When you return your Blockbuster Online DVD to a Blockbuster store, Blockbuster’s computer system is supposed to update your account immediately to record that you have returned an online DVD. Theoretically, as soon as a Blockbuster store employee scans your DVD into Blockbuster’s system, a queue slot should become available, and another DVD should ship in the near future.
The problem is, when you return a DVD at a store, you cannot always count on Blockbuster’s system to acknowledge the return. Even though you can stand at the counter at a Blockbuster store and watch a Blockbuster employee scan your returned online DVD into the system, sometimes the DVD’s status will not be updated in your queue. It would be fair to assume that, if your queue shows the DVD as not returned, one of your queue slots will remain occupied until the system is updated or the DVD is eventually scanned at a distribution center. This delay could last for days, meaning you will not be able to use your full subscriber benefits during that period.
To make certain Blockbuster’s system has recorded the return of your online DVD, check your queue after you return each online DVD to a store. If the system has recorded your return, a “Received at Store” tag should appear next to the DVD’s title in the “MOVIE(S) SHIPPED” section of your queue. If you have returned a DVD and you do not see the “Received at Store” tag, assume the system has not recorded your return. You will have to contact Blockbuster Online to resolve this problem or report it by clicking on the title’s “Report” link under the “DVD PROBLEM” column.
4/26/2008
Blockbuster’s Availability Excuse Is Ridiculous
When Blockbuster fails to ship a DVD to you, their favorite excuse is that you do not have enough “Available” titles in your queue. This is a ridiculous and insulting argument. Title availability is clearly an inventory issue, making it Blockbuster’s responsibility. As a customer, Blockbuster’s lack of DVDs should not be your burden. You have no control over how many copies of a title Blockbuster has in stock. As a paying customer, you should be making the demands and Blockbuster should be supplying those demands.
If Blockbuster offers a title and a lot of people want to see it, Blockbuster should not skirt around the problem by making subscribers wait for weeks or months. Blockbuster should simply purchase more copies of that popular title. What’s the problem with that? Blockbuster can easily use queue data to gauge subscriber demand. If people are waiting months to see a particular title, is it not reasonable to assume this is a title that interests a significant number of subscribers? Shouldn’t Blockbuster be focusing on stocking the titles their customers want to see?
The next time you complain to Blockbuster about failure to ship a DVD to you and Blockbuster tries to put the blame on you for not having enough “Available” DVDs in your queue, tell them availability is Blockbuster’s problem not yours. Tell the customer service representative to go upstairs and wake up the people in the Purchasing Department so they can take care of Blockbuster’s ridiculous inventory problems, which happen to be limiting the subscriber benefits for which you are paying.
If Blockbuster offers a title and a lot of people want to see it, Blockbuster should not skirt around the problem by making subscribers wait for weeks or months. Blockbuster should simply purchase more copies of that popular title. What’s the problem with that? Blockbuster can easily use queue data to gauge subscriber demand. If people are waiting months to see a particular title, is it not reasonable to assume this is a title that interests a significant number of subscribers? Shouldn’t Blockbuster be focusing on stocking the titles their customers want to see?
The next time you complain to Blockbuster about failure to ship a DVD to you and Blockbuster tries to put the blame on you for not having enough “Available” DVDs in your queue, tell them availability is Blockbuster’s problem not yours. Tell the customer service representative to go upstairs and wake up the people in the Purchasing Department so they can take care of Blockbuster’s ridiculous inventory problems, which happen to be limiting the subscriber benefits for which you are paying.
4/17/2008
Distant Shipping for Popular New Releases
If you have a popular new title in your queue, do not be surprised if, when Blockbuster ships it, it takes an extra day or two to arrive in your mailbox. It appears that Blockbuster sometimes ships popular new releases from distant shipping centers.
An innocent explanation may be that, when Blockbuster runs low on a particular title in one market area, they use their subscriber distribution system to transfer copies of that title from an area where the supply is abundant. This is an inexpensive way for Blockbuster to move DVDs around the country, but this method does mean more waiting for subscribers.
