According to a Blockbuster employee, Blockbuster Online has recently implemented a new DVD allocation system. Under the new allocation system, subscribers may receive DVDs from any distribution center in the country as opposed to the apparent previous standard of regional distribution. Supposedly, the purpose of the new system is to allow subscribers to gain access to titles which may be in short supply in some regions but available in others.
The surprising aspect of this allocation system is the way DVD availability can dramatically affect shipping times. Monday through Thursday, the new allocation system generally selects titles from only those toward the top of your queue. If none of the titles near the top of your queue are available, Blockbuster will not ship any DVDs to you. Only on Fridays, will Blockbuster Online ship titles which are not high in your queue. Therefore, if the top of your queue is loaded with DVDs which are tagged as anything but “Available,” Blockbuster may not ship a DVD to you until Friday even if you have had empty slots in your queue all week.
This new allocation system is going to be very frustrating for you if you have been waiting months to see titles which are in low supply. You may be able to finally get those titles, but they could come from almost anywhere in the country and take a long time to arrive. Also, their presence at the top of your queue could tie up shipping on your account for days at a time.
The best way to beat the new allocation system is to keep a few Available titles at the top of your queue Monday morning through Thursday afternoon. At the end of the day on Thursday, move the titles with waits back to the top of your queue or just arrange your queue to reflect your actual wishes. Rearranging your queue twice per week will be a headache, but it appears this is the best way to work the system in your favor until things change.
7/19/2008
Preparing for a Blockbuster Lawsuit
With Blockbuster raising prices, cutting back on subscriber benefits, expanding shipping times, etc., customers are bound to become outraged at some point. Hundreds of thousands of outraged customers are going to create a hostile consumer environment, which is almost certainly going to lead to lawsuits against Blockbuster.
If you do not trust Blockbuster to deliver the unlimited DVD rental service for which you are paying, you will want to prepare for the possibility that you, one day, will be furious with Blockbuster and want some justice. A little bit of effort on your part now will help you build your case against Blockbuster should you need to take action in the future.
The most important thing you can do to build your case against Blockbuster is to keep track of each Blockbuster DVD you receive. As Blockbuster sends each DVD, make a note of the title, the date Blockbuster shipped it, the date you received it, the date you returned it, the date Blockbuster acknowledged receipt, and the date Blockbuster shipped the next title. You can record this information on paper or digitally. The easiest way to record this data is in a spreadsheet.
Recording all of this Blockbuster shipping data may seem like overkill, but if you think there is even a remote chance you may want to sue Blockbuster, participate in a class action lawsuit, or have Blockbuster investigated for fraud, this data will be very useful to the attorney or investigators. If you do not have this data available, the only source for the data will be Blockbuster. They, of course, will be reluctant to provide it and may not do so without a subpoena. If you record the data yourself, you will have it readily available, and it can eventually be used to crosscheck and verify the accuracy of whatever data Blockbuster releases.
Also, keep track of all of your communication with Blockbuster. Keep copies of every letter, email, etc. If you call Blockbuster, make a quick note about when you called and what was discussed. This information will be valuable later when you need to establish you have been a responsible, concerned, and proactive consumer.
Lastly, log in to your Blockbuster account and copy your entire rental history. It is important you do this as soon as possible, because Blockbuster controls this information and has the power to remove it at any moment.
To copy your rental history, follow the steps below.
In summary, you can protect yourself as a consumer by taking a few simple actions. By tracking your rentals, recording your correspondence, and copying your account history, you can build an arsenal of information, which will become useful if you should ever need to sue Blockbuster or have them investigated by a government agency.
If you do not trust Blockbuster to deliver the unlimited DVD rental service for which you are paying, you will want to prepare for the possibility that you, one day, will be furious with Blockbuster and want some justice. A little bit of effort on your part now will help you build your case against Blockbuster should you need to take action in the future.
The most important thing you can do to build your case against Blockbuster is to keep track of each Blockbuster DVD you receive. As Blockbuster sends each DVD, make a note of the title, the date Blockbuster shipped it, the date you received it, the date you returned it, the date Blockbuster acknowledged receipt, and the date Blockbuster shipped the next title. You can record this information on paper or digitally. The easiest way to record this data is in a spreadsheet.
