed by larger bold letters that reassured  me MY SUBSCRIPTION PACKAGE WILL NOT BE AFFECTED.  Last night I found out they were lying to me. My subscription offers me unlimited rentals a month, one at a time, through their delivery service. I can return the films to the Blockbuster store and use the return envelope as a coupon for a free movie rental that doesn’t affect my one at a time package. They also give me a free coupon every month for a movie or game which is what brings me to last night.
Driving home I decided to see if the constantly under-stocked shelves of my local Blockbuster might, for once, have some worthwhile video games. I knew those assholes charge 8.50 to rent a PS3 game for 5 days but wasn’t concerned about picking up something mediocre from their thin selection- I had a coupon in my online account!
My local Blockbuster has laptops locked to Blockbuster.com by the register that allow you to log in to your account and quickly pull up your free rental coupon . I do this every single month. After fumbling around my account page for 15 minutes, positive I couldn’t see the coupon that’s usually right in front of me, I asked for assistance from the manager. He clicked here and he clicked there but couldn’t find my coupon anywhere.
 He told me that new accounts, in addition to getting charged more, were actually going to get less for their money. The free rental coupon has disappeared from the Blockbuster packages entirely. I thought my package wasn’t going to be affected, but I see now they only meant in terms of price. I’m glad they didn’t bother to put that gem in bold letters.
These are all conclusions I had to come up with myself since the manager kept turning around and walking away in the middle of our conversation because he couldn’t do anything. He offered me a free movie rental but I told him I wanted to rent a game. He just shrugged and said there was nothing he could do and that he didn’t have any answers. Awesome.ÂÂ
What makes this incredibly frustrating situation worse is that the manager told me all complaints and issues had to be filed online with an email…Excuse me? You’re telling me you don’t have ANY form I can fill out in a Blockbuster store to deal with issues over at Blockbuster.com? It really isn’t shocking to me that they had such a dismal quarter and are constantly losing customers to Netflix.
I figured that instead of  sending the an email, since it looked like the levels of bullshit within this company are great in number and density, I would just file this online complaint in the greater online universe.
Fuck you, Blockbuster. You lied to me about not changing my subscription that I’ve held with you for over 2 years. You hired a nice but dumb manager who doesn’t know that the customer is always right and couldn’t even begin to offer me any kind of answers or solutions. I hope Netflix buries your out of date movie rental system and your 80 year old exectuvies need to hit up the Craigslist for a new job.ÂÂ
PS- If this article really spreads and anyone at Blockbuster corporate offices reads this, feel free to call the Friday night manager at your Sherman Oaks branch @ (818) 501-8335 to thank him for not giving me a free game rental and avoiding yet another round of bad online buzz. You can also thank him for losing a lifetime customer, but you obviously care less about the individuals and more about the company. ÂÂ
135 Responses
Vic
August 18th, 2007 at 7:03 pm
1That is a shitty deal man. I hope it gets sorted.
Jason
August 19th, 2007 at 7:35 am
2I got the same message. I compained, and here is the response I got:
Thanks for contacting BLOCKBUSTER Online Customer Care.
It is my pleasure to be of service to you. Thank you for your time in notifying us. Like all retail businesses, we must periodically review our pricing structure. In introducing a wider range of subscription plans, we considered a number of factors including the number of in-store exchanges on a given account. We’re giving our most frequent renters like yourself the option of either continuing with unlimited in-store exchanges at a higher price point or moving to a plan where the number of in-store exchanges is fixed if you’d like to continue with the same rate.
We feel we are still delivering a great consumer value and encourage you to continue your membership by selecting one of the new plans we offer. You can find the details of what is available via “My Account” in the “Subscription Plan” area. Please remember that if you do not select one of the new plans we have to offer before your next regular billing date, we will not be automatically renewing your membership. Thank you very much for your inquiry.
——–
…and my reply to them:
You are not being of service to me. You are telling me that I should shut up and enjoy being raped, and I won’t stand for it. You are telling me that I should accept less service for the same price and be happy about it. Are you fracking kidding me?
Like all customers who are unhappy with the treatment they receive from a retail business, I am forced to take the only action I have available to demonstrate my dissatisfaction: I will never spend another penny with Blockbuster or any of it’s affiliates. I will never rent from your brick and mortar stores again (Hollywood Video, here I come). I will stop buying previously viewed titles from you as well. I will strongly encourage everyone that I know who currently uses your online service (many of whom do so on my recommendation) to do likewise. That blog that I’ve been thinking about starting, I just found a good topic to start with.
I sincerely hope that all of your existing customers will make the same choice, so that you will realize that this is not the way to treat the people who provide you with revenue. Biting the hand that feeds is never a good strategy.
It is only recently that Blockbuster has seen the kind of subscriber growth necessary to finally compete with Netflix. I hope you understand that your pricing changes put that growth in serious jeopardy. Feel free to contact me when you have come to your senses, but until then, this is “goodbye� and “go f*ck yourself.�
dexx
August 19th, 2007 at 7:55 am
3man good on ya, spread the word
Justin Kulikowski
August 19th, 2007 at 8:00 am
4I received the same email message. Look more carefully (at the URLs) — it’s a phishing email and points to http://bbonline.quris.net/blockbusteronline/?yzDLmc.hmV1K.3Tcuv3.fPE8pTy&http://blockbusteronline.qrs1.net/s/r?l=145309.
Sure hope you didn’t actually login after clicking one of those links…
Ross
August 19th, 2007 at 8:00 am
5I gave up on giving Blockbuster my money long ago. I used to work for them for several years as a part-time store manager and got to see plenty of the behind the scenes stuff like this
I’m a firm Netflix and Red Box customer. Case in point. I tried to use Red Box’s online renting service … dug around on their website, found four movies I wanted to see, paid for the rental from a box at a local McDonald’s. Walked up the street to McDonald’s to find out that the box was down. Not working. Kaputt.
Called Red Box. Got a machine.
Went to another Red Box at a local grocery and rented the movies I wanted.
Emailed Red Box when I got home. Nothing.
Called the next day. Machine.
Emailed again … and finally, they wrote back … but they gave me five free rental codes. This is great since it actually covers the four rentals I tried to get at their busted box, but takes into account the little bit of effort I had to go through to rent my movies.
What’s more? Red Box movies are only a buck a day. Sweet.
If you have these boxes in your area, use them.
And sign up with Netflix immediately.
And look for all of the free Blockbuster movie rentals you can. I’ve still rented from BBV, just haven’t paid for a movie rental in years.
Beck
August 19th, 2007 at 8:05 am
6Blockbuster blows
seth
August 19th, 2007 at 8:05 am
7It is true that Blockbuster lied to people, and they shouldn’t have, but you are such a whiny baby.
D T
August 19th, 2007 at 8:07 am
8I stopped using blockbuster years ago. Expensive and too much hassle…. and I get the impression I’m not the only one who thinks so. I’ll stick to downloading.