The good news is that you can get popular new releases from Blockbuster Online. Just be aware that if you have a new release in your queue and the status is “Short Wait” or worse, you may be waiting an extra day or two for that title to arrive after Blockbuster ships it.
An innocent explanation may be that, when Blockbuster runs low on a particular title in one market area, they use their subscriber distribution system to transfer copies of that title from an area where the supply is abundant. This is an inexpensive way for Blockbuster to move DVDs around the country, but this method does mean more waiting for subscribers.
The good news is that you can get popular new releases from Blockbuster Online. Just be aware that if you have a new release in your queue and the status is “Short Wait” or worse, you may be waiting an extra day or two for that title to arrive after Blockbuster ships it.
4/07/2008
Duplicate Title Notification Is Not Reliable
Under normal circumstances, if you rent a DVD from a Blockbuster store and that same title happens to be in your queue, a duplicate title notification should pop up on your computer screen the next time you log into your Blockbuster Online account. When you get the notification, you have the opportunity to delete the title from your queue or leave it there. You also have the option of having titles automatically deleted from your queue as you rent them.
This is a nice and convenient account feature, but use it with caution. This duplicate title notification is not reliable. It seems to work most of the time, but the software often misses some rentals and can mistakenly leave a title in your queue. The risk is that you could rent a title at a Blockbuster store and then have that same title shipped to you from your online account the next day. Assuming you do not want to watch the same title twice in a week, you will want to take some precautions.
When you get home from your Blockbuster store, log into your online account. Hopefully, you will get a duplicate title notification, and you can delete the title from your queue. Otherwise, you will need to manually delete the duplicate title from your queue. If you do not make sure the title is out of your queue, there is a very high chance the duplicate title will be shipped to you before you realize the mistake.
This is a nice and convenient account feature, but use it with caution. This duplicate title notification is not reliable. It seems to work most of the time, but the software often misses some rentals and can mistakenly leave a title in your queue. The risk is that you could rent a title at a Blockbuster store and then have that same title shipped to you from your online account the next day. Assuming you do not want to watch the same title twice in a week, you will want to take some precautions.
When you get home from your Blockbuster store, log into your online account. Hopefully, you will get a duplicate title notification, and you can delete the title from your queue. Otherwise, you will need to manually delete the duplicate title from your queue. If you do not make sure the title is out of your queue, there is a very high chance the duplicate title will be shipped to you before you realize the mistake.
2/19/2008
Very Long Wait Could Mean Months or Never
If you have any DVDs in your Blockbuster queue tagged as "Very Long Wait," do not be surprised if Blockbuster takes months to ship them to you. Blockbuster defines "Very Long Wait" DVDs as those that might take six weeks or longer to ship; however, the key to this definition is the "or longer" part. "Or longer" may mean six weeks plus one a day or months.
Some "Very Long Wait" DVDs can sit in your queue for months and then suddenly convert over to "Coming Soon." Even worse, sometimes Blockbuster will remove these DVDs from your queue and explain the title is no longer available. In a sense, "Very Long Wait" can sometimes mean "Never."
Blockbuster needs to add another classification for DVDs that may take months to ship or never ship. Perhaps, Blockbuster needs to add a classification such as "Rare Title" or "Extremely Long Wait." If Blockbuster is going to keep a customer waiting for months to see a DVD, the company should just be up front about it. If more than three months pass before Blockbuster ships a DVD, they should email the customer to explain the delay and inform the customer about what Blockbuster is doing to fix the problem.
Some "Very Long Wait" DVDs can sit in your queue for months and then suddenly convert over to "Coming Soon." Even worse, sometimes Blockbuster will remove these DVDs from your queue and explain the title is no longer available. In a sense, "Very Long Wait" can sometimes mean "Never."
Blockbuster needs to add another classification for DVDs that may take months to ship or never ship. Perhaps, Blockbuster needs to add a classification such as "Rare Title" or "Extremely Long Wait." If Blockbuster is going to keep a customer waiting for months to see a DVD, the company should just be up front about it. If more than three months pass before Blockbuster ships a DVD, they should email the customer to explain the delay and inform the customer about what Blockbuster is doing to fix the problem.
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