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The Party Is over for Charter Blockbuster Online Subscribers

If you are a charter Blockbuster Online subscriber, you will soon be losing your $14.99 three-out plan. In the near future, probably on your next billing date, your monthly subscription fee will automatically increase to the standard $17.99 price that everyone else pays.

The $14.99 price was guaranteed only through January 31, 2006. Blockbuster quietly extended the plan for a couple of months, which was probably a measure to retain charter subscribers while Blockbuster attempted to lure them into voluntarily modifying their plans to take advantage of the four-per-month rental coupon deal that Blockbuster launched during SuperBowl XL.

As a charter member, you will still have the option of using your two free monthly rental coupons for games; however, if you make any changes to your plan, you will most likely lose the right to use your coupons for games.

Be sure to check your account information on Blockbuster’s Web site to determine your next billing date. If you think $17.99 is too much to pay for your Blockbuster subscription, you can cancel your service before your next billing date at www.blockbuster.com. Make sure to notify Blockbuster that you are canceling due to the price increase.

Blockbuster Sued over Business Model

Blockbuster is being sued by their major competitor over its business model. A major issue is whether Blockbuster’s queue feature, used to select and distribute DVDs to subscribers, is a patent violation.

The complaint was filed in the U.S. District Court in San Francisco and is likely to launch the biggest legal battle yet in the DVD-by-mail industry.

Associated Press:

Online DVD rental service Netflix Inc. on Tuesday accused Blockbuster Inc. of illegally copying its ideas in a patent infringement lawsuit challenging the video store chain's recent Internet expansion.

The complaint, filed in U.S. District Court in San Francisco, focuses largely on the online wish lists that prioritize the DVD desires of about 5.4 million people who subscribe to either Netflix or Blockbuster's Internet service.

Netflix also believes its patents cover perhaps its most popular feature -- the option of renting a DVD for an unlimited time without incurring late fees.

Read the full article here.
“Netflix Sues Blockbuster for Alleged Patent Infringement”