What IS Blockbuster on Demand

I don't know how I got to this page—Blockbusternow—but apparently Blockbuster still has not realized that their business model is out-dated and over-priced although I guess it's now Dish's fault since they bought them.

Why would someone want to stream a movie from Blockbuster for between $2.99-$4.99 per movie when they can play a flat rate for Netflix, Amazon Prime Movies, or any other better-than-Blockbuster streaming service.

They were on top of the world with all their stick-it-to-you late fees and now...it's too little too late for these guys.

Office Max uses wasteful shipping practices

I ordered this 128 GB PNY USB 2.0 Flash Drive from OfficeMax.com sometime last week — November 27^th I believe. This isn't USB 3.0 but I'm okay with that. It was a pretty good deal for USB 2.0 for this much space especially since there aren't a lot of USB 3.0 flash drives at this capacity. It was $50.87 (price + tax + free shipping) whereas the original price is $149.99. I consider that a pretty decent savings!

Anyway, I got home from work and what did I see on my front porch? This big 11x14 manila envelope. I couldn't think of what I ordered that would come in a flat, large envelope. Once I got a closer look and saw the shipper name, Office Max, I figured it was my flash drive.

Sure enough it was the flash drive tucked in the corner of this envelope. A package flash drive that's about the size of a 3x5 card and they put it in an 11x14 padded envelope. Well, so enough of the rambling. I just thought it was interesting with the choice of packaging.

New advertisements in Yahoo?

Is this the new way that Yahoo is advertising in its email? I don't know if they decided to minimize their ads like Google does or what. I noticed it first in the Yahoo app on my Samsung SIII about a week ago—I think it was after a Yahoo app upgrade. I then noticed it on my computer via the browsers.
 

 
If they wanted to be like Google, they need to move the ad a few lines above the emails list. Google at least separates the emails and ad by a couple of lines.

Anyway, this is just me sharing my powers of perception.

AT&T Uverse tried to skim $7/mo. off me

Here's something to look out for when you move. This happened with my ATT Uverse account/contract but I'm sure seemingly little things like this occur in all aspects of B2C interactions that people overlook or discard as not that big of deal. Not this consumer!

I recently moved. These days most utilities can be canceled, restarted, and/or relocated from one location to another via an online portal. ATT Uverse is one of them and I used their portal to set up my start date and installation time at my new place.

All was fine and dandy until I received my first bill for the new address. I see this $7/mo charge listed for a receiver. I don't know why as I signed on to a contract for a free wireless receiver with my home base DVR. So, I call Customer Care.

Longer story shorter. I signed on for a one-year commitment contract with a guaranteed price for two years. When I moved, about six months after the start of my contract, the promotion for a free receiver had ended so the new pricing took effect at my new address. They said that because the free-receiver promotion had ended that now I'd be charged a $7 monthly fee for it.

I don't think so! This isn't my first rodeo.

After raising my voice and getting my $7 back for the already billed charge, they gave me a lump sum for the remainder of my two-year pricing to cover the $7/mo. It came to $112 plus some estimated taxes. They had to do this because their system will not allow them to remove the $7 fee since the promotion is no longer going. I never ended my service, I just transferred it to a new location. So, I will be billed $7/mo for the next 16 months because some programmer does not know how to program to keep the original contract valid after a promotion ends.

The Customer Care rep kept telling me I forgot to check a box that said keep my receiver or some idiotic thing she knew nothing about. I had to tell her that when I used the online portal to move my service. I had to input my new address and then it stated something like the following: Congratulations! You are able to move your service "AS IS" to your new location. Press 'Next'. To me, that means service at my new address will be exactly like my service is at my current address. When I pressed 'Next', it took me to a page to pick my appointment date for a technician to come out and set up my service. Nothing else.

Anyway, that's my rant. I've not had any issues with ATT Uverse service since my original DVR was bad after initial installation. However, this kind of action just pisses me off as they are already charging so much for something and now they are trying to milk an extra $7/mo out of me because their stupid system can't keep up with all their promotions.

So, lesson to learn from Absent-Minded Jay?

Always go over your bills with a fine-tooth comb. At the very least, it could save you the cost of a Chipotle burrito/tacos.

Blockbuster really needs help

Blockbuster should seriously reconsider their marketing plan and business model. If they want to survive, Blockbuster is going to have to come up with something WAY better than this!

Why would I want to rent three movies to get ANYTHING at a Blockbuster store for free? The popcorn, candy and/or Coke have usually been around the store for a while that's why they are "giving them away for free." But they already make their money off of you by making you pay $1.99-$3.99 for each of the three rented movies.

