I recently received an email from the folks over at Blockbuster.com, letting me know that they have decided to change their online plans. Now, I don’t have time to watch too many movies since I spend most of my time chasing Maggie around, so when we signed up, we chose the smallest plan. Until recently, the $5.99 plan at Blockbuster.com included 2 online rentals, 2 exchanges for in-store rentals, and 1 e-coupon for a rental at any time. $5.99 for a total of 5 rentals per month… a good deal. A great deal in fact, and quite frankly the whole reason I went with it.
So when I saw the new plan details, the first thing that I noticed was that the prices were going up.
Ok, I’m good with this. I understand that Blockbuster wants to make money. I’d rather not pay more, but I realize that prices go up. But what I found interesting was that no where in the email, the web site or the fine print was any mention of the e-coupon. Certainly they wouldn’t raise the price and decrease the number of rentals… I thought I’d better email customer support:
I recently (8/17/07) received an email stating that the membership plans for Blockbuster.com are changing. My current plan is such that I am eligible to receive up to 2 DVD’s in the mail per month, plus free in store exchanges for a total of 4 DVD’s per month. In addition, I have available to me a single e-coupon per month bringing the total number of rentals to 5 per month. It appears from your email and literature on the web site that my plan will increase in cost from $5.99 to $7.99, however I don’t see any indication that the e-coupon will continue to be made available. Is this correct? From what I’m reading, not only will I be paying more, but I will also not receive the same value from the plan. Since I do have options with you competitors, I’d appreciate if you could clarify the configuration of your $7.99 plan.
Respectfully,
Adam Hegedus
To which I received the following stock response:
Hello Adam,
Thank you for contacting Blockbuster Online Customer Care.
I apologize most sincerely for any inconvenience this has caused you and I appreciate you taking the time to notify us of your concern, Adam. Total Access-1 at a time limited, 2 rent(s) a month
2 in-store exchanges/month allows you to receive 2 DVDs per month with 2 in-store exchanges for $7.99 plus applicable taxes. Unfortunately, eCoupons are no longer available. We recently enhanced our membership plans to provide our subscribers with a wide selection of options. With Total Access Premium, for example, you get more free in-store rentals than ever before. Instead of having to print e-Coupons, we’ll scan the barcode on your return mailers at your local store in exchange for a free in-store movie rental. If you love games, we’ll even give you a discount if you bring us your online envelope.Please let me know if I may be of further assistance.
Respectfully,
Babylyn
Customer Care Associate
Blockbuster Online
So there you have it. Not only is Blockbuster raising the prices of this plan, but they are in a single motion, lowering the value. Pay more, Get less. I’m ok with raising prices, but at least give me the same deal. For an extra buck I can now sign up at Netflix and get unlimited rentals. That sounds like a good option to me.
August 25th, 2007 at 7:46 pm
I agree Adam. If they want to charge me more, they need to OFFER MORE. I’m not going to Netflix, either. I’m tired of supporting the USPS. Instead, I’ll be getting my videos FREE at the local LIBRARY from now on, courtesy of you and all the other wonderful TAXPAYERS WHO ALREADY PAID FOR THESE VIDEOS. If the local library does not carry a title you want, you fill out a card and they will call you when it arrives. That’s soon enough for me!
September 17th, 2007 at 1:47 pm
I switched back to Netflix to. I signed up for blockbuster less than three months ago they are already changing the plan. I like the convenience of exchanging in store, but usually do not find titles that I am really wanting to see, and just get whatever is available. I get my movies faster through NetFlix and also have found that their selection is better that Blockbuster.
September 25th, 2007 at 10:02 am
September 25, 2007
Mr. James W. Keyes
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
Blockbuster Inc.
1201 Elm Street
Dallas, TX 75270
Dear Mr. Keyes:
I have experienced a significant decline in service since you instituted the new prices and plans. I have also noticed that your customer service organization is basically worthless in addressing the issue.
