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Blockbuster Online Review |
Blockbuster US online rental service launched in August 2004 and is up there with netflix as one of the big 2 services, now offering a massive range of 75,000+ dvd's for rental.
In 2004 I wasn't that impressed with the website, but nowadays it is visually one of the best with many improvements having been made to the way you browse, and add movies, especially with the drag and drop approach to managing your movie queue. Searching is fine, although searching by actor's name is one area I felt wasn't as great as it could be.
To entice you to try them they offer you a 2 week trial. The unlimited rental plans themselves are simple and very competitively priced, starting with $10 for 1 dvd out a time, $15 for 2 out at a time and $18 for the 3 at a time plan. These plans also come with a free instore game rental each month, which adds more to the value. What's more is that they also now allow the ability for you to return by mail or to your nearest participating blockbuster store. When you return an online rented dvd to the store, you receive a free in-store rental.
Click here to Visit Blockbuster Online
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Blockbuster Online Customer Reviews |
Sandee from Antelope, CA on 2008-07-03 Rates them:  
I signed up for the two weeks free trial (one dvd at a time) and waited for my dvd to come in the mail. I waited 4 days and then reported the problem by requesting the dvd to be sent again, almost a week later I still havent received the dvd. I had it and just cancelled my membership with them! Too freakin long for just one dvd!!! I signed up for netflix and 2 days later I got my first dvd! :-) |
Wendy from Omaha, NE on 2008-07-03 Rates them:
I had been a happy blockbuster customer for several months before the turn around time began to slow down. When returning my movies to the store, it would take up to four days to receive a new one. This doesn’t seem like a big deal, but with a DC 45 kin away and my brother’s(in the same neighborhood) turn around of 1-2 days, I had lost patience. I began reporting DVD’s when not cleared off my queue. Last week, I went to log in and my password wouldn’t work. I reset it and it still didn’t work. An email to the company revealed that they CANCELLED my membership b/c of too many complaints. I was informed upon calling c/s that I should have called c/s sooner instead of reporting online. She then told me that most people would have done so, instead of continuing to report via BBO website. (despite the fact that it’s easier to report and to waste ½ hour to an hour on the phone) I’m still working with this issue, but as far as I know, most businesses will not ban a customer for their dissatisfaction. |
Josh from MD, US. on 2008-05-11 Rates them:
I am blown away by all the negative reviews for Blockbuster. I have had them for about 3 years now. I have the 3 out at a time, unlimited in store exchanges, and 2 coupons to rent games or movies a month. All for 17.99, the original price I signed up for. They have never raised my rates, implemented the in store exchanges which I love, and have continued to allow me to rent 2 games a month with my coupons. I think the current rate for this according to their site is 34.99, which I agree is a bit too much. If I return 3 movies on Monday to the store, I get 3 in store rentals, then I receive the 3 in the mail by the next day, Wednesday at the latest, I usually take those back to the store on Thursday, and do the same thing. When I'm not busy and have the time to watch movies, I can rent up to 12 a week this way. Plus, for new releases, if I have them at the top of my queue, I will either receive them the Tuesday they get released, or the next day. The only complaint I have for them, is that there are a few obscure dvd's that have been in my queue for several months, but I understand that there is no reason for them to have 1000 copies for a poker instructional dvd. I have used Netflix, Dvd Avenue, Intelliflix, and Gameznflix, and Blockbuster by far has the best of everything. Just waiting for them to allow viewing from your PC like netflix. |
Tim from Cincinnati Ohio on 2008-05-03 Rates them:
At first i was really happy with the Blockbuster Online service, and AVAILABILITY of the dvds i wished to see...NO MORE...Right now i have over 114 movies in my que, but only 14 are Available..But don't believe that..Often they change to either "long wait...very long wait..or coming soon"...I have written them many times if they have a big demand for certain titles, then BUY more copies...No replies to this suggestion. I am getting less than 20% of the movies im asking to see...Forget getting any concerts, at first it was easy, now good luck..Yes all the complaints on here are Very legitimate. Im fed up too with Blockbuster, and may return to Netflix..Sooner than i thought... |
Ron from on 2008-04-30 Rates them:
THis has been the WORST experience with a company in my life. I just wanted to watch some movies. First, they didn't come, then when I wanted to cancel, they kept sending movies!!! When you try to contact he CS dept they jsut answer you with prefabricated responses that don't answer your questions!!! I am still battling them right now. I am going to have to have my credit card company take care of this one. |
nguyen from joysey on 2008-04-22 Rates them:
Blockbuster may be decent at some types of movies but I can attest that they do a terrible job with opera. They have a very small selection and often get the productions, cast descriptions, DVD sleeves mixed up. The difficulty with opera DVD inventory is that unlike regular films, while the name of the opera and composer stays the same, there may be many different productions, possibly with the same cast. Therefore, the year, the location / theater, the cast & crew are important details. I'm in the second week of my 2-week trial and have received 1 broken DVD and 3 whopping wrong DVDs all in the first week. This is discouraging. Netflix is far from perfect but I've never had this much problem in just a single week. One thing I have to say is that they are very fast--much faster than Netflix. Maybe there's shipping center nearby or something. |
Shane from seattle on 2008-04-08 Rates them:
I was a customer with blockbuster for some time and i decided because my work schedule was bit tighter i decided to cancel blockbuster the problem started there. I cancelled the service and returned the DVD's in the mail but i was still charged 22 $'s per DVD. Even disputing the charge with your Credit Card wont help so be careful if you want to choose blockbuster. When you are cancelling the service be prepared for the extra charge. Paying 22 $ for a movie 100's of people have watched before and scratched you will be paying the full amount. Also be prepared for the Arrogant reply that they are not responsible for the loss in the mail. So you will pay the 22 $ irrespective of the mail loss which is not in your hands. |
Chris from Indiana on 2008-04-06 Rates them:
Like many of the people posting here, I was impressed with Blockbuster Online...for the first few months. Since then, I have gone from a 2-3 day turnaround from a DC that is only an hour away to waiting a week...after I returned movies to the store!
I sent three movies out on a Monday. On Wednesday, I received one movie. On Friday, I received notice that the other two had finally shipped. AFTER I had already watched and returned a shipped movie!
Now, I am hoping and praying that Netflix has stopped its slow-down program. At the end of my membership, I was receiving movies that were being mailed from Honolulu and California. Needless to say, it took the post office awhile to get them to Indiana.
But at least they did ship the movies. And the correct ones. Nothing like getting stuck with two copies of Bee Movie in the wrong sleeves!
The "canned" replies from their online customer service are quite annoying. I have pointed this out to them after completing their "online survey". What a joke. As if this company cares what you think. This company wants anyone who tries to get more than a movie or two a week to cancel their membership, as they are losing money on shipping fees.