James
August 19th, 2007 at 8:08 am
9Netflix
Kevin
August 19th, 2007 at 8:16 am
10The customer isn’t always right, but the manager should have treated you better for sure!
Jacob
August 19th, 2007 at 8:20 am
11I have had my BB account since the early days (I get 2 free coupons that apply towards anything including games.), and other than the price increases, my account hasn’t changed at all. Although I am one of the few lucky ones, this still isn’t fair.
Awww so sad
August 19th, 2007 at 8:28 am
12Is this some sort of dumb joke?
Awww I don’t have a free rental anymore boo hoo. Your complaints here are completely stupid. Lets review shall we?
“They also give me a free coupon every month for a movie or game”
I think give was the key word there. Who said that the coupon was part of the package anyway? Did anywhere it say that the coupon was always going to be there? If you had this for 2 years you should be happy they gave you 2 years worth of free coupons on top of the service you were paying for.
“the manager kept turning around and walking away because he couldn’t do anything.”
It took you 15 minutes to figure out that there was no coupon any longer then you complain about the store manager who has no control over blockbuster.com does. Maybe you should wake up and finally figure out that the manager had nothing to do with your problem what so ever. When your dealing with any large company they are always going to be changing things around and leaving people out of the loop at some point. Granted that they should have sent the manager a memo about it but you can’t complain about someone that is just doing their job its not their fault that you don’t have a complementary coupon anymore.
“complaints and issues had to be filed online with an email”
I think this little comment was what got me to write this whole thing.
So your telling me that you would rather have some piece of paper that would be filled out at the store then mailed through the postal service and finally arrive at the blockbuster.com office? (yes run on sentence and I have no punctuation … sue me) Why would you want to do that when if you email them they know exactly who you are and it gets there right when you send it to them instead of days later. If it makes you feel better you can write a letter to the main office of blockbuster if you felt compelled to. Who knows maybe your upset about the fact that they don’t supply some free paper and a pin for you since your so concerned over free stuff. Then you didn’t even send this complaint to blockbuster.com just to insure that your not taken care of. Not that its likely that you would be but you gave up like some sort of pansy. First you want to complain then you don’t even do it to them you just start crying to the internet.
How much of a cry baby can you be? If you don’t like the service any longer do what you plan to and stop using it. As for Netflix putting a stop to blockbuster that’s never going to happen. People stick with what they are comfortable with and blockbuster is a name that many people have rented from since they could rent movies to start with. Just look at AOL they are a crappy internet service but a lot of people feel comfortable with it and are willing to pay a lot more money for what they could get for cheaper and many times faster in some cases.
tb
August 19th, 2007 at 8:28 am
13FYI they charge so much for games because they are returned after 1 rent scratched because everyone considers it to be shitty rental property. Maybe if people took better care of things.
Spork
August 19th, 2007 at 8:29 am
14Switch to NetFlix, ya friggin’ whiny moron! Nobody is forcing to deal with Blockbuster and their limited selection.
Basically, just shut up and move on with your life. Seek some therapy and learn to cope already.
Chris
August 19th, 2007 at 8:29 am
15I just switched to BB from Netflix 2 months ago because the in-store deal was too much to pass up. But now that they are using the old bait-and-switch method on me, I’m outta here. Back to Netflix who never screwed me once.
BB can go straight to hell. I’m a fool for switching to them. I always knew they were a crappy company but I let myself get fooled. At least they showed their true colors.
James
August 19th, 2007 at 8:32 am
16gamefly
Spork
August 19th, 2007 at 8:32 am
17Chris, when has NetFlix NEVER ripped people off? From their horrible selections, to their weird return policy changes at noon, to just plain never having anything in stock. They have alway, and always will suck donkey balls. If you go to BB, you deserve what you get.
Chad V.
August 19th, 2007 at 8:37 am
18Yeah, Blockbuster sucks–stop the presses. Go Netflix.
Why are you trying to get the night manager in trouble for something that he didn’t create, has no control over, isn’t responsible for, and is very, very obviously a different segment of the business? There’s rules to what he can and can’t do–He’s no ‘obliged’ to give you free anything, you over-privileged baby–if anything, maybe, just maybe Blockbuster Online is. He helped you out as best he could. You’re obviously very upset at this life-changing event, and want to lash out, so you find the one flesh-and-blood human involved, who was ‘nice’ (your own words) and try to get the corporate hammer put on them. Hopefully, someday no one ever finds out where *you* work and has a customer service issue, hrm?
Darth Tater
August 19th, 2007 at 8:39 am
19Congratulations on figuring out what most people have known for years…Blockbuster is the worst company in history and all they care about is ripping people off.
Movie TV
August 19th, 2007 at 8:43 am
20You did get screwed over, you can still lodge a complaint by phone. Also don’t blame the manager of the story, it’s more then likely that he/she is stuck in a dead-end job and knows it- and they’re so low on the totem poll of power that they’re just handed down orders and told to not give explanations or else they can get fired.
Thomas N
August 19th, 2007 at 8:48 am
21I’ve had blockbuster online for a long time as I get 2 free rental coupons a month. When these price changes happened nothing happened to the price I paid or the number of coupons I received. Maybe if you weren’t such a whiny bitch they would’ve let you keep the coupons.
Shanoa
August 19th, 2007 at 8:57 am
22I just got the same message from blockbuster.com, but it says that I will still get my coupon for a free movie or game rental once a month.
So there must be something gumming up the works but the email says that I still get it, and when I checked for my coupon for the next month it’s there waiting for me.
Good luck getting things straightened out.
John
August 19th, 2007 at 8:58 am
23Blockbuster raised prices on me during the movie pass (1 at a time unlimited in-store rentals) and I decided I wasn’t going to be yanked around. I went to netflix then and never looked back. Blockbuster has a seemingly good deal going on with the in store return and rental while you wait - but then netflix made a change to my subscription: they responded to BB by LOWERING MY FEE. They also added online viewing, and I couldn’t be happier.
Blockbuster is a dinosaur; even if their offer looks enticing, now you see that they are quick to screw you after they get you. Stay away, let this company shrivel and die. I feel dirty every time I go into their stores actually. Buck Flockbuster indeed.
Michael B
August 19th, 2007 at 8:59 am
24I worked for Blockbuster about 3 years ago for the better part of a decade (from when I was a 16 year old part timer in 1996, until I graduated college in 2004 and had been a store mangager for 2 years…last few years college was part time)…If you call in and get the phone # for a district manager (especially in Florida) then give that person a calm call and and act calmly, you can usually find out when they are next scheduled to stop into that or another local store. Go meet them with that email and tell them, CALMLY, how you were treated you will usually get a nice account credit (we had to give $25-50). If a customer put up a good defense to being ignored or given anything other than perfect customer service they always got a credit.
MattH
August 19th, 2007 at 9:01 am
25Blah blah blah.
Blockbuster has sucked, does suck, and always will suck. I hate to say it, but why anyone deals with them to begin with is beyond me.