Recording all of this Blockbuster shipping data may seem like overkill, but if you think there is even a remote chance you may want to sue Blockbuster, participate in a class action lawsuit, or have Blockbuster investigated for fraud, this data will be very useful to the attorney or investigators. If you do not have this data available, the only source for the data will be Blockbuster. They, of course, will be reluctant to provide it and may not do so without a subpoena. If you record the data yourself, you will have it readily available, and it can eventually be used to crosscheck and verify the accuracy of whatever data Blockbuster releases.
Also, keep track of all of your communication with Blockbuster. Keep copies of every letter, email, etc. If you call Blockbuster, make a quick note about when you called and what was discussed. This information will be valuable later when you need to establish you have been a responsible, concerned, and proactive consumer.
Lastly, log in to your Blockbuster account and copy your entire rental history. It is important you do this as soon as possible, because Blockbuster controls this information and has the power to remove it at any moment.
To copy your rental history, follow the steps below.
- Click on My Account on Blockbuster.com.
- Verify your login information.
- On the My Account page, click on View Rental History.
- The My Rental History page will appear.
- With your mouse, highlight all of the titles and dates. (Note: Speed up the process by setting the Results Per Page to 100.)
- Copy the data by pressing [Ctrl + C] on your keyboard.
- Paste the data into a document or spreadsheet by opening the desired application and pressing [Ctrl + V].
- Make sure to save the data.
In summary, you can protect yourself as a consumer by taking a few simple actions. By tracking your rentals, recording your correspondence, and copying your account history, you can build an arsenal of information, which will become useful if you should ever need to sue Blockbuster or have them investigated by a government agency.
7/03/2008
The Reality of Blockbuster’s Practical Plan Caps
As far as we know, Blockbuster does not have any official subscriber plan caps which actually limit the number of DVDs a subscriber is permitted to receive in any given time period. This, of course, excludes limits which are specifically established as the terms of specific plans (e.g., the cap on the LIMITED Through the Mail plan).
Official plan caps are not necessary, because all Blockbuster subscriptions come with built-in plan caps--or practical caps--which are imposed by the USPS delivery schedule and Blockbuster’s shipping days. Given that Blockbuster has limited full shipping days, your DVDs will most likely ship only on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays. This small shipping window significantly limits the amount of DVDs you can receive in any given week.
For example, if you were to maximize your TotalAccess Premium plan by exchanging all of your online rentals for in-store rentals the same day those online rentals arrive, you would not be able to average more than twelve DVDs (six online and six in-store) per week. In order to reach this lofty maximum, you would have to generally receive your DVDs the day after shipping, and here is where we find another problem: transit times.
Not all DVDs arrive the next day. Rare titles, old titles, brand new releases, etc. commonly ship from distant shipping centers and take longer to arrive. These longer transit periods increase turnaround times and greatly reduce the amount of DVDs you can receive in a week. Even if you are diligent about exchanging your online rentals for in-store rentals the same day they arrive, you may find it very difficult to get more than six DVDs (three online and three in-store) per week if some of your DVDs are taking an extra day or two to arrive.
So, there you have it. Limited shipping days and transit times are working against you. Even under perfect circumstances, no matter what you do as a consumer, your Blockbuster TotalAccess Premium plan has a practical cap of around twelve DVDs per average week. If your circumstances are less than perfect, you might experience a practical cap of around six DVDs per week. Realistically, you will probably find that you can average no more than ten DVDs per week on a TotalAccess Premium account, and accomplishing that feat will require a great deal of determination and effort on your part.
Official plan caps are not necessary, because all Blockbuster subscriptions come with built-in plan caps--or practical caps--which are imposed by the USPS delivery schedule and Blockbuster’s shipping days. Given that Blockbuster has limited full shipping days, your DVDs will most likely ship only on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays. This small shipping window significantly limits the amount of DVDs you can receive in any given week.
For example, if you were to maximize your TotalAccess Premium plan by exchanging all of your online rentals for in-store rentals the same day those online rentals arrive, you would not be able to average more than twelve DVDs (six online and six in-store) per week. In order to reach this lofty maximum, you would have to generally receive your DVDs the day after shipping, and here is where we find another problem: transit times.
