The Blockbuster Museum
Jul 17th, 2008 | By TheWild1 | Category: Black ListAs a kid, I remember how almost every Friday my family and/or friends would stroll into Blockbuster (BBI) to find the hot movies or games to rent. It usually ended with my mom telling me I couldn’t buy the box of candy.
Yep, those were the good old day.
In those times, it seemed like Blockbuster was indestructible. Almost creating a mini monopoly. Who could compete? The only competition at the time consisted of a lowly Hollywood video.
Now the market is flooded with companies such as itunes (AAPL), Netflix (NFLX), and even cable services that offer onDemand. Members are able to choose through an enormous collection and view any movie they please without ever having to leave the house.
Blockbuster tried hard to keep hip and cool. They even branched out into the Online DVD rental business, to try and combat with the likes of Netflix. The yellow and blue company tried to persuade the masses that their service was better because you didn’t have to wait a few days. If you wanted a movie instantly you could use your same membership at any physical location.
Microsoft (MSFT) just announced that they will be partnering with a online video rental distributor, for the Xbox 360. Who is it you ask? Netflix, but don’t worry Blockbuster has been able to track down some pathetic merger with Circuit City (CC). Look out for the latest gadgets in your local Blockbuster store. Is anybody excited? No, because people prefer Best Buy (BBY) over Circuit city, so why would they like Blockbuster any more?
The notion of physically going to a store and renting videos and games seems rather outdated. A 5 year old relative of mine doesn’t even know what Blockbuster is, yet he is always asking when will the Netflix man come?
How sad. A new generation is forming where Blockbuster is completely sheltered from their lives. It is important that we teach our future lessons of the past.
For those that are looking to remember how living in these horrible times were or looking to enlighten the little children of the world, take a look at the Blockbuster Museum. [Video Enclosed]
By the way. If you hadn’t already noticed, STAY AWAY from Blockbuster stock.
I even remember the “before Blockbuster” days of the early to mid ’80’s - when VCR’s first became popular, blank tapes cost $19 each, and mom-an-pop video rental places sprouted up all over.
Just like everyone started “dot com” companies in the last ’90’s, a lot of local businesses jumped on the video bandwagon.
I even remember how the dry cleaners that my parents used went from being called “Countryside Dry-Cleaning” to “Countryside Dy-Cleaning and Video”!
Then, there was a big shakeout, and only a few chains, like Blockbuster and Hollywood video, were left. Today, the only mom-and-pop stores that carry movies are Asian stores (i.e. Indian, Filipino, etc) that specialize in ethnic movies.
As a side note, even though dry-cleaning and video rentals sound like completely different businesses, they actually complement each other. With dry-cleaning, you drop something off and then pick it up after a few days. With movie rentals, you are picking something up then returning it a few days later. The “Countryside Dry-Cleaning and Video” actually lasted longer than some of the other mom-and-pop stores.
TheWild1 Reply:
July 21st, 2008 at 1:01 pm
I guess these other companies should look at broadening their services.