I guess that's smart business if you can get the stupid customer to do it. I'm not a stupid customer and no one else should be either!

If you haven't read any of my other Blockbuster rants, I am a Blockbuster Total Access Plan member. So, I don't speak from inexperience or from an outsider looking in. I have a pretty good grandfathered deal with my Total Access Plan but the moment they increase it or get rid of it, I will no longer rent movies from Blockbuster.

I've recently used Red Box a few times and although it has to be watched within 24 hours, I think $1.20 (total with tax) isn't a bad deal—especially back in the day when there was a dollar movie theater. I also got a free movie rental for signing up and after my initial rental. Then I got a free online credit for one movie. Basically I've watched seven movies from Red Box for the price of four. Granted they don't have a lot of new releases and sometimes I have to find the movie I want at different Red Box locations but overall it's not been too bad.

Sprint referral "rewards" is pretty lame

This is the graphic from an email I received from Sprint (Yes, I'm a Sprint customer).

What I find amusing is once again Sprint thinks so lowly of its customers...especially long LONG time customers like myself. A $25 gift card is not worth the time or effort to even just ask a friend to join Sprint. If Sprint wants people to really refer someone, they really need to up their ante.

Hell, almost ten years ago when I first got on DirecTV, they gave me $50 per referral ($10 a month off my bill over five months). Not only did I get $50 but my referral got $50 disbursed the same way. Fast forward to the present and DirecTV is offering $100 per referral...of course, disbursed $10 per month for ten months only for the referrer...BUT the friend only had/has to sign a minimum one-year contract whereas Sprint requires the two-year service contract!

So, who is giving the better deal for a referral? Now it's not exact science comparing a satellite provider with a cellular provider but you get the point.

I just don't see that $25 is incentive enough to refer a friend to Sprint. If I just happen to know of someone that is going/moving to Sprint, then sure I'd ask them to say I referred them, get my $25 and not split it with them. Otherwise, I'm not wasting my time!

Blockbuster Home Page Has Changed

What the hell has happened to my Blockbuster.com home page?! I go to log in today to print out my free movie coupon before it expires and the landing page after log in is weird and confusing. The page itself looks fine but trying to find the new releases is not obvious...to me at least. See image below.

When I highlight "Browse" it shows a list of options with "Movies, TV Shows, Games." When I click on "Movies," it goes to the page in the image below.

This page only shows a list of "DVD Spotlight" movies and some other genres but it doesn't give me a list of recently released movies...this week or last week. Where the hell did that option go? Did they do a survey on this and polled a bunch of idiots!?

This is very frustrating. Another stupid move by Blockbuster management. If I didn't get such a good deal at this time with the Total Access Plan, I would definitely be looking into Red Box or something!

I just want an easy way to find the new releases and add them to my queue without having to know the names of the movies that are new releases. Before, I'd just go through the new release list and add to my queue.

Is it too much to ask for ease of use these days!?

Oh and before anyone says anything, the "see more Blue Carpet releases" button takes me to the page captured in the second image above.

Blockbuster needs a new business model (obviously)

Today, I curiously clicked on the "On Demand" button within my online Blockbuster account. This curiosity was created because of my use of "Watch Instantly" on Netflix. I'm still getting my money's worth out of my free trial. I've mentioned previously about why I can't justify Netflix—lack of recent movies for instant play. But, my free trial has made me look into what Blockbuster can offer me in comparison for online movie play.

After viewing the FAQs of On Demand at Blockbuster.com (here), I understand why more people are choosing Netflix. The first two sentences in FAQ #2's answer sums up that reason perfectly:

"No. Blockbuster On Demand is separate from a Blockbuster By Mail subscription plan."

What...the...fu...?! Seriously!?

Once again, this is how BB appreciates and rewards is customers, old and new. How long have customers felt like BB has screwed them over the years with exorbitant rental and late fees? How did BB respond: they took late fees away and then sort of brought them back as well. Now customers want to be able to view movies online. What did BB do: to please customers and to compete with Netflix they added On Demand...but with a catch. Unlike Netflix, the online viewing at BB will require a per movie rate versus a monthly rate. Wrong move BB!

Without getting into the nitty gritty and regurgitating facts I'm sure many others already know (because I'm new to Netflix and online movie streaming), Blockbuster has failed once again to capture, retain or gather customers. Why would ANYONE want to pay extra for something that a competitor already include in its packages? Other than the brick-and-mortar store exchanges, BB has no differentiator...and this differentiator obviously isn't enough to compete.

Anyway...just for shits and giggles, let's compare a plan of each.

Netflix Unlimited streaming only @ $7.99 Unlimited streaming and 3 DVDs @$19.99.