Not all DVDs arrive the next day. Rare titles, old titles, brand new releases, etc. commonly ship from distant shipping centers and take longer to arrive. These longer transit periods increase turnaround times and greatly reduce the amount of DVDs you can receive in a week. Even if you are diligent about exchanging your online rentals for in-store rentals the same day they arrive, you may find it very difficult to get more than six DVDs (three online and three in-store) per week if some of your DVDs are taking an extra day or two to arrive.
So, there you have it. Limited shipping days and transit times are working against you. Even under perfect circumstances, no matter what you do as a consumer, your Blockbuster TotalAccess Premium plan has a practical cap of around twelve DVDs per average week. If your circumstances are less than perfect, you might experience a practical cap of around six DVDs per week. Realistically, you will probably find that you can average no more than ten DVDs per week on a TotalAccess Premium account, and accomplishing that feat will require a great deal of determination and effort on your part.
6/27/2008
Latest Releases Arriving Late
In the past, when Blockbuster Online was a pretty good service, new releases would often arrive very quickly. If you lived near a distribution center, you could expect DVDs to arrive as early as the day after their release date (conceivably, even on the release date). It appears that rapid delivery system has changed.
If Blockbuster Online ships a DVD to you shortly after its release date, do not be surprised if it takes two or three extra days to arrive in your mailbox. Blockbuster Online must be shipping their newest releases from remote distribution centers.
This delay will extend your turnaround time. So, if you want to keep your turnaround times short, you might want to keep those new releases lower down in your queue for the first several days after their release. Presumably, once demand has slightly waned and every distribution center has a modest supply of the newest titles, you should have a better chance of Blockbuster shipping your DVD from your nearest distribution center.
Of course, if you just have to see that new release as soon as it comes out, the extended transit time might be worth it to you, and you will want to keep that new release at the top of your queue. Also, if your plan allows it, you can simply use an in-store exchange to get that new release. (Note: New releases almost always come out on Tuesdays.)
If Blockbuster Online ships a DVD to you shortly after its release date, do not be surprised if it takes two or three extra days to arrive in your mailbox. Blockbuster Online must be shipping their newest releases from remote distribution centers.
This delay will extend your turnaround time. So, if you want to keep your turnaround times short, you might want to keep those new releases lower down in your queue for the first several days after their release. Presumably, once demand has slightly waned and every distribution center has a modest supply of the newest titles, you should have a better chance of Blockbuster shipping your DVD from your nearest distribution center.
Of course, if you just have to see that new release as soon as it comes out, the extended transit time might be worth it to you, and you will want to keep that new release at the top of your queue. Also, if your plan allows it, you can simply use an in-store exchange to get that new release. (Note: New releases almost always come out on Tuesdays.)
6/18/2008
Blockbuster Keeps Finding New and Exciting Ways to Suck
At first, Blockbuster Online was breathtakingly amazing at sucking. When Blockbuster Online first became available in 2004, it was an absolutely horrible service. The unstable Web site was a flashback to 1996. DVDs were limited. They took too long to ship. They took too long to arrive, and when they finally did arrive, they were often the wrong discs in the right envelope. The service was so unbearably bad that subscribers were practically tripping over each other to cancel. The subscriber cancellation problem was so severe Blockbuster had to beg subscribers not to quit. Many disgruntled customers got discounts, free months, and other benefits in exchange for being patient with the hapless new online service.
As time went on, the Blockbuster Online team got their act together. Service gradually got better with each passing month. Eventually, Blockbuster Online subscriptions became pretty good values. Subscribers began to enjoy the service, people were getting all the movies they could want, and the party lasted for a while.
Apparently, Blockbuster determined that offering a good value may make customers happy but does not necessarily translate into a profitable business model. Suspiciously, as if it were planned, service began to gradually decline at Blockbuster Online.
The first thing to start sucking was online customer service. Whereas online customer service used to be tolerable and a reasonable avenue for pursing resolutions to account problems, online service soon became ridiculous. Subscribers in need were greeted with delays, form letters, and boilerplate solutions. Online customer service became mindless. To this day, it seems like the average online service representative does not understand the most basic customer inquiries. Don’t you just love it when you fill out Blockbuster’s online support form to ask why a title has been sitting at the top of your queue for six months and you get a reply telling you to add more titles to your queue?
A new nasty surprise came in the summer of 2006 when Blockbuster quietly eliminated all weekend DVD processing. This was an unwelcome turn that considerably reduced subscriber benefits by increasing turnaround times. USPS works weekends. Why can’t Blockbuster be at least as good as their carrier?