But did we as consumers ask them to advertise an unlimited rental program? Did we advise them to advertise next business day shipping? No, so please, let's all see what we can do to get some legal action taken against this fraudulent, deceptive, and insulting business known as Blockbuster. |
WL from Florida on 2008-03-19 Rates them:
Still satisfied with Blockbuster Online, overall quick turnaround time. My only complaints are that they do not ship on weekends, and they do not notify you when they have increased your monthly rate. |
Bruce from Arizona on 2008-03-15 Rates them:
Used them last year with regular DVDs and unlimited exchange. Felt it was a good deal; usually got next DVD in three days. After not using while on extended travel, came back to increased price and fewer exchanges. OK, gave it a try BUT I am now a Blu Ray owner and all in my Queue are for Blu Ray, not regular DVDs. In my list of 60+ items, only five are available, the rest have one or the other WAIT reasons. For the past six days my third DVD has not been sent. Customer Service? says I need more "AVAILABLE" DVDs in my Queue. I say BlockBuster needs more BR DVDs in THEIR queue. Cancelling, and giving NetFlix a try. |
Joshua from West Michigan on 2008-03-12 Rates them:
I didn't even last through the free trial. I used their "cancel" subject on the contact form, since there is no cancel button on the account management page when a trial is the active subscription plan. They didn't cancel my service as requested, and continued to charge me even though I had emptied my queue. When I called months later to ask why they kept charging me, they said they misunderstood the cancellation as a complaint about not receiving movies in a timely manner (which was one of the reasons for my cancellation). They said that was because my queue was empty (apparently they didn't understand I had emptied my queue right before canceling since I didn't want to receive another movie and send it back later than the time allowed after cancellation). I don't understand how they could misunderstand the cancellation email - I selected "CANCELLATIONS" from the drop-down list that they provided on the contact form. They wouldn't refund me, even though I hadn't received a movie from them outside the trial period. They essentially soaked me for $75, and I got nothing for it. The guy who I was talking to on the phone actually hung up on me, though I was being quite reasonable - I called again, and the second service rep hung up on me too (each after almost precisely 15 minutes - I think their customer service has a 15-minute max phone time). Crumby service, crumby ethics, crumby company. I won't even go to the one that's practically next door. I'd rather drive across town to get a video. |
Kami from Los Angeles, CA on 2008-03-11 Rates them:
I've had blockubuster on line for about a year. They were great at first, then they started changing their plans. They claim that they sent an email to everyone in regards to a price increase. I never recieved an email and they were not willing to refund that money which went from $16.00 to $32.00. I'm going back to NETFLIX! |
denzel from New York on 2008-03-11 Rates them:
I give them a very poor rating. My story is pretty much the same as the most but I will make few bulleted points why my rating is so low.
1. It is true - they do not ship on saturdays.
2. I have the unlimited in store exchange - and for the past 2 months - they have been throttling my account - once I return the move in the store, the next movies don't ship for atleast 2-3 days (excluding the store where the movies were returned)
3. They lured me in with the 17.99 price, then increased it to 24.99 and then increased it to 35.99 - ALL without notification.
4. Poor customer service, they dont list the 800 phone. I found it on a website, had to wait for 49 minutes before I got a rep - who was not pleasent to talk to.
5. NEVER HAVE MOVIES IN STOCK - after paying this much I epxect to have the movies sent to me but 8 out of 10 times, they don't send me the movie that is on top of the list.
I think this is just a few to mention. I will be joining netflix - it was a biggest mistake to sign up for this. Please please just give netflix a try if you have the option. They have always been fast in the past.
I strongly recommend against signing up with blockbuster. |
Chad from California on 2008-02-29 Rates them:
I had the same experience as Brooke and Roy. My rate had been increased without any notification. I called Blockbuster Online and was told that they could raise my rate anytime they wanted and that they didn't need to contact me via email or phone call to inform me of the increase. As Brooke stated this could make your account bounce checks. This is nothing more than a bait and switch deal. I'm going to be picketing a few of their stores this month during prime time. Businesses treat people like this if you let them. If enough people start picketing, blogging and canceling their service they may treat people the right. Please join me in picketing your local blockbuster store. |
Wolf from Florida on 2008-02-26 Rates them:
I can verify that everything you read here about: how Blockbuster believes that the next business day after a weekend is Tuesday .... how Blockbuster made a conscious decision that, after a $10 rate hike for their total access members, they decided to "throttle" members worse then NetFlix (the inventors of the video throttle) ever did. I've spoken to customer service at their secret telephone number (it's not on their website, but you can find it by googling "Blockbuster customer service") customer and you wouldn't believe the lame excuses they are told to give. One of these was that "the Post Office is overloaded on Mondays (which is why they don't ship on Monday). But she quickly covered this up with "Blockbuster ships less on Monday because the Post Office is too busy." They like to use the "not enough movies in your queue" excuse, but that is difficult in my case since I have over 90 movies on my queue. They also said "but of the first 30, only 7 of them are available." For those of you who might not know "short wait," "long wait," and "very long wait" all mean the same thing ,,, "forget about this movie, we will never have it again."
Blockbuster is in total violation of its customer service agreement. They don't wish to live up to their side of the contract. Blockbuster feels that the amount of complaints they will receive are worth the dollars they save on not shipping as they are required to do. This is, plain and simple, bad business! Complaints will begin to roll in to the BBB, state attorney generals and the Federal Trade Commission for false advertising and misleading the public. And since this is an "Internet Crime" a few hundred complaints to the Internet Crime Complaint Center ( a partnership of the FBI and the National White Collar Crime Center (NW3C) would be in order. At least one or more of these agencies is going to make Blockbuster comply and/or compensate their members.
Aside from warning new members and filing complaints, the ultimate challenge is to warn Blockbuster stockholders of their coming fate. Blockbuster stock has been losing value over the last year ... from $7.18 per share to it's current price of $3.18. When the complaints begin to take their toll, when the government agencies step in, Blockbuster is going to lose BIG. Blockbuster recently announced it will close more stores. They can't win the war with Netflix. Blockbuster just doesn't have the same amount of movies, less quantities of what they do have .... and they are extremely dishonest. Stockholders" when you figure out what's going on FIRE these people who made these recent decisions. Send them packing and you just might save Blockbuster (for now). The shareholders are the true owners of Blockbuster ... let them know what's going on. |
Matthew from Winchester Tn on 2008-02-22 Rates them:
I have been billed for the last 5 months (Sept 07 through Jan 08) and have not received a single title in my queue. Take a guess when I will be back. Blockbuster is unwilling to refund anything more than 3 months. Great business sense!! All of this after, my credit card expired and was not renewed on the account. |
szeth from pueblo co on 2008-02-22 Rates them:
Not sure why so many bad revies but I think Blockbuster online is awesome. I always have a movie to watch and we watch alot. They did up there prices but it is still worth it if you watch alot of movies. |
Alex from Dallas, TX on 2008-02-22 Rates them:
I love Blockbuster Online! I really don't understand the negative reviews. I get my movies quickly, they have a great selection, the website is easy to use, and I pay 19.99 for 3 DVDs at a time, unlimited exchanges, and a coupon each month. I get a new movie every day.