MattB
August 19th, 2007 at 9:04 am
26I just checked my blockbuster account and it appears that I still have my same plan for the same price (including coupon). Here is my current plan:
Your current plan…
*
BLOCKBUSTER Total Access Premium
*
$17.99 / month (plus taxes)
3 at-a-time, unlimited mailings
unlimited in-store free movie/discounted game exchanges
+1 FREE bonus Movie or Game Rental E-Coupon / Month
So i don’t know, maybe plans changed differently for different areas of the country?
demonio
August 19th, 2007 at 9:07 am
27yep, same here. I switched to netflix a couple of days ago
Ryan Pieszak
August 19th, 2007 at 9:07 am
28We, too, just got an email from BB saying they were increasing their price. We had been getting unlimited exchanges at the store, but now, we only get 5/mo. This was the ONLY REASON we stayed with BB. Now that it’s gone, the benefits Netflix offers are worth switching.
I know they did all the math. Obviously increasing the price will increasing profit per customer profit, but also will shrink the customer base. They must feel that it’s still the right thing to do. It’s funny that this email arrives just days after I read an article that Netflix will be lowering their prices.
Netflix, here I come!
Ryan Pieszak
August 19th, 2007 at 9:11 am
29@MattB
I had that exact plan, and mine still stays that. But I got an email from Blockbuster warning me that the change was coming at the end of the month. Check your junk mail folder. (where all Blockbuster emails should go)
Don’t feel left out, you’ll get screwed too.
Marc Savoy
August 19th, 2007 at 9:13 am
30Blockbuster Screwed Me Over and Needs to Feel My Pain
Feel your pain?
Whoa, are you unequipped for life.
Feel your pain?
You don’t know what pain is.
Feel your pain?
Why don’t you get a primer on what pain is.
Do you have the balls to expose yourself to what pain is?
Take a look at some of the images of returning soldiers from
Iraq, limbless,half their heads blown off,unable to speak, injuries
that would have ended their lives only a few years ago but survive
today on the miracles of advanced medical technology.
Grow up.
Ryan Pieszak
August 19th, 2007 at 9:17 am
31@Marc Savoy
He’s pissed at BB for changing his acount in a way he doesn’t like. He didn’t say anything about Iraq, the war, soldiers. Christ, way to jump to another topic for no good reason. If you have nothing to offer on this subject, move along.
John C
August 19th, 2007 at 9:21 am
32Sheesh, you are a whiny bitch. I just signed up with Blockbuster to spite you.
Jed
August 19th, 2007 at 9:27 am
33Blockbuster isn’t the only company playing fast and loose with the rules. Netflix tries to pull some sketchyness with it’s pricing plans too: http://www.jedfonner.com/2007/08/17/netflix-price-discrimination/
I’m a BB member and it’s not that I love BB, it’s just that I’m not so sure the grass is really greener on the other side. I got the price increase email too. But like some of the other posters, I still have access to my free monthly coupon.
Gotta say, this sounds like a snafu that could probably be easily fixed by contacting Blockbuster. Did you even bother to contact Blockbuster.com (not your local store mgr) before writing this? If so, what did they say? That’d be much more interesting than a rant about what basically sounds like a bug.
Chris
August 19th, 2007 at 9:34 am
34I HATE BLOCKBUSTER.
And now I am gonna tell all ppl I know
that they suck as much as Iran
Tahko Tetsujin
August 19th, 2007 at 10:23 am
35You know, this is exactly why I won’t do business with most video stores.
My rule of thumb now is the old “You are only as strong as your weakest link” mentality. By that logic, why would you do business with someone that hires sixteen year old illiterates that could tell you how much their favorite beer costs but couldn’t find Iraq on a map.
It’s that simple. It’s gotten to the point where I ask simple math questions before I ask them to help me.
Josh
August 19th, 2007 at 10:31 am
36The Blockbuster in store employees have nothing to do with the online prices and problems, they are told that if there are any problems to hand the customer an 800 number.. They where as-well told that the older customers would be grandfathered in with their old accounts not having to pay any additional fees…. It was surprising to them themselves when they found out that all accounts would be affected
Tahko Tetsujin
August 19th, 2007 at 10:36 am
37No the fact that they hire sixteen year old illiterates tells you that they have no concern for good customer service. Those people represent the company, if they don’t care, the company doesn’t care.
So in effect, those in store employees are Blockbuster and Blockbuster doesn’t care to keep them informed nor do the employees care to be informed.
So yeah, every cog makes the machine so those employees have everything to do with it.
When did people lose sight of that?
Tim
August 19th, 2007 at 10:37 am
38What the online service did was pretty shitty. As far as the actual store though, do you know if it’s a corporate store? There are a lot of franchises, and if this was one it would got a long way in explaining why they have no input with Blockbuster.com…they’re just not part of the same company.
Josh
August 19th, 2007 at 10:42 am
39Get your facts straight, you have to be 18 to work there… They put the CSR there to help with IN-STORE questions. They are guided to assist you with whatever questions blockbuster tells them to know how to answer, and occasionally they learn a few others. I agree that blockbuster doesn’t inform the lower level people enough… Its not that they don’t care though, its that they don’t know what to do because…. They don’t know everything! With this new plan coming out they told the employees to tell the old Total Access customers to not worry that they would be grandfathered in, how do you think they felt when they themselves found out that it wasn’t true?
Ernest
August 19th, 2007 at 10:45 am
40For those who think their plans won’t change, they will. it just takes some time for it to happen. I had the 17.99 plan and it is switching to the new 17.99 plan soon. But I promise, you aren’t special, it’ll change.
consumerist reader
August 19th, 2007 at 10:47 am
41you should send your story over tot he consumerist: http://www.consumerist.com/
Tahko Tetsujin
August 19th, 2007 at 10:57 am
42Josh. I live in Phoenix Arizona. I have seen many 16 year olds at blockbuster working there. Even if they were 18, that means that the idiot that can’t find his ass from a hole in the ground has two years worth of more bad excuses as to why they cannot help you.
Again, proving my point that you are only as good as your weakest link, you are going to bat for them and obviously don’t know the definition of customer service asides from what you can copy/paste online.
Have a day kid.
tdawg
August 19th, 2007 at 10:58 am
43i received the same message from BB, needless to say that is the end of BB subscription for me. i think Netflix is the way to go…..
d0x
August 19th, 2007 at 11:06 am
44You dont have to worry about Netflix destroying Blockbuster. They already have, what you are seeing now is a company gulping down its last breathes and instead of doing whatever possible to keep what few customers they have happy they are just pissing them off.
There is nothing Blockbuster can do to stop its death spiral, the companies brand has been ruined by years of angering there customers with terrible service, prices, and movie availability as well as their total BS no late fee policy.
Just move over to Netflix now, they are cheaper, you get your movies in a day and if you ever have any problems their customer service is top notch and no im not a shill for netflix lol, im just a satisfied customer who also happens to hate Blockbuster Video.