In the summer of 2007, Blockbuster found an absolutely spectacular new way to suck by dramatically raising prices and limiting in-store exchanges for many online customers. Blockbuster basically, turned their standard plan into TotalAccess Premium and then created a lesser plan, which was then presented as Blockbuster’s new standard plan: Total Access. What sort of company does something this outrageous?
Toward the end of 2007, the most egregious of Blockbuster’s sucking initiatives came in the form of tremendous cutbacks on Monday shipping. With the new reduction in shipping days, Blockbuster decreased its normal (full) shipping days to Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday. That’s nearly half the week! The limited shipping days make it extremely difficult for subscribers to get two sets of DVDs in a week. Way to go, Blockbuster. Not only is this an excellent way to suck, it’s a bit sleazy too.
Within the last few weeks, Blockbuster found yet another fun new way to suck by eliminating in-store rental e-coupons for many subscribers. Even those who were getting two coupons per month, got downgraded to one per month. This is just the latest in a series of declines in Blockbuster Online subscription benefits.
When it comes to delivering bad service, Blockbuster has spared no creativity in finding new and exciting ways to suck. What’s next? How much worse can Blockbuster Online get? In the near future, maybe Blockbuster will start limiting online customers to selecting movies from the remnants of Blockbuster’s pan and scan VHS collection. Don’t be surprised when you look into your mailbox and see a thick yellow and blue envelope containing a severely worn tape of Beverly Hills Cop 3 (Full Screen Edition). Oh, and by the way, it will probably arrive postage due.
As time went on, the Blockbuster Online team got their act together. Service gradually got better with each passing month. Eventually, Blockbuster Online subscriptions became pretty good values. Subscribers began to enjoy the service, people were getting all the movies they could want, and the party lasted for a while.
Apparently, Blockbuster determined that offering a good value may make customers happy but does not necessarily translate into a profitable business model. Suspiciously, as if it were planned, service began to gradually decline at Blockbuster Online.
The first thing to start sucking was online customer service. Whereas online customer service used to be tolerable and a reasonable avenue for pursing resolutions to account problems, online service soon became ridiculous. Subscribers in need were greeted with delays, form letters, and boilerplate solutions. Online customer service became mindless. To this day, it seems like the average online service representative does not understand the most basic customer inquiries. Don’t you just love it when you fill out Blockbuster’s online support form to ask why a title has been sitting at the top of your queue for six months and you get a reply telling you to add more titles to your queue?
A new nasty surprise came in the summer of 2006 when Blockbuster quietly eliminated all weekend DVD processing. This was an unwelcome turn that considerably reduced subscriber benefits by increasing turnaround times. USPS works weekends. Why can’t Blockbuster be at least as good as their carrier?
In the summer of 2007, Blockbuster found an absolutely spectacular new way to suck by dramatically raising prices and limiting in-store exchanges for many online customers. Blockbuster basically, turned their standard plan into TotalAccess Premium and then created a lesser plan, which was then presented as Blockbuster’s new standard plan: Total Access. What sort of company does something this outrageous?
Toward the end of 2007, the most egregious of Blockbuster’s sucking initiatives came in the form of tremendous cutbacks on Monday shipping. With the new reduction in shipping days, Blockbuster decreased its normal (full) shipping days to Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday. That’s nearly half the week! The limited shipping days make it extremely difficult for subscribers to get two sets of DVDs in a week. Way to go, Blockbuster. Not only is this an excellent way to suck, it’s a bit sleazy too.
Within the last few weeks, Blockbuster found yet another fun new way to suck by eliminating in-store rental e-coupons for many subscribers. Even those who were getting two coupons per month, got downgraded to one per month. This is just the latest in a series of declines in Blockbuster Online subscription benefits.
When it comes to delivering bad service, Blockbuster has spared no creativity in finding new and exciting ways to suck. What’s next? How much worse can Blockbuster Online get? In the near future, maybe Blockbuster will start limiting online customers to selecting movies from the remnants of Blockbuster’s pan and scan VHS collection. Don’t be surprised when you look into your mailbox and see a thick yellow and blue envelope containing a severely worn tape of Beverly Hills Cop 3 (Full Screen Edition). Oh, and by the way, it will probably arrive postage due.
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