I have had a few issues such as scratched DVDs or the wrong DVD being shipped (I'd say about 1 in 50 mailings) but as soon as you report the issue, they immediately offer to ship either the same movie or the next item in your queue.
I don't really see how this service could be any better. |
Brooke from Morgantown, WV on 2008-02-19 Rates them:
My husband and I have had Blockbuster Online for about 6 months with no problems at all. They always deduct our monthly fee of $10.59 from our checking account. However, I looked at our checking account today and they had deducted $13.00 instead of our regular fee. So I went to my blockbuster account, and sure enough they had raised the price of our subscription and had not even TOLD ME! I finally found a number to call for customer service, so I called. It asked me for our account number... finally I got to an option to speak to an associate. I chose that number and I got a message. Unfortunately our customer service center is closed, for 24 hour support, e-mail... It is 9:30 am on a Tuesday! When is their customer service center open????? Since I only use our checking account to pay bills and only put enough in to cover bills, this could have cause my checking account to bounce! If they can mail out our movies, dont you think they could take the time to mail a letter saying our prices are raising? I went online and cancelled my account. Good ridance! |
Chuck from Jacksonville, Florida on 2008-02-17 Rates them:
I have had over 170 movies mailed to me from Blockbuster Online and only had issues with 2. When I reported issues with the 2, I was immediately e-mailed coupons to help make up for inconvenience, plus I was able to trade the defective movies back in at the Blockbuster store for more free movies while waiting for replacements for the defective titles to be mailed. Customer service has been nice and curtoeous the few times I have had to contact them. I have had no billing or queue errors and basically, it has been a WONDERFUL EXPERIENCE. I live in Jacksonville, Florida and they have a warehouse in Daytona so I usually get my movies LITERALLY in 1 business day. Plus, with the Total Access program, there are times when I have 6 movies at a time to watch, plus a free monthly coupon to use up. As for Blockbuster's title library, I can only think of 2 movies that I want that they do not have - one of which is the Superman 2 - Richard Donner version. I am not sure why they don't have that, but they seem to have everything else. I LOVE BLOCKBUSTER ONLINE AND BLOCKBUSTER TOTAL ACCESS! |
Roy from Minnesota on 2008-02-16 Rates them:
My experience is almost identical to a lot of these reviews. I've had it for a couple years, the price goes up; fine. They used to have a couple day turn around time. Not anymore. Second message I've sent since it's now been 10 days sice my dvds were listed as returned at the store. For nearly $40 a month, if I'm going to have to wait over a week to get the DVDs to ship, Im'm going back to Netflix. |
ellen from indianapolis on 2008-02-02 Rates them:
1) couldn't figure out how to send 2part disc--they sent disc #2 and i spend countless time on email and phone trying to get them to send the pair 2) worse: they killed my queue and were clueless how it happened. said sorry, you'll have to refill your queue (i definately do it; it occurred after they 'upgraded' their software). took numerous emails and calls to speak to a supervisor (after promising call backs which didn't happen.
moving to netflix, and so should you! |
LC from Pennsylvania on 2008-01-31 Rates them:
At first I was very satisfied with Blockbuster Online. Then came the limited exchanges. That change seems to be accompanied by a noticeable decrease in shipping speed. Then came the price increases. Add to that the very poor customer service and general attitude of misrepresenting issues to customers.
The latest this thing is Blockbuster is trying to say the “next business day” after the weekend is Tuesday. The next business day after Friday, Saturday or Sunday is Monday unless it is a holiday. I actually had a guy in the Blockbuster legal department tell me the next business day is Tuesday. The only way this company is going to learn they cannot just mislead customers and ignore the terms of service is if Blockbuster customers go to the website of the BBB and file a complaint. I would also suggest you go to the website of your state attorney general and file a complaint. If Blockbuster is not going to ship on Monday when a DVD is checked in on a weekend, they need to clearly state that in the terms of service. In addition, since the price increase was such a huge percentage, it would be interesting to see if the state attorney general of your state would think it is okay to lure customer with one price then raise that price by a huge amount.
Last night I talked to someone at a Blockbuster store. They told me they are still getting a 3 at a time UNLIMITED in store exchanges for $19.99. In other words they were never subjected to any of the price increases or change in terms that Blockbuster imposed on some of us with little notice. I emailed Blockbuster online about this. Here is the response I received:
Thanks for contacting BLOCKBUSTER Online Customer Care. Based on usage, some customers won't see either an increase in price or a change in plan terms. Some other customers will be given the option to move from a plan with unlimited in-store exchanges to a plan with monthly limits on exchanges, but at no price increase from their current plan. Finally, again based on their usage, some customers will be given the option to stay on their current unlimited plan, but at an increased price. All Blockbuster members have a choice and can always change their current plan to another offering.