Matthew
August 19th, 2007 at 11:07 am
45The EXACT same thing happened to me last night. I looked for about 45 min on the site before determining they screwed me over. Thanks a lot BlockBuster
absentspace
August 19th, 2007 at 11:09 am
46That sucks. I’m still getting my ecoupons and unlimited instore exchanges, though I’m on the three at a time unlimited plan. I never received an email and was only made aware of changes through a poster in my local store (which is 10 to 15 minutes away by car). I live in Arlington, VA, where Blockbuster has closed most of its stores in the densely populated, upper-middle-class neighborhoods in order to reduce the number of “free” instore exchanges that they are required to dole out. I switched from Netflix to Blockbuster online because of the free coupons that I was recieving nearly 2 years ago, I stayed with them because of the Total Access instore exchanges, and I will leave them if they start to limit my exchanges or remove my coupons.
Zack
August 19th, 2007 at 11:29 am
47Report this to Consumerist. That’s a sure-fire way to make sure more people know about this incident.
Dick Fer
August 19th, 2007 at 11:30 am
48Send this in to Consumerist. You will get far more attention than you will from a blog with a few hundred Digg’s.
I left blockbuster in 1998. I had a pair of movies late by a day, they tried to charge me MORE than a 1 day rental for 2 movies.
I was also sick and tired of renting movies, and having 7 employees, 1 is working the cash register. when there are 20 customers standing in line, waiting to get checked out.
I asked the manager for the phone number of the district manager, left that clown a 3 minute voicemail describing how much I hated BB for their lack of customer service, and walked away forever. I used to buy a movie a week. I used to rent 3-4 movies or games a week. I got some meaningless apology a few days later from the district manager. Later that month, BB had the nerve to send me a post card saying I owed them $12.00 in late fees. I called them back, told them that my last visit I had easily burned up $12.00 in wasted time standing in line waiting to get checked out. I told them that in my mind, we were even, and that if they wanted to dispute it, I’d take them to small claims court and I’d sue them for all the wasted time I’ve spent in their store. And I also told them they could take me off their mailing list, cancel my rental cards, and that if they had a problem with that, they could BLOW me. I’ve been angry at them ever since. I’ve not spent a DIME in their store. In fact, I tell that story to anyone who I meet who makes any mention of Blockbuster.
I would rather light $20 on fire than buy or rent anything at BB. They had MORE than their opportunity to keep my business before Netflix even existed. Hollywood was brand new, and they got my business, and I never had any trouble with Hollywood even though it was 3 miles further away.
Chad V.
August 19th, 2007 at 11:36 am
49Dick Fer–
>>I called them back, told them that my last visit I had easily burned up $12.00 in wasted >>time standing in line waiting to get checked out.
HAHAHAHA! Good luck with that. This has been attempted before, by people much smarter than you. You choose to enter the store, you choose the possibility you might have to wait in line. You even ADMIT the movies were late–was that their fault too Buckle up buttercup, you’ll be a real girl someday.
StopGeek -> StopWhining
August 19th, 2007 at 11:46 am
50“…who doesn’t know that the customer is always right and…”
And who doesn’t know that whiny assholes like you are always wrong.
Tahko Tetsujin
August 19th, 2007 at 11:53 am
51@StopWhining
Trust me when I say your mom knows customer service for sure.
Now that was a bit harsh. How would you like that attitude when someone gets in your way of something you want. People make promises, promises discarded, people get insanely angry.
To put into terms you understand, it’s the same feeling you get when you and your boyfriend go to your room to “study” but your parents make you keep the door open.
StopGeek -> StopWhining
August 19th, 2007 at 12:00 pm
52@Tahko Tetsujin
Nice with the homophobic putdowns. Save yourself some typing next time and just say “you’re gay, fag!”.
Now excuse me while I prepare for your upcoming “you’re a nigger!” comeback.
mind
August 19th, 2007 at 12:08 pm
53http://thepiratebay.org/
Tahko Tetsujin
August 19th, 2007 at 12:11 pm
54@StopWhining
I had no indication that you were male.
What does that say about you?
Marie
August 19th, 2007 at 12:17 pm
55Obviously it sucks a little, but seriously, think about what you’re whining about and then get over it.
StopGeek -> StopWhining
August 19th, 2007 at 12:19 pm
56@Tahko Tetsujin
It says you are a prick.
jeff
August 19th, 2007 at 12:22 pm
57blockbuster.com and blockbuster stores are completely seperate in terms of revenue now. Anyone who works instore has nothing to do with the online package. That means that if you have a problem with blockbuster online, you take it up with their online customer reps. You sound like an asshole whining like a baby when you could just call the online customer care and get taken care of.
Tahko Tetsujin
August 19th, 2007 at 12:37 pm
58@StopWhining
That doesn’t even make sense when replying to what I said as it doesn’t indicate what it says about you. I know I’m a prick. I didn’t become successful by being a nice guy and just letting things happen.
No one likes being short changed even you. You just proved that by whining instead of addressing the question like you should have.
Like I told the last idiot, Have a day, kid.
John
August 19th, 2007 at 12:48 pm
59You sound just like the kind of cock that all businesses need to avoid.
Anon Anonny
August 19th, 2007 at 12:48 pm
60What did you expect from the Evil Empire that is Blockbuster? They’ve treated their customers like crap ever since they first came into being. Go with Netflix and Gamefly - never had any problems with them.
Scott
August 19th, 2007 at 12:48 pm
61I read half of this and got bored. I’m tired of listening to preteens bitch and complain about things. Poor baby didn’t get his coupon and now he’s crying- poor baby. Momma will make it all better.
StopGeek -> StopWhining
August 19th, 2007 at 12:59 pm
62@Tahko Tetsujin
c) You are just a crybaby.
Tahko Tetsujin
August 19th, 2007 at 1:16 pm
63@ StopWhining
Pot…..have you met kettle?
Pot, kettle. Kettle, Pot.
GAY!
August 19th, 2007 at 1:22 pm
64GAY! YOU ARE GAY!
SomeAudioGuy
August 19th, 2007 at 1:23 pm
65Hey I’m with you bud. I’ve been screwed by every service, club, package Blockbuster has ever offered. When Netflix came out I switched over and haven’t looked back. Now with Watch it Now (being chock full of BBC TV), I have no reason to use anything else.
I found it telling that this last week there were a ton of stories about Netflix dropping prices and giving you more, and that Blockbuster was raising prices and giving you less. I know BB still has a majority of the users out there, but MAN I hope Netflix spanks them good!
Linkey
August 19th, 2007 at 1:26 pm
66You’re not alone. When I returned a game to my local BB, they never checked it in and and dinged my bank account for the full price of the game. Claiming never to have received it, they said: “perhaps you should check under your car seat” as though I was on drugs.
StopGeek -> StopWhining
August 19th, 2007 at 1:27 pm
67@Tahko Tetsujin
What you are doing is nothing more than crying like you did in high school that you don’t belong because you wouldn’t conform to a certain image.
