I recently tried to use a Blockbuster gift card to rent a movie, but at $6.50 per rental, I decided the pre-viewed videos for sale at $9.99 were a much better bargain. At $6.50 per rental and with OnDemand, NetFlix and host of other choices, it’s no wonder that Blockbuster’s stock price has plummeted.
The video I wanted to rent was Batman Begins“ one of my favorites. Not seeing it for sale in the previously viewed section, I decided to hop over next door to the new Target.
Holy Schnikes! Having not purchased a new DVD in a long time I was amazed at how dramatically DVD prices have fallen in the last two years. $9.99 is nothing! The Harry Potter DVDs were all below $4 and movies such as the Italian Job were under $8.
These prices were even better than anything I could find online (once you take shipping into consideration). As for Batman Begins, I walked away with the widescreen version for $13.28.
One thing that I find shocking is that CDs are well above DVD prices. What are these guys thinking? For example, most movie soundtracks are priced well above the cost of the actual movie. What sense does that make?; a 90 minute audio-only DVD costs more than a full DVD movie with extras such as interviews, scene selection and out-takes .hmm.
Consumers are savvy people. The recording industry and Blockbuster can cry and moan all they want about file sharing and illegal downloads stealing their business, but the fact is these guys need to go back to the drawing boards on VALUE. The fact is DVDs with their strategic pricing and low cost alternatives are where it’s at.