Sincerely, Edgar
Customer Care Associate
BLOCKBUSTER Online
So, on top of the "next business day" issue, the huge price increase, and significant change in terms, I find out Blockbuster used some arguably arbitrary criteria to allow some customers to keep the original terms and price while the rest of use saw huge price increases and or a material change in terms. Again, I would suggest you contact the BBB and your state Attorney General. I asked Blockbuster for clarification and specific details about the criteria used. I will post those when I receive them. |
Danny from Seattle, WA on 2008-01-27 Rates them:
Blockbuster is rediculous. I switched from NetFlix to check things out. At first I was really happy with Blockbuster, being able to exchange dvds in store and what not. Eventually the prices shot up, ok fine. Then I start recieving incorrect discs (ie I had a two at a time plan, they would send me disc one of a series with disc twelve of that series). I sent a few emails about this issue and their response was, "Please forgive us of our human error." Human error my ass. Seems more like employees not giving a damn about their job and customers, seeing as how it happened numerous times. Lastly, I recently cancelled my account with Blockbuster only for them to charge me an addditional month, and I'm still recieving movies from them. Needless to say I have switched back to NetFlix, same plan that I had with Blockbuster and half the price. The great thing about NetFlix is that they have a selection of movies you can stream for free from the website. Blockbuster is a joke, they treat their customers like garbage. |
spongebobinsac from Sacramento on 2008-01-27 Rates them:
I had been a blockbuster Total Access member for a little over two years. During my time as a member I had nothing but high praise for the plan, that is until the last rate increase of $10 a month. Even at that increase, which brought my monthly rate to 34.99 a month, I really had no complaints. What really irritated me was the fact that the speed of my DVD's being sent to me. Almost immmediately after that rate increase I went from what was a couple a day turnaround for DVD's, to almost a week or more to recieve my DVD's. This went on for 3 to 4 weeks. THe first time this happened I complained and of course they blamed me because they said I didn't have enough DVD's in my queue and that I should always keep my queue at around 30 titles. The problem with this response was that I actually had 50 movies in my queue, with most showing they were available. At this point I was figuring it was probably just a hiccup in their system, so I let it go. I then returned my next 3 DVD's to the store and again, for at least a week the movies would not even show they were being shipped. I complained again, they again blamed me saying I need to keep my queue over 30, but this time they did send me a coupon for a free movie, which was nice. After a week, i finally received my next shipment. I returned them to the store on a Thursday and even by Saturday morning the queue showed no signs of my next DVD's beig sent. I patiently waited to Monday and finally complained again. It took them well over 2 days to respond back and gave me the standard line of it being my fault (not having queue above 30 titles), which wasn't the case since I had at this point nearly 60 titles. I could no longer accept this kind of service, especially since they had increased my rate to $34.99. I know this story is not an isolated case, since everyone I have introduced to Total Access has now either just dropped the service to watch cable, or have switched to Netflix. I myself have switched to Netflix and am very happy I switched. I do miss the in store exchanges, but am happy now that my rate is more than 1/2 the cost and my DVD's are shipped super fast. I may try blockbuster again in the future, but for the time being I am happy. |
Maggie from Jacksonville on 2008-01-17 Rates them:
reading all your complaint's makes me mad. if you have an issues with someting why let it go so long? There is a report dvd button in your shippping area. if movies have been recived instore but are still there after a week go and repot it as beiing returned. IT DOESN'T take more than a min. to do it. IF your life is so dull you only have movies to fill it GET A LIFE. take up golf, reading, cooking anything. you do realize everything goes up in price so suck it up I did. doen grade your plan on go with the by mail only. they do offer that. YES some movies have a waite but at leat BB doesn't by Burned off coppies of movies or rent porn for you kid's to see by mistake(like other on-line companies do)So if your that dis satisfied GET OVER IT IT'S Just a movie. if you add up how much it would cost just to rent all the dvd's you get by main and free in an exchanges you'll se you are saving so much mone on the BB plan. |
Tim from Mount Airy, Maryland on 2008-01-16 Rates them:
I am really befuddled by all the negative reviews, but I'm sure they are true. I started my DVD experience thru the local Library, where I could either get free DVD's or pay $1.50 for new releases for 3 days. I then found out about BlockBusters Total Access & Netflix. IO spoke to friends who used both & did my own company reviews to find the best deal. The result was that I could get BB Total access for 1 movie at a time for $9.99 with unlimited return to store for FREE rental. This was Great, as I had a 14 day free trial to boot. I found the Online account very easily and started my trial. I received my 1st movie in 2 days, probably because the BB terminal is out of Gaithersburg, MD, not far away. I checked my account and found that if I returned the DVD to the store, that my account was instantly updated as returned to blockbuster Total Access & would receive the next Movie in 2 to 3 days. After 45 days I had watched a total of 26 Movies (a little over 1 every 2 days. About 6 months passed and I decided to change to 2 Movies at a time because I wanted to start watching old TV shows as well. I did at that time see a increase in the prices and a change in format. Mainly that there were only a couple of choices which give unlimited Store exchanges. I went ahead and went for the 2 DVDs with unlimited exchanges for $21.99. At this price I am seeing about 16 Movies a month, at a cost of $1.37 a movie. I also figured out that if I put the newly released movies coming out on tuesday at the top of my queue & returned my watched TA movies to the BB Store, that I get the new releases in the mail on Tuesday (1st day of release) every time! Can't beat that! The other big positive to BB Stores, are the extended return policies without a fee. They even call the house if we have rented a movie and forgot to take it back because its in the sofa cushions. I've never been charged a late fee or been charged a restoke fee. 1 last positive note is that I also belong to the Blockbuster Rewards club for $10 a year, which gives me 12 free Non-New release rentals & rent 1 get 2nd free Monday thru Wednesday. I have had problems printing BlockBuster Coupons and have dealt with the Online Support with much success. I always end up with Free Coupons mailed, plus the ability to print it out.
Now come on, is Blockbuster really that bad? Cause nobody even comes close to the service I get!
NetFlix - Who wants to watch Movies on their Laptop, when they have a High Def TV, PS3 playing Blue-ray Movies delivered right to their home. Oh yeah, I've got the Laptop and the Cable and the LCD TV with the port as well. I only use that to watch the cool IMAX movies that you can download for free from the Library.
Enough said! |
Jaques from New Haven, CT on 2008-01-15 Rates them:
I have previously been very impressed by this service. Previously I would return the movie to the store, get a free rental and often receive notice that my next film had shipped the same day. Often I even received it the next day because of my proximity to a distribution center.
However, that's not been happening lately. Given a reduced level of service and the increase in price, I'm a little bit loathe to continue doing business with them. I'm finishing the next few weeks and will see if they can shore it up. |
Lewie from Arizona on 2008-01-14 Rates them:
LoL glad im not alone! For those of you who gave BB a high rating, you are obviously one of the lucky ones who have not been noticed Yet: I cannot actually concieve that BB would grandfather some at random standards. I have a friend who has not seen their change of service yet reguarding in store exchanges.
As for me they changed my service after just 3 short months. then 3 months after that they hicked my rates - with no notice i might add. And for those who think were too retarded to adjust or spam filters -- GET REAL! i recieve the notices that they send/recieve my movies, i should have no problem recieving their adjustment notices :P So, instead of just cancelling, i thought i might embark upon the journey of their online customer service. After 3 insulting prefabbed responces telling me of their great deals but never actually answering the question, they finally shuffled me off to phase 2. as they did so they forwarned me that i would not recieve any changed to my account and that i would not be formally answered by a human being, only an automated responce. LOL. I told them i would not stand for this kind of charging/ service abuse from anyone except my drug dealer and loan shark! See yah BB. Those of you who rated 10 will soon be found and appropriotly violated--until then, good day. |
Ken from Colorado on 2008-01-12 Rates them:
I switched from Netflix to Blockbuster in early 2006. At that time the deal was very good, 2 movies at a time with unlimited in-store exchange, and one free gamemovie rental coupon. Recently I got e-mail from Blockbuster saying 'You will continue to get the same great benefit from blockbuster.com, with $2 more per month'. Basically, it's another way of saying 'We decide to jack up our price'.