Ross
August 19th, 2007 at 1:27 pm
68I had given up on Blockbuster years ago, but gave a run recently at the subscription service. I was charged $41, however, for an in-store rental that I know I returned and that was being sold as a “previously viewed” movie in the bin at the same store for $10. The same week, they announced the changes to the subscription plan and I remembered why I hated Blockbuster in the first place and why I’d decided earlier not to give them any more of my money. The only way to feel good about Blockbuster is to NOT GIVE THEM ANY OF YOUR MONEY.
Cheers …
SomeAudioGuy
August 19th, 2007 at 1:30 pm
69Hey if you want more coverage, you should try to hit up the guys over at consumerist.com
Ryan Pieszak
August 19th, 2007 at 1:47 pm
70Interesting…
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/16/business/16netflix.html?ex=1344916800&en=f1972d404af97a7a&ei=5090&partner=rssuserland&emc=rss
BobSmith
August 19th, 2007 at 2:08 pm
71John C Says: “Sheesh, you are a whiny bitch. I just signed up with Blockbuster to spite you.”
—–
Yet another march-in-lockstep, corporate apologist. Some people always side with corps, or any power/authority. They always oppose the little guy. They’re like the class-nerd who reminds the teacher to assign homework. Weak… Followers… Patsies… It’s because of turds like these that corps are able to screw over the rest of us.
John C, you’re pathetic. Whenever the urge strikes you to oppose a little guy who tries to hit back at power, just STFU. Nobody is interested in hearing a despicable little weasel like you suck up to power.
Misstery
August 19th, 2007 at 2:28 pm
72Blah, blah, blah, whiny bullshit, etc.
But was there really any need to publish the details of the manager who dealt with you? As far as I can see, he did nothing wrong - even went out of his way to offer you a free rental. That’s you who likely makes NO MONEY for his store, and didn’t have to do anything at all for you.
Yet you still felt the need to post details of his store online for no reason at all, and then call him “dumb” to boot.
Run off to Netflix, and no-one at Blockbuster corporate will be shedding a tear for you.
Incidentally, if there were complaints forms in store to be handled by the staff, how many do you think would reach their destination?! Hmm…
Pete Stoker
August 19th, 2007 at 2:33 pm
73BLOCKBUSTER SUCKS!!
This company is useless for anything other than headaches and frustration.
F*ck Blockbuster!
grrrr *angry*** grrrr
Pete Narley
August 19th, 2007 at 2:37 pm
74Misstery you are a wanker…
“Run off to Netflix, and no-one at Blockbuster corporate will be shedding a tear for you.”
You may accept that a company doesn’t care about customers, but others still give a shit about where they spend their money and how they are treated.
Drew
August 19th, 2007 at 2:48 pm
75The customer is NOT always right. I was in agreement with you up until this statement. Doesn’t mean they can/should treat you badly or anything. But if you think you have some God given right as a customer to the effect that you are always right, then you’re way off.
scott
August 19th, 2007 at 2:59 pm
76I can’t stand Blockbuster! I gave up on them years ago. I am amazed when I see one of their stores that they are still in business.
Fifty8th
August 19th, 2007 at 2:59 pm
77I’ve tried both BB and Netflix and have gone with Netflix for now but they are not perfect either, they throttle customers on the unlimited plans that they feel rent to much, they have crappy customer service policies and have only recently given a phone number to call them with, instead of just e-mail that took forever.
I think you should have left the night manager out of your complaint, he tried to help and could not (most likely because he works for the store, and not the online side of the business) and offering you a free movie and not game was probably the best he was ALLOWED to do for you.
Luke
August 19th, 2007 at 3:33 pm
78I can understand being a bit perturbed by this, but being so upset that the schmuck working a blockbuster on a friday night can’t help you with a complaint concerning the website? C’mon, man, get real. I wish everything was connected too, but it isn’t, deal with it instead of getting pissed at some guy making 7 bucks an hour for giving up his friday nights. Don’t you think an online form would be faster anyway? You want the everyone at the store to be a know-it-all with the website, but you’re going to demand a paper form? Get over yourself and go get a fucking life.
asdfasdfasdf
August 19th, 2007 at 3:34 pm
79I liked this post until you started bitching about the manager who was unable to help you because of Blockbuster’s bullshit, not his. I am surprised that he offered you a free rental, as I hear that if the managers don’t keep the total credits given during a shift below a certain percentage of money made that night they are subject to disciplinary action.
StopGeek
August 19th, 2007 at 3:56 pm
80ORIGINAL POSTER HERE –
NEVERMIND MY ORIGINAL POST, I SUCK COCKS.
average retail employee
August 19th, 2007 at 4:17 pm
81people like you are part of the reason why retail has such a high turnaround rate. grow the hell up and don’t throw an internet temper tantrum because the manager can only give you so much. the customer is not always right, and no matter how big of a fit you throw, it won’t get you what you want. grow up– take your business elsewhere if you must, but the manager acted perfectly appropriately.
Misstery
August 19th, 2007 at 4:17 pm
82Pete Narley,
Why don’t you fuck off and come back when you can formulate a decent argument?
Blockbuster will likely not give a shit that this guy is severing business with them.
WHY?
Because he was making them NO MONEY. Why has Blockbuster stopped giving out free coupons? BECAUSE IT DOESN’T MAKE THEM ANY MONEY.
So why are they gonna care that someone who makes them NO MONEY is now NOT spending money elsewhere? They don’t want those customers. They especially don’t want ones that get their pants in a twist over something so trivial, and insult their staff on the Internet.
But the problem here is that Netflix don’t offer anything better than this! There’s no ‘free in-store coupons’ with Netflix because Netflix don’t have stores, and there’s no instant exchanges in-store either. So, yup, Blockbuster really can afford to do what they like here. It’s exactly the same as increasing the prices in line with inflation. It’s really not a big deal. Blockbuster Online treated their customers just fine - as did the poor staff member who has been publically branded “dumb” for the cause.
There’s no point complaining about it, because nobody at Blockbuster will be listening.
China Tattler
August 19th, 2007 at 4:24 pm
83Just because Blockbuster knocked of all the small mom and pop shops do you have to put up with this kind of crap. Find a small local-owned place, if there are any left where you live, and give it your business instead.
Dave
August 19th, 2007 at 4:51 pm
84Dude,
I feel your pain.
My Netflix account has never failed me. Never!
And it includes online streaming video that actually works great.
Even when I have had movies dissapear after mailing them back to Netflixs, they have told me “no problem” and it never was…they treated me like a King who was very important to them.
Can’t do better then that.
Tom
August 19th, 2007 at 4:56 pm
85I have an account with Netflix and Gamefly, and while Netflix apparently runs their thicker BD’s through a DVD ‘machine’ and it cracks them sometimes, they’re at least good to me about it when I complain. Plus they just lowered my price ANOTHER DOLLAR! Ace.
