It's not like Dish does the most logical thing most of the time......
ding ding! winner winner chicken dinner!! Sounds plausible.....
Dish wants NCR to remove Blockbuster name from video rental kiosks
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It's not like Dish does the most logical thing most of the time......
ding ding! winner winner chicken dinner!! Sounds plausible.....
The thing about wanting more money from NCR, though, is that they wouldn't have filed a suit to require them to take the name off the kiosks without any other warning. It would have been more drawn out than immediately filing suit.
While I'd normally agree, the thing about Blockbuster kiosks is that if you have a Blockbuster account (like Netflix), then you can get DVDs out of the kiosks without additional charge.
Have to disagree. If a kiosk was named "Mark's DVDs", would you even walk up to it and see what titles it had available ? Blockbuster is an extremely well-known name or "brand" and NCR isn't stupid for licensing the name.
Very true ! I assure you, ask 100 people who "owns" the Blockbuster Express kiosks and 90+ will say "Blockbuster". Most people don't know who NCR is, nor care.
I have to disagree with you. No one knew what "Redbox" was when they started, and they are now industry standard.
Then why did they do it?? you're saying that Dish doesn't want in the game, you're saying they didn't want more money from NCR, then why are they suing?
I don't believe your second point is true at all. They are two separate entities, and your BB membership account does not entitle you to anything from the BBE kiosks. If you can prove otherwise, I'll recant.
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I've been using Redbox for almost as long as they've been around my area and no, I didn't just walk up to a box and check it out either. A co-workers did though and told me about it, then I checked it out. Back then, if we used Redbox, we were literally the ONLY people using it, as in, no waiting in line to check-out or return movies like today. When I used it years ago, I could see people watching me (wondering what I was doing). Now, as you say, they're the standard. I've reserved a movie at a particular kiosk and had to wait 5 deep in line !
Since Red Box kiosks are all over now(have like 6 or more within a mile of my house), I review and reserve from home and then go pick up what I want. Much faster that way, especially if I go to one grocery store that has 2 of them. Less waiting in line.
But they had to start from scratch. They built their name over time, and they built the category themselves. Kiosks didn't exist in volume until they came around.
They're suing because they want NCR to stop using the Blockbuster name immediately. I don't know for sure that Dish doesn't want more money or that they don't want to be in the business, but if either of those were true, then the way they're going about this is completely asinine. If they wanted more money from NCR, they should have opened negotiations, and there hasn't been enough time for that process to progress from dish buying Blockbuster->figuring out the contracts->deciding they want to stay in the kiosk business ->deciding they want to stick with NCR->deciding they want more money->asking for more money->getting rejected with no hope for further discussion->demanding termination of the contract.
Alternatively, if they wanted to stay in the business on their own, why give up the 9,000 locations? Why have the name wiped out of the marketplace immediately? Why not either negotiate with NCR to buy the machines or change the business, or, wind down the contract with NCR while at the same time building up DISH-owned kiosks?
I think they want out of the business because it cuts into their revenues on the DISH side of things. I know they're trying to keep Blockbuster stores open, but retail stores give them an outlet to sell DISH service plus they rent other things like video games. The rest of the Blockbuster business, which is mostly a clone of Netflix, makes sense as an addon to DISH. Kiosks, not so much. Why do you think Netflix isn't in the kiosk game?
And I appear to be wrong about the Blockbuster Total Access/Express crossover. I could have sworn that I saw that somewhere, but either I was wrong or it is no longer linked together. If it was never linked together, they missed out on a pretty big opportunity.
If they open negotiations, they are conceding that the Kiosk deal survived the bankrupcty in some form, and they would probably be bound by the previous contract. It appears that they want NCR to come to them if they're[Dish] going to allow the name to be used on the kiosks.
They could open negotiations without 'conceding' anything. They could simply go to NCR and say, "We do not plan to keep the current contract under the current terms. We would like to renegotiate the terms, and, if we are unable to come to terms agreeable to us, we will exercise our rights under Bankruptcy to terminate the existing contract."
That would not have necessitated demanding immediate cessation of the use of the name and the filing of lawsuits.
That would not have necessitated demanding immediate cessation of the use of the name and the filing of lawsuits.
As far as I know this is what they are doing... and they are doing it with any company that does business with Blockbuster, it's not just NCR.
If they don't give notice via the lawsuit to abrogate the contract they run the risk of not being able to do so via the bankruptcy petition. Their objective is a new contract with new terms. They don't want the old contract.
I think the opposite will happen and they will expand their kiosk business.
Imagine the foot traffic it could bring DISH retailers if they had a Blockbuster machine in front of their store.
DISH retailers could already be doing that, if they wanted, with Redbox or old Blockbuster machines. Most DISH retailers are independent, yes? Why would DISH owning the kiosks make them want to put these out front any quicker? I'm willing to bet they won't be happy if its mandated. Plus, I still think that it pulls money away from their online and PPV/VOD business without an acceptable return.
All of that notwithstanding, if they DO plan to stay in the business, by basically sticking their fingers in the eyes of NCR at the outset and completely shutting down the Blockbuster kiosk business only to completely start over makes no sense at all in any realm of reality.
What Dish retailers ? How many are there really ? I couldn't tell you where a single one in my area is... I think one of the local cell-phone resellers also sells Dish, but I'm not sure.