Blockbuster Unlimited streaming not available in any plan 3 DVDs/Games @ $19.99 (5 in-store exchanges per month)

Blockbuster claims bankruptcy

Headline at DallasNews.com (and many other places I'm sure):

Blockbuster files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection
Click here for story while it lasts.

It's a sad day if Blockbuster completely closes for many reasons.

For one, I will lose my most favorite DVD rental membership of all time. That's right I said it. I hear Netflix is a great service and I'm sure it is. I'm just one of those that likes to get the most out of his money. For years, I didn't rent movies from Blockbuster because of their outrageous rental fee and follow-up late fees if turning in a movie late. I was a long time customer before quitting and they couldn't/wouldn't deduct these fees from my account so I dropped them like it's hot! Flash forward some 7-10 years and they had this Total Access Plan which I decided to use the trial period within the first few months they offered it. For me, it was like $14.99 plus tax. Total it was like $17 and I could rent 3 movies at a time online. I was watching like 20-30 movies a month. Hell yeah! I caught up on movies I've never seen but came out 5-10 years ago. You would not believe how far behind I was because I'm a CHEAP ass! The only movies I went to the theater to see were sci-fi like Star Wars episodes I, II, and III. I think I saw Contact, Pulp Fiction and V for Vendetta (for free) at the theater. I'm sure there were a few others that I can't recall but I was not paying $7 for a movie and now it's what, $10? Piss on that. Anyway, Blockbuster eventually added the in-store exchanges of mail-order at brick and mortar store for a free. Booyah! Another added bonus for me as the store is about two blocks away. Now, I was doubling my watching power because when I exchanged the mail-order movies at the store. I would get three movies (most of the time) and then Blockbuster would automatically mail me the next available movies in my queue. So, technically, I could have six "free" movies out at a time. I think within a years time I had watched something like 200 movies. (Yes, I had a life: I had wife, kids, work, and school. I still do. You have to make time to enjoy every aspect of a day. It's tiring but it has to be done occasionally.)

Blockbuster eventually screwed me by increasing my monthly plan but not as much or like they did late-comers. I was raised to like $17.99 plus tax which comes out to like $22. I still get unlimited store exchanges a month but they moved to three movies out at a time and they can be a combination of online and store rentals. For instance, I have two mail-order and one store rental. Until I return/exchange one, I will not get another movie. Not that big of a deal for me as my kids have gotten older and more school responsibilities, I've had to cut back on the movie watching and sometimes I'll have a movie for more than a couple of days. It bugs me but at least I'm not paying late fees on it. My coworker jumped one plan late and she went from like $22 to like $30 and she only gets like five in-store exchanges a month. She never used the in-store exchanges anyway which I thought was stupid but some of us cherished our hard-earned money than others.

So, that's where I stand on my Blockbuster Total Access Plan. If they increase my monthly dues, I will more than likely drop them. I guess it may depend on the combination of what they change: increase fee and no in-store exchanges and I'm definitely done with them.

For two, I am an immediate gratification type of guy. I want it all and I want it now. Currently, Blockbuster provides that for me. I can get a movie in the mail and then go to the store and get another. I'm almost never without a movie to watch if/when I get around to watching it. I'm also a creature of convenience and this is very convenient for me. Now that they added games, it's an even sweeter deal...although I haven't taken advantage of the games section yet because games are a longer-term commitment than a movie. I have to keep the game until I beat it and that cuts into my exchanges although since there are no late fees it probably really is a better overall deal. I don't know.

For three, my local Blockbuster store is busy every day of the week and at least most of the day. It's very well located among a wealthy neighborhood with parents that love to occupy their kids with movies/games while they do their thing and it's across the street from a college with students that are always looking to have a reason to get together with friends. I don't think it is one of those stores on the chopping block as "not profitable" so I think I'm safe for now. If they completely fold, then yes but it wouldn't be good for overall DVD/movie rental business to have one less competitor. Netflix is $8.99/mo and Redbox is $1-$2 per movie but if there is no more competition, then they would surely turn into the mindset of old Blockbuster and consider the customer as a cash cow.

I don't dish on Netflix other than what friends and colleagues have told me. Their selection of newer movies isn't as vast and their turn-around time for mailing isn't quick enough for 9 out of 10 people I know that use them. For $8.99/mo, I want...I need my immediate gratification and I don't see getting that with Netflix. Now, I know they have digital downloads but I just don't know if I'm one of those that want to use that medium yet or more consistently. I try to watch DVDs on my computer and I always get distracted and want to use my computer for something else during the time I should be watching. I like to watch on the TV and work on my laptop at the same time or even watch on my desktop computer while working on my laptop. It's probably why it takes me three hours to watch a two hour movie. :-)

I hear Redbox doesn't get new releases until a month after Blockbuster. That's not that big of a deal for me as I've already waited for the movie to begin with. Some movies I'd like to get sooner but I guess it wouldn't be too much of a hassle to wait a little longer. I'm also a little leery about giving my credit card information to a machine on the outside of a building, kind of like an ATM. I'm sure I could use it without fear. It's just odd to me.