Dyrg
August 19th, 2007 at 6:02 pm
86That’s why I do not pay for anything that can be transmitted as data. These companies DESERVE to be fucking buried by the immense weight of peer to peer piracy.
Pete Narley
August 19th, 2007 at 6:34 pm
87This spineless fag is a Blockbuster shareholder:
# Drew Says:
August 19th, 2007 at 2:48 pm
The customer is NOT always right. I was in agreement with you up until this statement. Doesn’t mean they can/should treat you badly or anything. But if you think you have some God given right as a customer to the effect that you are always right, then you’re way off.
Pete Narley
August 19th, 2007 at 6:36 pm
88Another wastoid who argues in forums:
# Misstery Says:
August 19th, 2007 at 4:17 pm
Pete Narley,
Why don’t you fuck off and come back when you can formulate a decent argument?
Blockbuster will likely not give a shit that this guy is severing business with them.
WHY?
Because he was making them NO MONEY. Why has Blockbuster stopped giving out free coupons? BECAUSE IT DOESN’T MAKE THEM ANY MONEY.
So why are they gonna care that someone who makes them NO MONEY is now NOT spending money elsewhere? They don’t want those customers. They especially don’t want ones that get their pants in a twist over something so trivial, and insult their staff on the Internet.
But the problem here is that Netflix don’t offer anything better than this! There’s no ‘free in-store coupons’ with Netflix because Netflix don’t have stores, and there’s no instant exchanges in-store either. So, yup, Blockbuster really can afford to do what they like here. It’s exactly the same as increasing the prices in line with inflation. It’s really not a big deal. Blockbuster Online treated their customers just fine - as did the poor staff member who has been publically branded “dumb� for the cause.
There’s no point complaining about it, because nobody at Blockbuster will be listening.
HAHAHA MISSTERY is a fuckin’ LOSER!!!!
Pete Narley
August 19th, 2007 at 6:37 pm
89Another wastoid who argues in forums:
This piece of shit actually questions me to: “formulate a decent argument?”
What a jackass!!!!
# Misstery Says:
August 19th, 2007 at 4:17 pm
Pete Narley,
Why don’t you fuck off and come back when you can formulate a decent argument?
Blockbuster will likely not give a shit that this guy is severing business with them.
WHY?
Because he was making them NO MONEY. Why has Blockbuster stopped giving out free coupons? BECAUSE IT DOESN’T MAKE THEM ANY MONEY.
So why are they gonna care that someone who makes them NO MONEY is now NOT spending money elsewhere? They don’t want those customers. They especially don’t want ones that get their pants in a twist over something so trivial, and insult their staff on the Internet.
But the problem here is that Netflix don’t offer anything better than this! There’s no ‘free in-store coupons’ with Netflix because Netflix don’t have stores, and there’s no instant exchanges in-store either. So, yup, Blockbuster really can afford to do what they like here. It’s exactly the same as increasing the prices in line with inflation. It’s really not a big deal. Blockbuster Online treated their customers just fine - as did the poor staff member who has been publically branded “dumb� for the cause.
There’s no point complaining about it, because nobody at Blockbuster will be listening.
HAHAHA MISSTERY is a fuckin’ LOSER!!!!
Pete Narley
August 19th, 2007 at 6:38 pm
90Hey misstery! How’s your argument formulatin’ going??
faggot!!
Daniel Webber
August 19th, 2007 at 6:41 pm
91I am surprised nobody started this yet but here goes:
Peter Narley is a cheap Jew Kike cause he wants his money back.
and
misstery and Drew are dumb NIGGERS that accept what the man gives them.
Daniel Webber
August 19th, 2007 at 6:44 pm
92Cause in life your either a JEW or a NIGGER.
John B
August 19th, 2007 at 7:22 pm
93I lived in New York and was all happy when BB started renting out DVD’s. All the good ones were out of stock and the few times I did find one I wanted to watch it was unplayable.
Then years later I found out from someone working at Blockbuster that they knowingly keep scratched dvd’s on the shelves, then pretend they didn’t know they were damaged when pissed off customers brought them back to the store. Why do they do this? When a defective dvd is found it has to be returned and a new copy ordered, which means more work and more money.
Me
August 19th, 2007 at 7:30 pm
94Of course, you could always try renting from another video store, say, one that’s sane. I’ve compared Blockbuster to other stores in the area in the several cities that I’ve lived, and every single time I’ve found one with longer rental periods, better prices, and a nice selection. I can’t figure out how Blockbuster is so popular given the way they consistently and deliberately screw their customers. Probably just because The Unwashed Masses don’t know any better.
Leftovers
August 19th, 2007 at 8:31 pm
95Boo goddamn hoo
quit whinig u dumb fuck
August 19th, 2007 at 8:33 pm
96Stop whining you dumb mother fucker. If u knew how to use a computer you would have been alright.
Look closer
August 19th, 2007 at 9:39 pm
97@Aww so sad: “ho said that the coupon was part of the package anyway?”
umm, television commercials…
in store advertising…
billy
August 19th, 2007 at 10:24 pm
98The thing I don’t understand is why everyone seems to flock to this new blockbuster service while an independent company startup is available (…netflix…). They are already billionaires, and for you to support them just because you can drive to a local store to get a new 2 hours of wasteful material is rather pathetic. Netflix started up an idea that was brilliant and should be supported past the narrow minded conservative corporation that “lackluster” is–not to mention Netflix actually offers good independent movies that are worth while and inspirational/educational, past the bullshit hollywood that blockbuster offers. I’m kind of glad you’re pissed off. You deserve it, ya know? But c’mon. What did you expect.
Maybe you should look around your city for a nice local video store that offers hard to find videos. Buy a bike. Or a scooter. Save on the gas. Then you’ll just save all over, help a small private service instead of feeding money into a giant machine of corporate prostitution, and be happy about sitting infront of your television for two hours at a time.
lakawak
August 19th, 2007 at 10:48 pm
99I think it will be GREAT when the manager presses harassment charges against you for posting the number and encouraing others to call.
lakawak
August 19th, 2007 at 10:58 pm
100By the way, the customer is not always right when they act like a little bitch. Especially when they expect more than they deserve.
lakawak
August 19th, 2007 at 11:00 pm
101And finally…dude..you went to rent a vide game on a Friday night. And you have no problem ADMITTING that. Doesn’t that tell you a little something about the quality of your life?
Dave
August 19th, 2007 at 11:32 pm
102I sent an e-mail and received an identical response.
Here’s the news: If you have bad news to release, you release it on a Friday evening. There is no one there responding to the e-mails. When I re-replied my SECOND e-mail received a 100% identical response.
I can guarantee that right now their responses are autopilot, anything that mentions the new fee/account structure gets a form e-mail.
This is BS and I’m cancelling my account.
LaLaLA
August 20th, 2007 at 12:12 am
103Another 1/2 set of comments — the “don’t be whiny” and “where did they promise that” and lakawak-off “Every snark in its own comment” variety — that come close to proving that comments should always be turned off.