I have been quite unhappy with them for the last few months. Yes, the in-store exchange is great but only if they have movies you want to see (which most of the time they don't). I also rent blu-ray discs and they have very little blu-ray discs in store (like one or two per movie). For the on-line, the blu-ray discs, most of the time, have short wait on them, regardless of how old the movies are. I live in Denver and Blockbuster have local distribution here, but it still takes 2-3 business days for Blockbuster to clear my queue (how can that be possible), and some times take another 2-3 business days for me to receive movies they mail. I have heard that they throttle the rate of sending out movies if you rent a lot of movies, but I only rent like 6-8 movies per month.
I think for hi-def discs (HD-DVD or blu-ray), the movies may not always come from local distribution center and the turn around time can be very long. Some times I mail the movies back on Monday, and still haven't got anything back on Saturday.
Today I am canceling Blockbuster and go back to Netflix until Blockbuster can get their act together. I will lose the benefit of in-store exchange but Blockbuster turn-around time is just not acceptable to me. |
David from OKC on 2008-01-12 Rates them:
It is hard to rate them - I have been using online off and on for several years. It has been pretty good - so it is hard to rate them, but lately they increased the fee and charged my card without permission or notice! The service the last two weeks has been horrible! I guess they raise the rates and give you less. I have contacted them several times only to receive a free movie rental. This is my last month - too late - I will be using a different service for the next several years until you get your problems sorted out. The other services are a lot cheaper now anyway. |
Mark from Virginia on 2008-01-11 Rates them:
First off, let me reply to the guy who insultingly said that all of us who are having problems just can't figure out how to work the system. Since I spent the first half of my working life as a Level 3 computer support engineer, and then changed careers and became a charge nurse, I assume that I am not stupid. I can navigate Blockbuster's web site just fine. (After all, how hard is it to put movies in a queue?!?)
That being said, Blockbuster is horrible. Of the 100+ movies in my queue, over 75 of them are in wait status, with the majority being "long wait" or "very long wait." The site was down for an entire day on January 7. (What?!? A company as large as Blockbuster can't spring for a "hot spare" server to have standing by in case the main one fails? What is up with THAT?) Their customer support is slow, but generally they do an adequate job of answering your question.
They have billed me incorrectly two months in a row, requiring calls to customer service to get corrected. On a few occasions I've had movies that I returned at the store not show on the system as being checked in, even though I watched the associate scan them. Most of the time my in-store returns do get processed quickly though, and new titles sent out the next business day. Too bad that they are titles from way down my list because they have such terrible inventory issues.
Blockbuster is a multi-million dollar company, but they are losing ground by leaps and bounds. Since the last price increase, service has only gotten slower. They can't even begin to compete with Netflix on speed or inventory issues. My local Netflix distribution center is only 150 miles from here, and 90% of the time I get my movies the 1st day after they are shipped (and they get them the next day after I return them). They usually send my movies in order, and send them the same day that the returns come in. Blockbuster has a warehouse in the same city (Richmond VA) and routinely takes 2-3 days to get movies to me, even though the web site says "shipped." Frankly, I think they outright lie about their shipping dates. Since they use permit imprint mail (no postmark date shown) there is no way to prove this.
I have had Netflix and Blockbuster accounts side by side for a few months now. I'm canning my Blockbuster account and sticking with Netflix. I've been much happier with them. Even with the local return option, Blockbuster just simply sucks. |
Debbie from Phoenix, AZ on 2008-01-09 Rates them:
01/09/08: I have been using Blockbuster Total Access online for over a year and have been extremely impressed with the quick turn around time (24 hrs) of movies. However, since I received their email 12/19/7 regarding the price increase from 17.99 to 19.99 a month I have yet to see any new movies in my mailbox. I have returned two and am down to one. Prior to the email 12/19 I would have had them in my hands by now. I have emailed customer service 3 times in the last week and no response. So........I am seriously thinking of cancelling my subscription and moving on to Netflix. I hate to do that just yet but I'm so irritated with Blockbuster right now. Don't companies get it? If I was a CEO of this company I'd be freaking out at all the potential business to be lost. Any how, thanks for letting me vent. |
Chris from Kansas City on 2008-01-08 Rates them:
As all previous commenters, have been dealing w/ horrible service from bbo. DVD's returned to the store (w/o exchange) still take 2-3 days to be reported as 'cleared'. Since the return to the store option gives no benifit, I will be changing to netflix. |
Vincent from Ann Arbor, MI on 2008-01-08 Rates them:
This service isn't what it used to be! The price keeps rising and since I "rejoined" on Thursday, I have not gotten any movies and it's nearly been a week. Conventionally, the site has been down ALL MONDAY (today, 1/7)! I'm done with them altogether now and may just go to Netflix!
I joined the service pretty early on when they started heavily promoting it in my area and gave me a free month of service. It was Oct '06. The service was fast, the price was great for three movies and what soon become unlimited returns to the store! Only $14.99, I believe. So I kept it for about nine months or so and was happy with it for the most part until I had to move for the summer and I knew my family wouldn't appreciate my eccentric picks very much and it wasn't worth it to keep it.
So I rejoined last fall (07) again to find the price went up a bit but still liked it. Only kept it maybe three full months since I was busy with school and had to go back home for a long break.
I entertained the idea of rejoining this winter for a little while. It was not a great idea. I only clicked on a link sent to me in an email to check their prices and found not only that I was instantly rejoined but didn't even get to see the new options that were available. The price went up again (of course). On top of that, when I kept emailing about asking what happened, I never got a totally clear answer, though. It seems like they gave me a free month without me knowing it (they insist billing starts on Feb and you pay before the service starts for that cycle) which was fine but it's been three weekdays with NO MOVIES..so you get what you pay for. I refuse to pay for this service next month if they were going to treat me like this during a trail period. They are really messing up beyond the technical difficulties they are claiming today. I'm surprised there aren't more comments about today!
I agree they have some kind of strange priority on movies. I have been waiting nearly a year to see a small movie not available to rent in stores near me which went from having a "short wait" forever to now finally being a "very long wait". The best part is that movie sells on their site for only $6.99...if somebody lost a copy, they seriously can't just reorder it considering how long it has been?