So to hopefully close a longer story than expected, I hate Blockbuster to an extent just like other people. I'm a grudge holder and they have previously screwed me over. The way I see it is I'm the type of customer they didn't expect/want. I've taken full advantage of every aspect of the Total Access Plan and will continue to do so until I quit. 20-30 movies a month is unusual, expensive (for them), awesome (for me) and a bit weird but that's the way I need to roll to get my money's worth. The comments on some of the articles about the bankruptcy story are just downright ignorant and seems like most people need to rant about something but have directed it towards Blockbuster. Actually, most of the bitter ones seem to be people that got screwed in the past by Blockbuster when they were a brick and mortar business only. They have hung on that anger, relish in it and are giddy about the prospect of Blockbuster ending. I too feel this way...to an extent...but that's why I feel like I'm exacting my type of revenge with taking advantage of my rental plan. When they are only making like $0.73 per movie from me, it gives me some joy no matter how minute it may be.

Blockbuster is no different than any other business: when it's good they stick it to the customer; when it's bad they stick it to the customer. Are there really any businesses left that are loyal to long-time, loyal customers? Maybe some Maw and Paw shops somewhere but even they are in it to make a profit. Blockbuster had a management decision error just like the music industry. They didn't want to embrace a new medium: BB --> mail-order/online movies; RIAA --> MP3/online streaming. It's not the company as a whole but the supposedly higher-ups that know everything but really don't know jack shit!

Well, there you have it. My daily rant while at work. It's a good thing the office is dead and the boss is out of town.

New overdraft protection rules

I saw some articles in the papers today regarding the new overdraft protection and credit card "laws." I don't fully understand or care at this time. I'm sure once I get dinged with some bullshit charge, I'll be up in arms about it and some customer service person is going to get an ear full. You can see different articles here, here and here while they last.

That being said. I did get some notice a few weeks or more ago about my bank and opt-in for overdraft protection. It's funny that I kept the paper in my backpack as I fully intended on commenting sooner. So, without further delay, some gloriously ignorant (IMHO) verbage from the "letter to loyal customer:"

You need to decide if you want to:

1. OPT-IN - This means you want [bank] to authorize and pay your one-time debit card and ATM transactions when there may not be enough money in your account to cover the transaction.
2. OPT-OUT - This means you DO NOT want [bank] to authorize and pay your one-time debit card and ATM transactions when it appears that there is not enough money in your account to cover the transaction.

Here are a few examples:

1. At an ATM: You have $80 available in your account and you use your debit or ATM card to withdraw $100 at the ATM.
• IF YOU OPT IN: We may, at our discretion, authorize and pay the withdrawal. This could result in an overdraft in your account, which means you may be charge an NSF Charge-Paid Item fee of $38.
• IF YOU OPT OUT: The transaction will be declined. You will only be able to withdraw $80 from your account. You will not be charged a fee.
2. At the convenience store: You have $2 available in your account and want to purchase coffee and a snack for $8 with your debit card.
• IF YOU OPT IN: We may, at our discretion, authorize and pay the transaction. This could result in an overdraft in your account, which means you may be charged an NSF Charge-Paid Item fee of $38.
• IF YOU OPT OUT: The transaction will be declined. You will be able to purchase $20 worth of items, or have to use an alternative form of payment. You will not be charged a fee.

So, my thought is if the person doesn't have the money, then the transaction should be declined from the beginning. If they can't pay $80 or $8, what makes the bank think they will be able or want to pay the $38 overdraft fee?

To me, this is basically enabling. The way a parent enables an adult child - adult child has a job but instead of pays his/her bills, gets a tattoo; adult child owes money for electricity or rent, asks parent for money and parent pays the bill; next payment time rolls around and the adult child has put them self in the same situation; parent pays again. Hopefully you get the picture.

Using an ATM/debit card isn't like writing a check that you can float. It won't work if you don't have the a greater balance of funds already in the bank than your purchase amount. After the fact clearing, is one thing but letting people use more funds than they actually have is just stupid. It's kind of why we are in the economic bust we are in: too many people who couldn't really afford a house, bought a house and now they have to foreclose. If we'd stop people from making stupid decisions in the first place, we wouldn't have to clean up after them.