Blockbuster.com has really melted down in the last six months, and their stock price reflects this. Netflix ain’t no bunch of roses, either (they have one of the most peculiar corporate cultures around… and that’s saying a lot!), but they have cleaned up their throttling act (a product of the aforementioned weird culture) and are taking it to Blockbuster on price and service.
I have a BB B&M and a K-Mart within a mile of my house (before you mouth-breathers start going on about the kind of neighborhood I inhabit, let me assure you that my areas socioeconomic demographics will rip the guts out of yours). They unwittingly but constantly compete for both the dreariest interiors, poorest layouts, and clueless help around.
J Gruszynski
August 20th, 2007 at 7:53 am
104You should file a complaint with your county district attorney’s consumer fraud department. At least here in Santa Clara County they are quite aggressive in pursuing companies that do crap like this.
Bloom Blog - Blockbuster Videos & The Alternative Lawsuit: Digg It?
August 20th, 2007 at 9:20 am
105[...] Friday, disgruntled Blockbuster customer enyaWeCurB posted a story of dissatisfaction with Blockbuster Videos, complete with giving the phone number of BB’s [...]
Mr Magoo
August 20th, 2007 at 9:53 am
106Interesting post. Originally I thought it was posted by a Netflix employee. That was until I noticed the exact same thing happened to my blockbuster account too. On Sunday 8/19/07 I checked my account and noticed that I’m no longer receiving my free e-coupons. I had the cheapest plan ($5.99 1 out/2 a month) and it seems that Blockbuster is phasing out the free in-store coupon for this plan.
Like everyone else I received an email in July notifying me about the change in plans but I was assured that my plan would not be impacted by the recent plan/price re-structuring. Then on 8/8/07 I received an email stating that my free e-coupon was available. So on 8/19 I was going to use it but when I checked online it wasn’t there. So I submitted an online email and was instructed to delete my browser cookies and to try again. The sad part is (like a fool) I actually tried this thinking it might work.
This morning (8/20) I followed up with a phone call to Blockbuster (1-866-692-2789). After speaking with “Matthewâ€?, who sounded like he was stoned, he gave me a bunch of crap saying that my plan wasn’t changed but that they are not continuing the free coupon for my plan. So I said…â€?so my plan was changed even though I have an email stating that it wasn’t.â€? To make matters even worse, at one point in the conversation “Matthewâ€? actually asked for my Blockbuster online password!!!! THIS IS NOT A LIE. Up until now I’ve been a satisfied Blockbuster customer. Not any longer. Whatever Blockbuster…Play your games. I had Matthew cancel my account. And I’ve already received an email stating that they want me back. At least he got that right.
Bob
August 20th, 2007 at 1:52 pm
107Fact: Blockbuster cannot hire anyone under the age of 17
Fact: Blockbuster typically does not hire anyone under the age of 18 due to labor laws regarding how late a minor can work since any BBV employee would be required to work past 10pm and usually till 11 or 12am - minors aren’t allowed to work past 10 during the school year and can only work X amount of hours per week. therefore, BBV has asked it’s managers to not hire any minors when possible
Fact: Blockbuster is changing the pricing on it’s online programs…but you still are getting your money’s worth if you use the program to its full extent. Netflix might have a cheaper plan, but they do not offer any free in-store rentals. You still get to exchange movies in-store for free but you don’t get “unlimited” and those free game rentals may have dissapeared but you still get discounted game rentals (typically $4.99) and you also get movie rentals at $1.99 if you’ve gone over your free limit for the month.
I can understand why many of your are upset but the fact is that Blockbuster has been losing money because of the “unlimited” rentals and free game rentals which were always just a “limited time offer” - you can’t expect to get everything for free, at some point you have to start paying for something.
I have used the BBonline service for several months in the past and I was quite happy with it, but I didn’t have time to watch movies all day so I don’t need it now. In the future I will def. be signing back up when I decide I need to watch a lot more movies.
Its sad that so many people are saying some horrible things about an American company that employs thousands of American workers (never outsourcing). Sure, there have been some shady things done in the past and maybe even in the present, but I think it would really hurt this country if Blockbuster and Netflix didn’t both co-exist. Having both competing companies helps keep prices down for us and keeps thousands of jobs available for Americans who don’t have advanced degrees and don’t have parents/family that will take care of them forever. I’m sure that many of you, if you did some personal research, would find that you have a friend and/or family member that works for Blockbuster - sure there are some idiots but the majority of them are good people, who just aren’t given much training and have no control over how the company is run…so think about it before you insult an employee either online or in a store.
Jimmy H
August 20th, 2007 at 3:17 pm
108I don’t know if this point has already been made, as I haven’t read every post on this fetid blog entry. Nevertheless.
You didn’t get your video game. Aww. Poor nerd. You are what’s wrong with this country. First of all, you feel entitled to get whatever the hell you want and if you don’t you throw a goddamn tantrum. You try to get this poor shmoe of a Blockbuster manager fired. His life is probably already shitty and you want to pile on more because you didn’t get your video game. Second, aren’t there more important problems to get riled up about? For example, we have soldiers being killed and maimed in Iraq. Moreover, countless Iraqis are being killed and maimed on a regular basis. But here you are using your time to bitch and moan about something as ridiculous as a video game that you couldn’t get for free. I think that your priorities are completely fucked. If half of you geeks and overprivileged crybabies in this country would focus on something important, like impeaching a rogue president, maybe we wouldn’t be in the shithole in which we currently reside. But, I guess not getting a free video game is pretty frustrating.
enyaWecurB
August 20th, 2007 at 4:23 pm
109@Jimmy H
Look- it’s really cute you want to bring up soldiers in Iraq as problems I should be worried about. Let’s dump global warming on that pile. Fuck- let’s put my great aunt with dementia on that list and- you know what? I bet you have some family member/friend with cancer/AIDS- they’re on my list too. Awesome, man! I have a whole list of more important things to worry about!
The reality is, I wrote this and a greater online community decided it was worthwhile/important. It’s not the fact that I didn’t get a video game for free. It’s the fact that I was lied to as a loyal customer and that’s not right. I spoke up for my rigts as a consumer and people agreed. The long shopping list of other stuff to worry about is neither here nor there.
Ryan Pieszak
August 20th, 2007 at 4:43 pm
110@Bob - we all know the BB plan is still okay, but we have a problem with them pushing the program, and then pulling it away a few months later, just to get people to sign-up. This is a blatant case of ‘bait and switch’, and it illegal. Also, the in-store exchange was the only benefit BB had over Netflix, and was barely making their service better. Now that the benefit has been “lessened”, the overall advantage has shifted back to Netflix. Just my opinion.