Since "rejoining", I have been totally let down and refuse to actually pay for a month when my first bill is supposed to start. The best part is that instead of giving me clear answers about when my service is supposed to start, they threw a stack of coupons at me....I use the service to get rarer TV and music as well as movie selections not available in the store. For the hassle they have given me over the past few days, they should honestly send me like six movies since I could have watched that many in the time they have been messing with me! |
Aaron from Rochester, NY on 2008-01-07 Rates them:
i think i am the only one giving bbo higher then 2. before i get into bbo i want to talk bout my experience with netflix. since that is what every one is running to. i was a netflix member for 1 year. im a star trek fan. there are tons of dvds if watching the entire series. it was very,very rare that i got them out of order. the last 2 months o started getting ripped mailers. some the dvds fell out and some had the top flap torn in shreds. sometimes i all i got was a ripped flap in mail bag saying dvd mailer got damaged in sorter at usps. i used to get 24month total. that got knock down to 16 with 3 at a time. so i cancelled it. NOW we arrive at the bbo part of story. i dont use total access. i only use by mail. my star trek movies i continue to watch are 40% very long wait. so i just put my plan at 1 unlimited. that way if if i get them out of order. ill only be one off insted of 3. its a good idea you should try it. switch to 1 at a time. the bbo mailer are much stronger the netflix newspaper thin ones. i haven't had a bbo one arrive ripped yet. as for the shipping delays you guys are talkin bout. its nothing to do with bbo or netflix. when mailers are returned they go threw an extra sorting process. this adds time to shipping. thats why it seems it takes longer to have then ship the next ones on list. but when bbo and netflix mail them out they are directly sent to you. its a weird process i know. but the usps sorting facility told me this. cuz i kept complaining bout it. so just keep that in mind. hope this helps. |
David from New Jersey on 2008-01-07 Rates them:
My experience with Blockbuster has been nothing but outstanding since I joined 5 months ago. Just extended my service. Sometimes I think their problems relate to the inability of some people to properly use the system, no matter how simple they make it. |
Carrie from OKC on 2008-01-07 Rates them:
Like everybody else. I've been a LONG time BB participant. Got the email about ANOTHER price hike while my "great" services stayed the same. No longer a better deal, so I signed up with Netflix instead! |
George from florida on 2008-01-05 Rates them:
I just got a free three month gift subscription to blockbuster online from my mom . I had one before that I canceled for personal reasons . When I canceled I still had movies in my queue . To activate my gift I had by no choice to go under my old account since my email address was the same being used for my gift .When I got to my new home page my queue list was empty , so I filled out a new queue . I started getting movies that werent on my new queue , I figured out they were being sent from my old queue list that I or any employee can seem to pull up on screen . If I could find it I'd delete them for the reason that since I canceled my old account I had gone to my blockbuster store and rented some of them . I've tried to type in my email and password to get to my old account but since my email is being used by me and the new account it wont let me . And now that my old queue has run out of movies I have yet to get another movie . Three people were rude at customer care and three have tried to help me but couldnt do anything . They give me the same speech about keeping 30 or more movies in my queue ( I had 23 in there ) and they say its impossible that Im getting movies off my old queue . I guess they think Im crazy or lying . They have to be able to contact the distribution centers and get them to see this new queue page , because they all have used the wrong one since december 9th . They keep telling me that the next movie should be from my new list , but they never are .. Im the one that got my sister and my mom to switch to blockbuster from netflix . customer care could care less about helping me . Blockbuster really is going down hill . If the distribution center is sending the wrong movies why cant someone call them and tell them or find that old queue page and erase it ? after a long search on the web I think I might have found the main office ( why do they make it so hard to find the main office ?) its blockbuster 1201 elm street suite 2100 dallas TX 75270 att: mr steve krumholz .. I'd like to find a main number because I cant get anywhere with customer care .. If I dont get a shipped movie monday , or one from the right queue Im canceling it .. I dont like netflix either but if I do cancel it I for sure wont go to my blockbuster store .. |
Hanson from NJ on 2008-01-04 Rates them:
So many complaints... damaged DVD's, shipping screw-ups at least once a month, and regular price increases. They purged all of the NC-17 rated movies from their database but still rent NR movies that verge on pornography. But my newest pet peeve, and what could be the basis of a class action suit, is that BBO claims they have 75,000 movies -- however, this number is specious since almos all of the DVD's I try to rent are Very Long Wait or Coming Soon. I haven't crunched the numbers, but I suspect that they can't really claim to have anywhere close to that 75K available to all customers. Their distro system is so crappy that any member probably has access to 20K movies at any time. To trumpet that they have 75K movies is simply false advertising.
I too cannot understand how a movie goes from available to Very Long Wait overnight. I think that there are a bunch of movies that are in the database with no inventory to back them up, and when they go to ship, they find out that it's not really there. Which would indicate that there are even fewer actual movies available.
Oh, and the email customer service is the worst thing I've ever dealt with. How they take 3-5 days to answer an email with no real answer or resolution is beyond me. |
mariah from washington on 2008-01-04 Rates them:
my email interactions with Blockbuster after talking to several ppl and finding out that im being charged way more then others for a less plan...
my first sent email
I would like to know why my service is raising when my friend who has the same subscription as i do is still only paying the first price of 17.99 for 3 movies at a time and unlimited instore exchanges. I have talked to several people and they did not even get the first price raise last year and have not had there price raised this year. I dont think it is fair to raise some peoples subscription and not other peoples. everyone i have talked to has not had a raise in prices from your company so why am i subjected to the price change and not others twice? The postage hasnt raised and your program hasnt got any better.
this is a copy of her subscription price if u are not going to raise everyones i dont see how u can raise some as u will see she is still paying the first price of 17.99 for what i am going to be paying 29.99 for and she is still receiving e- coupons which i havent received since the last price hike less then six months ago. Thats not good business I want the price she and everyone else I know is getting. i don't see paying twice as much for what they pay so little for.
BLOCKBUSTER Total Access Premium
$17.99 / month (plus taxes)
3 at-a-time, unlimited mailings
unlimited in-store movie exchanges
+2 FREE bonus Movie or Game Rental E-Coupon / Month
Next Billing Date:
January 26,2008
their responce
Thank you for contacting Blockbuster Online Customer Care.
I appreciate the opportunity to address your concern today. We believe you'll agree that Total Access Premium provides an enormous value that comes from unlimited rentals and in-store exchanges, and we’re adjusting our pricing accordingly. The price adjustment enables us to bring our online subscription plans more in line with our in-store subscription pricing and strikes the right balance between providing great value to our subscribers and getting a fair return for the company and our shareholders.
Please note that we're not changing any plan benefits; you'll continue to get all the same great benefits and value from Total Access. With the variety of rental plans we now have in place, you'll have a lot of choices available, should you decide you want to move to a different plan type.
Always here to help,
John
Customer Care Associate
my 2nd email
That is the exact same email I received from you last time to a T. I would like a real responce on why I am being charged more then others for less services. Could you Please read my first email I sent then respond properly to it thank you.
Their final email to me....
I apologize for any misunderstandings. Our price restructure took into account a number of factors, including plan usage. There are some instances when some existing subscribers may not see the same price change as another in the same plan.
We believe you'll still find your membership to be a great value, and with the variety of rental plans we now have in place, you'll have a lot of choices available, should you decide you want to move to a different plan. We do offer Mail Only plans at extremely competitive prices. For example, we offer 3 out unlimited for $16.99 per month, 2 out unlimited for $13.99 per month, 1 out unlimited for $8.99 per month, and a recently reduced price of 1 out/2 max per month for only $3.99 per month. We are happy to offer a wide variety of options to meet the needs to every customer.