The last three weeks, I have returned my online retails to a participating retail location and they were checked in. In all three of these situations my next DVD’s were not shipped the next business day. The fact that this has happened three consecutive times is compelling evidence that Blockbuster has made changes to deliberately delay shipping DVD’s in order to reduce the number of DVD’s a customer can get. I have also noticed it takes longer for me to received DVD’s once they are shipped. Before the recent plan changes, about 75% of the time I received my DVD’s the next business day after they were shipped. Since the change in plans, it has been two or more business days every time. Again it is hard to believe this is not a deliberate attempt by Blockbuster to limit the number of DVD’s a customer can receive. In the online retail business what I am experience sounds very much like “throttlingâ€. Rumors concerning “throttling†is why why I choose Blockbuster over Netflix in the first place. If these shipping delays that appear to be deliberate continue, I will have to post my experience online in as many forums as I can find so customers and potential customers are aware of what could be new tactics being used by Blockbuster to limit the number of DVD’s a customer can receive.
I also want to point out this with your recent price and plan changes I would have had to accept a 46% increase in price to keep my plan. If you were dealing in selling big ticket items in my state, this would look like “bait and switchâ€. You bait new customers away from Netflix or bait customers to change from Netflix to Blockbuster then you switch their plan to one with less value or a higher price. I wonder if our state attorney general would be interested in this practice?
I have been pointing out the advantages of Blockbuster Online over Netflix to many people. Was I wrong?
September 25th, 2007 at 10:06 am
well done moreofless. Please let me know if you get a response. Though I won’t hold my breath
September 26th, 2007 at 8:23 am
I mailed that letter yesterday. I tried to fax it to the numbers listed on Yahoo Finance and Hoovers but they would not go through. Then I found a fax number on a Blockbuster press release and that did work.
It is one thing if they increased the price or limited the number of exchanges. It is a completely different thing if they are covertly using tactics to delay shipping and not informing the customer. The responses I have received from customer service are best described as evasive. I see this as a great opportunity for Netflix to get lots of customers to switch if they take advantage of the situation.
October 1st, 2007 at 10:27 am
I canceled my Total Access subscription last night. I was on the 17.99 Total Access plan for 18 months!. Then they changed the terms and didn’t even notify me that they throttled my account, I found out when I went to exchange movies and was notified that I only had one trade-in rental remaining for the month.
Clearly BlockBuster doesn’t care about retaining their existing customers.
I’m Switching to netflix, and RedBox.
October 10th, 2007 at 5:10 am
Same thing happened to me. I’m also on the $17.99 plan and was surprised to learn there was a new in-store limit (5). I received zero notice about this.
Someone should start a class-action suit.
October 10th, 2007 at 9:23 pm
I cancelled my Total Access plan with blockbuster after receiving a canned reply from their customer service onlince complaint system. They also changed my plan without my knowledge. Ultimately the action that will stand the test of time in any given situation is in the hands of the people who would use the service. Very simply excercise your right to choose another service! I truly hope that the consumers who are unhappy with the way they have been treated will find this solution to be better and quicker than any lawsuit could ever hope to be!!!!!
NUFF SAID!!!
October 17th, 2007 at 4:35 pm
Well I just had the “in store notification” experience…
I went to exchange the DVD’s and was asked “How would you like to pay for your rentals?” I said what are you talking about…and was told I was “over the limit”. I called customer service from the store and was smuggly told “THE PLAN THEY PICKED FOR ME…was limited to 5 movie exchanges per month.
I canceled the account on the spot.
October 18th, 2007 at 3:29 pm
I received an email today advising that my plan will be changing at the next billing cycle. This is the email i sent to them in response:
I selected Blockbuster over netflix specifically for the in-store rental option. Now, however, I received notice that you are raising the plan I currently have by $7!!!
I just received the email, so I’m not sure exactly how I am going to proceed, but more than likely, i will be terminating my service with Blockbuster and switching to Netflix. Also, since there are red box kiosks popping up all over, I will more than likely stop shopping in the Blockbuster stores, too. There are other rental stores that are more convenient to me than Blockbuster, but I made the extra trip so that I could exchange the movies for a free rental. (It is also worth noting…we have purchased used DVDs, snacks and merchandise from the stores during many of these exchanges.)
Overall, I have been mostly happy with my Blockbuster Online membership. Unfortunately, such a large increase in costs (or a sharp decrease in my exchange choices, depending on perspective) tarnishes that experience. in fact, until now, my only real disappointment with Blockbuster Online thus far has been the fact that the film listed as #1 in my queue has been listed as “short wait” (and still has yet to ship) for about 7-8 months or so.