@Jimmy H - why does everybody feel the need bring up “more important” things to worry about? There are blogs dedicated to those issues. This isn’t one of them, or at least this post isn’t. So, you feel that until everything is exactly how YOU want it, those issues are the only issues that should be addressed on the Internet? Not trying to start a fight, just trying to understand where you’re coming from.
richard
August 20th, 2007 at 9:02 pm
111While I am certainly not a fan of increased prices, I feel that I must defend Blockbuster’s decision to increase prices for those of us who take full advantage of the in-store exchanges. I have tracked my Blockbuster transactions very carefully since Dec 2006. I have been on the 3 movie at a time plan since December 16, 2006. In that time I have received 155 movies in the mail and exchanged them for 155 movies at my local store. That means that I have received 310 movies in 249 days. I have been billed $19.48(including tax) for 9 months, bringing my total cost to $173.23. My cost per movie is $0.56 ($173.23 divided by 310 movies)! Even at the increased price of $27.02 a month, if I receive the same number of movies per month my cost per movie will be $0.78. Any of you who think they can rent a movie for less than a dollar, need to put down the crack pipe. It’s not unfair for a company to try to make some money. It is unfair for consumers to whine about things they don’t research themselves.
Zero
August 20th, 2007 at 9:17 pm
112All you assholes want everything free.
wanted
August 20th, 2007 at 9:23 pm
113zero is right
Ryan Pieszak
August 20th, 2007 at 9:28 pm
114Why is everybody having such a hard time understanding this? It has nothing to do with price, or cost/movie, etc… We all understand that BB has to make money, but don’t do so by scaming the customer. Be honest, upfront about the costs and plans, and don’t change it once we agree to pay.
Netflix doesn’t pull this crap because they have confidence in their service, and their ability to compete.
Serrena
August 20th, 2007 at 9:28 pm
115I checked my account and no changes have been made. I checked my email, and nothing re: plan or changes to my plan.
But, I do have some questions:
How did you get two coupons/month? I have 3 out unlimited and have only ever gotten one coupon per month.
Is this change applicable only to “new” members or is it going to affect every BB online customer?
BB online and BB in-store are two seperate entities / same company, different divisions. The store manager was not within his power, authority, or job description to help you with your BB online issue. It’s like my expecting the the cashier at Best Buy to install a memory upgrade on my notebook. Same company, different department.
You sound like somebody who believes in fairness. Your grievance revolves around being treated unfairly. Yet, in all fairness, the complaint you made against the store manager was totally unfair.
CooGuyJoe
August 20th, 2007 at 9:40 pm
116In addition to the foregoing BLOCKBUSTER Online Site Terms and Conditions of Use, membership in the BLOCKBUSTER Online rental service (”BLOCKBUSTER Online”) is subject to the following additional Online Rental Terms and Conditions, and to payment of the applicable periodic membership fee plus applicable taxes.
****************************************************
Amount of the membership fee may be changed from time to time as provided herein.
****************************************************
BLOCKBUSTER Online membership is not transferable and is only available in the United States. The BLOCKBUSTER Online membership term commences on the date you sign up for BLOCKBUSTER Online membership and is valid with renewals until cancellation as outlined below (the “Membership Term”). By subscribing to BLOCKBUSTER Online, you agree to be bound by these Online Rental Terms and Conditions. You must be at least eighteen years old and have Internet access, a valid email address, and a valid credit card, check card or checking account to be a member of BLOCKBUSTER Online.
jesternhell
August 23rd, 2007 at 2:40 pm
117I have the same problem! Link to BB online press release on July 26, 2007 http://www.b2i.us/profiles/investor/ResLibraryView.asp?BzID=553&ResLibraryID=20903&Category=1027
and then on the 18th, the next month, I get an email that says I pay more but get less. I can understand paying more but when I have to pay more and get less that I can’t understand. I use to get the free coupons but now I don’t. The customer care phone line was a joke all they gave me was an address to write a letter. I called the number on the press release and punched in numbers until I got the dial by name and called Karen Raskopf and she said she would have some one call me. Waiting to see if that happens. It is like going to a resturant and getting charged more for a steak but they only bring you half of it. Ask me to pay more and still get the same amount of service.
Richard F
September 6th, 2007 at 11:27 am
118I have had the same problem, the big difference with me is they cancelled mine 14 days before my month was up and refuse to refund my money for the unused portion of my monthly subscription. I feel they breached the contract and should refund my money. I will never use blockbuster online or the local blockbuster store again.
F blockbusters
September 13th, 2007 at 6:54 pm
119Same deal here. They canceled my account and I got this bot-reply. What prompted me to the cancelation was an email titled, “Before you go…” Go? WTF? I’m not going anywhere, ship me my damn movies like we agreed to when we entered into this POS agreement. Yes, I know the agreement says the can change it any time. It’s just that they DONT HAVE TO.
Their reply? C below. “We told you once via email, 60 days ago…”
Good thing http://www.blockbustersucks.com is owned by blockbusters.
—-
Your account was automatically canceled. We sent out an e-mail communication in late July informing you of the recent changes to our subscription plans. Perhaps this e-mail was automatically routed to a SPAM/Junk folder or possibly overlooked.
The communication was to let you know that we no longer offer the membership plan formerly associated with your account, and to encourage you to continue your membership by selecting one of our new plan options. Because we did not want to make the decision on your behalf, we felt it best to stop automatic renewal of your membership until you’ve had time to review our plan options and select the one that best suits your rental needs. If you choose to reactivate your membership after selecting a new plan type, we will automatically renew on a monthly basis. You can find the details of what we have to offer in “My Account” section once you’ve successfully signed in. Click on “Re-Subscribe” in the Subscription Plan section.
I hope this information helps. If you have other concerns, feel free to contact me.
Mark
September 17th, 2007 at 1:25 pm
120Here in Texas we just got hit with another one. You can only exchange your movies in the store 5 times a month. What a bunch of crap.
Blockbuster Screwed Me Over and Needs to Feel My Pain « Movies
October 3rd, 2007 at 4:45 am
121[...] read more | digg story [...]
Me
October 4th, 2007 at 10:43 am
122It’s complete crap that you dogged the store manager for doing his job. He was risking the intergrity of his store by offering you a FREE rental, despite the fact that stores have to stay below 2% of total sales credits, when the problem itself had nothing to do with HIS store.
What did you want, a song and dance as well?
As with any business, we deal with CUSTOMERS trying to rip US off on a daily basis. So if we hassle you, you can thank the lady who comes in everyday to return a used movie she bought, because she didn’t realize that she already had that one. When in reality she’s just burning them and returning them. Or thank the guy who comes in, slices open the side of the film and hides the box on the other side of the store- or the asswipe that knows how to open the retail locks, and steals the new movies. (All of which negatively effect our projected hours for a week).
As emplyees, we were just as upset about the change in plans. Most of us have online accounts as well. To top that off, we have to listen to people complain to us about it all day. What that store manager should have done was give you the 800 number for online customer service. Honestly, we have more important things to deal with than the one in every 100 customers who complain about things so trivail as a “coupon”. We have paying customers-who increase the revenue to our store and SUPPORT our business to worry about.