Always here to help,
John
Customer Care Associate
BLOCKBUSTER Online.....
So I'm getting punished for being a faithful costumer and using the service i pay for???
my Plan is unlimited rentals that doesn't mean unlimited till u rent to many then we raise the price and nowhere in TOS does it say that such a price hike will happen if the plan is overused...
If you agree that this is wrong please repost..
Thanks for reading!! |
mitchnmichelle from new orleans on 2008-01-03 Rates them:
BETTER BUSINESS BUREAU. Our complaints are the same as most others. Blockbuster has screwed us too. Increased prices without notice and changed in-store exchange amount. This month is paid for but we are canceling membership. Furthermore, we are placing a complaint with the BETTER BUSINESS BUREAU of which they are surprisingly a member. PLEASE DO THE SAME!!!! On the Blockbuster.com website, bottom right hand corner you can click on it and go right to BBB. They shouldn't be allowed to claim themselves as a "better business" when they clearly are not! We, too, were told some were "grandfathered" in but were not given a reason. Not that one household will make a difference in their profit but perhaps, if enough people are aware of the lack of business ethics Blockbuster practices, we can create a large enough "dent" to cause them to notice. |
William from Chicago on 2008-01-02 Rates them:
I was at the three at a time unlimited - Unlimited is not what they give I've seen the limits or should I say deliberate slow down of them shipping out the DVDs after I returned mine to the store. This limit happened at the exact moment I returned my 100th DVD to them. Now they jacked up the fees again after only six months of the last increase. So not only did I canceled my service with them I increased my netflix from 3 to 6 at a time and it still beats Blockbusters fee of $34.95 per month. |
David from Apex NC 27502 on 2007-12-31 Rates them:
On 11/21/07, I paid $10.79 for a one month promotional program with Blockbuster Online which provided three DVD rentals by mail at any given time and in store exchanges of DVD mailers(limit five). At the end of the period, I attempted to cancel my subscription, but was offered to continue the program at a rate of $17.11. I assumed, incorrectly apparently, that the same service was to be provided. Once I received the first several mailers, I soon learned that I had been enrolled in a different program that did not allow in store mailer exchanges. I also noted early in the period, that despite the fact I was returning the mailers to the store, Blockbuster was waiting for as many as four days before mailing out new movies. I considered this substandard performance and asked for a refund. I then learned that I had been billed twice for the same period, $17.11 on 12/21 and $17.11 on 12/22. I complained to Blockbuster via e-mail and was advised that $17.11 would be refunded. I again asked for cancellation of my subscription and a refund of my fee. Instead, Blockbuster canceled my program and stated they would not authorize a refund. Because I had paid for a full month on 12/22, I asked for my account to be reactivated, or a prorated refund for the amount of time left on my subscription. Blockbuster refused. I returned the DVD movies I had in my possession to Blockbuster, Apex, NC and called AMEX to place both $17.11 charges in dispute. I again e-mailed Blockbuster and requested that my account be reactivated for the remainder of the paid subscription or that a prorated refund be issued. Blockbuster has not responded. I was mislead by their offer to continue subscribing to the online program, received a number of scratched or damaged DVD's, was not mailed movies that were available at the top of my DVD queue, and ignored when I complained and asked for a resolution. I was perfectly willing to continue using the program until the period for which I had paid expired on Jan 21. Blockbuster has refused to reactivate my account. Blockbuster has refused to compensate me for the period of time left on my subscription for which I paid. I've asked a customer service supervisor to call me first thing Monday, 12/31/07 to resolve this matter as Blockbuster Online Customer Service is no longer responding to my e-mail. I'd like to either pay a prorated fee for the subscription time I've used, be allowed to use the remainder of my paid subscription, or be issued a prorated refund for the paid portion of my subscription that I've been prevented from using. With little effort, Blockbuster could have corrected my complaints and salvaged an otherwise faithful customer. I've frequented Blockbuster retail outlets and online service for several years and never received anything but outstanding service and response to the few issues I've experienced. Something is wrong and I hope it is corrected. |
Brooke from Jacksonville/FL on 2007-12-27 Rates them:
I originally switched to Blockbuster online from Netflix. After I joined, they started the in store exchanges, which I thought were great. Then there was that infamous email many of us got that said the price would go up if we wanted to keep unlimited in store exchanges. I only got upset when I realized my boyfriend, who joined after me, still was getting the old plan for the old price, while I wasn't. He still gets unlimited exchanges and e-coupons, while I'm limited to 5 a month. When I asked the in store employees, they couldn't tell me why he still got to keep the same plan without having to pay anything, while mine was changed. I tried emailing customer service and kept getting a template response from Joan. It was apparent, she wasn't reading my emails. She did mention that customers in good standing and who had long memberships got to keep their plans. When I told her I'd been a member longer than him, all she could do was apologize and tell me extra rentals were only $2. I even tried calling customer service and again spoke to a young lady that didn't listen to what I was saying, she just kept repeating the same response as if she were a drone. When I asked to speak to a manger, I was forwarded to voice mail which said I would be called back that day. I was never called back.
Then a week ago I received an email that said I would have to pay more, but for the same limited plan. My boyfriend never got the email. What is up with their selection process anyways. Its one thing to go up on prices and to start limiting the benefits to members, but its quite another when you select who you charge extra and who you limit. Its ridiculous. |
Howard from Davis on 2007-12-26 Rates them:
We received a board game made by the Blockbuster company as a holiday gift and tried to return it to our local store on 12/26. The shrink wrap was completely intact, but they would not accept it. Said it was company policy not to accept any returns. Do not buy anything from Blockbuster as nothing is returnable, not even for credit. I swore never to patronize this company again after they unfairly billed me for late rental return fees on one too many occasions. |
samon from Portlan, or on 2007-12-23 Rates them:
In short, it sucks.
They have changed their pricing and more importantly how many you can exchange in store. Another sneaky thing they do is that the turn around gets slower as you rent more.