I’m not sure your purpose in raising rates so much, and to be honest–i don’t know how many in-store exchanges I even average in a month to know how much of an impact the 5-exchange limit would really have on me; I do, however, know that I am perceiving this to be a huge change. I also have the perception that Netflix has a larger DVD library. Regardless, Blockbuster offered unlimited free in-store exchanges and THAT is what brought me in as a customer. I know of at least 2 other customers that signed up with your service based on my recommendations. One referral even cancelled service with Netflix because my satisfaction level was so high.
I wonder how many customers you will lose…. Was the price increase/exchange limit worth it? Probably not.
Sincerely,
October 20th, 2007 at 11:19 pm
I also just had the instore notification experience. At first I thought it was another screw job by the local blockbuster franchisee (the reneged on the no late fees deal about a week after it started, and the previously viewed coupons the second time I tried to use one). I was on the 3 out/2 ecoupon deal since I signed up in 04 or 05. I, too had noticed it taking longer to get movies after turning them in at blockbuster. I never heard of throttling, I just chalked it up to another franchisee screw job (not a fan of the franchisee here). These last movies took a week to get here after I turned the previous set in. Anyway, I considered keeping it, as I compared netflix and blockbuster, then I checked the availability of the ecoupons. They are gone, so am I. I am not signing up with netflix, since I have now boned up on “throttling.” I end up buying a lot of movies used, anyway, so I guess I won’t be watching all the bs movies I used to get. I’ll just keep my $19+ a month (after taxes). That’s 2 extra used dvd’s a month assuming I can find something worth a crap to buy.
Thanks to you guys for posting your experiences, otherwise, I might have taken the sucker’s bet and “upgraded” to the unlimited plan ($8 extra for what I had last month). I really appreciate it!
October 24th, 2007 at 7:42 am
I called C/S after going to a local BB store and they told me I should have E coupons on the 14.99 plan (2 out at a time with 3 instore exchanges), C/S told me they can’t give out their reasoning as to why some people on the 2 out at a time still get their e coupons and some dont?? I cancelled after they tried to get me to come back for 1/2 price for 3 months. It’s not worth it.
October 26th, 2007 at 6:21 pm
Even with the changes Blockbuster is still a great deal compared to netflix. Netflix has a ridiculous throttle system, it would take a week for my movies to be sent out at one point. With Blockbuster I just order kids movies so they always have something new to watch and when I want a movie I pick an envelope and take it to the store. I’ve never had an issue with running over my limit and if I did i could handle paying $1.99 for it. All the complainers here just want something for free. Your paying on average $1.00 a movie, is that to much to handle?
October 26th, 2007 at 7:54 pm
I definitely agree Dan, Blockbuster DOES have a very good service. We always had a super fast turn around. My problem with these changes isn’t because I want something for nothing, it’s because they both raised the cost and decreased the number of movies that we can have per month at the same time. I understand inflation and I understand that they are a business, but I just didn’t appreciate the way they made this change. Thanks for the input.
November 9th, 2007 at 12:32 am
I am with Adam. I wouldnt mind just the increase in price, but dropping the ecoupon kills the deal for me. I used to be able to print the ecoupon from work and swing by BB for a movie before I got home. I would also occasionally use the coupon for a game on the weekends, now there is no option for free games.
I am going to cancel my plan and try out Netflix as they have a month free trial. I do like the idea of going to the store with the exchange and will miss that aspect but I feel shafted with this change. For a company that appears to be strugling as much as BB is you would expect them to show a little more gratitude/respect to its current customer base.
November 19th, 2007 at 4:42 pm
i’m in the same boat as hornswaggled - if netflix wants to get rid of BB once and for all, they just need to start offering video games that are completely interchangeable with movies.
goodbye blockbuster, it was fun.
May 29th, 2008 at 7:39 am
By the way, folks I am currently working at Blockbuster and they still do give out e-coupons but only to customers that “grandfathered”. I called and asked how this happened and they said corporate chose certain accounts to grandfather who even still pay their original plan price. I have several customers who still pay $19.99, with unlimited online exchanges and still get 2 free e-coupons.
May 29th, 2008 at 8:14 am
Good to know Gina, thanks for the input… Unfortunately for me, Blockbuster is closing stores in State College, PA, so I’ll stick to the Redbox… my new favorite movie acquisition device. And if that’s not good enough, then I may try out Netflix.