I am sure I am not the only one that has noticed this.
|
Terry from Chicago on 2007-12-23 Rates them:
They obviously prioritize their customers. Four fifths of my movies are on a long time wait and they are not the popular high demand rentals. My queue went from available to long wait almost overnight. Also their blu-ray inventory is extremely small. |
Chad from Atlanta, GA on 2007-12-23 Rates them:
Same story - started off great. Good price, decent shipping times, unlimited in-store exchanges, got movies high in my queue - often same week of release, plus two e-coupons per month for movies or games. Now, after two price increases, I've got no e-coupons, a limite of 5 in-store exchanges, long shipping times, getting mediocre movies low in my queue, and my local blockbuster manager seems to have no love for online customers making store visits often painful. One word for Blockbuster - "Buh-bye." Going to give Netflix a try. They can't be worse! |
charles from US on 2007-12-21 Rates them:
I signed up for this plan at the begining. I got the $17.99 plan. It was a nice plan and I had no issues with it. Then the first price hike came and in store exchanges were limited. I asked the manager why I was not grandfathered in like others to the old plan (yes that is right some kept the old plan). He said those who use it to much had no option to keep it the same. This is a complete outrage. I know they have the right to change prices, but they have no right messing with people and using fraud practices either. Well listen to what I did, I took all your comments and printed them, cut one of them out and everytime I go to the store I put one of many behind a rental box. People will know now what a awful company this is. I did not consider myself a heavy user since I got my movies in the mail snail slow. |
Ed S from Atlanta GA on 2007-12-20 Rates them:
I'm cancelling my BlockBuster online access due to there nickle and diming the customer. They raised my price today.
Im done, Netflix here I come.
I cant wait to see the day in the coming year that Blockbuster goes Chapter 11 out of buiness.
Competion a wonderful thing.
F-U Blockbuster! |
Steelo from Los Angeles on 2007-12-20 Rates them:
Like others, someone stole my credit card and set up an account with Blockbuster online. I was getting charges for BBO on my monthly statement. I called BB to cancel, and they said I couldn't. They said the account had been authorized by a third party. I asked if there were passwords on my account, phone numbers, email addresses. They said there were. I asked for the information, they could not give it to me because I didn't know my password -- because I hadn't set up the account.
So, I gave them my phone number to see if it matched. It didn't. I gave them my email address to see if it matched. It didn't. I asked them to pull up this "account" to see how many DVD's I'd rented. Aha, I hadn't rented any. Zero activity. I told the guy at BB, isn't that interesting that I would set up an account and never use it. He wouldn't budge. I said the burden of proof was on THEM to prove that this was something I had set up. He said my only option was to contact my credit card company. By cancelling with BB would been to have taken repsonsibilty for the account and pay all charges.
This is BS. Blockbuster is knowingly setting up accounts through third parties. They must receive calls like this EVERY DAY. Maybe it helps their false profits to investors.
These are SCUM tactics. I've never set foot in a Blockbuster since. And I'm glad to see stores are closing. Horrible business. |
Ben from Rhode Island on 2007-12-20 Rates them:
Blockbuster at it again (the e-mail I received this morning):
"As a BLOCKBUSTER Total Access™ subscriber, it's always easy to have the right movie during this holiday season with more than 75,000 titles, including great new releases like Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, The Bourne Ultimatum and Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End.
We know that during this busy time of year the convenience of BLOCKBUSTER Total Access is especially important to you. Have your movies delivered right to your door. If you want new movies right away, exchange in-store*. And with free shipping both ways and no late fees, it's easy to enjoy all the movies you want for as long as you want.
To continue to bring you the unmatched convenience of both online and in-store DVD rentals, your monthly subscription fee will change from $9.99 to $11.99. This adjustment† will go into effect on your next billing cycle on or after December 27, 2007. The benefits of your subscription plan will remain the same."
SO...first my plan remained the same, but new limitations were put in place, and now that the limitations are in place, the plan has been increased in cost, WHEN, Customer Service claimed that the increase was a one-time deal to reflect market conditions.
BLOCKBUSTER ONLINE -- Buh BYE!!!
|
Nick from DAllas, TX on 2007-12-20 Rates them:
OK, went from 17.99 a month with 3 movies out, 2 e coupons and in store returns. Now they are trying to jack the cost up to 34.99 a month, no e-coupons and limited in store rentals. Bye Crap-buster... hello Netflix. |
Rick from Jacksonville, Florida on 2007-12-20 Rates them:
Gave BB the 1 rating because of greed. Opened my e-mail this morning to find BB increasing there rates again. $24.99 to $34.99 for 3. Just went thru an increase a short time back that almost caused me to cancel my subscription, this will do it for. Way out priced there service. I think BB needs to research there finacial history to a few years ago when they were in the process of going broke. |
Todd from NY on 2007-12-20 Rates them:
Fool me once - shame on you, fool me twice - shame on me!
I received an Email on 8/17/07 'changing' my subscription plan as others have posted. Still, I thought there was value for the money and I could live without unlimited in store exchanges and I lose a monthly e-coupon at the same $17.99/month.
I just got this Email (excerpt)...
To continue to bring you the unmatched convenience of both online and in-store DVD rentals, your monthly subscription fee will change from $17.99 to $19.99. This adjustment† will go into effect on your next billing cycle on or after December 27, 2007. The benefits of your subscription plan will remain the same.
What sort of business school flunkie sabotages a gold mine with unlimited potential by risking collapse of the shaft foundation (existing loyal customer base) by trying to 'sneak' out another $2 a month???
Now, as lazy as I am, I need to take time to look at Netflix, subscribing to HBO, or just not spending that $18/month on movies!
Todd
|
gloria from florida on 2007-12-19 Rates them:
movies take longer to get to me and now the price of the 24.99 plan has now went up to 34.99. How does everyone like that? I am quitting them. this is crap. |
Denise from Naperville, IL on 2007-12-18 Rates them:
My comment is much the same as the others I have read here. BB starts off amazing. I recommended them to all my friends, family, etc. When the rate changed I wasn't upset at that but I was upset at the fact that they simply cancelled my account without any notice to me and took me two weeks to find out what the issue was, then another week to start receiving movies again. Well, that went fine for another 2 months, movies were a bit slower but nothing to radical. Then...I realize it's been almost a week since I've received movies so I go to check my queue in which I have constantly kept at least 100 movies and 90% available titles. The message I get from the webpage states that my account is on hold. I try to remedy the situation since they're claiming they cannot access my checking account for payment. All the information they have is the same as it has been since I signed up, I KNOW my checking account information since I do all my banking online and have done so for over 10 years now. After repeated complaints I finally receive an email stating they only attempt to take money out every 10 days and they had just happened to attempt that the day prior to their email including the phone number for me. Anyhow, I call and the girl on the line cannot figure out why my account had been cancelled, blah blah blah, and oh...it just so happens that it cleared your account TODAY!. NOW, I only get a movie or two every week where in the beginning I was receiving at least 3 movies every week. Here's my strategy now. I won't boycott them in the usual manner since there are too many people in my family who love movies as much as I do, so here's what I do. I rent any and all available movies online, but not new releases. Then I save the online movies to return and exchange for new releases and keep those titles for the total alloted time which is a 2 day rental plus the 7 day grace period for a total of 9 days. Hit them where it hurts, but also email them and let them know you realize they are throttling your movies, just like NetFlix did in the beginning and they got bu | | |
