Blockbuster Online Secretly Reduces Features

Blockbuster Online has made another change to their terms of service as of March 1, 2009:

Free in-store movie exchanges will count towards the number of DVDs you are allowed out at-a-time under your Total Access plan. For example, if you have a 3 DVDs out-at-a-time plan, your free in-store movie exchange will count towards the 3 DVDs you are allowed out. You will not receive your next online rental until you return your free in-store exchange.

Previously, in-store exchanges would not count toward your total, allowing customers to quickly get access to changing out DVDs or getting extra content faster than the mail-only service of Netflix. This feature was the last holdout for many customers staying with Blockbuster Online over their main competitor, Netflix.

It’s widely reported that Blockbuster is on the verge of bankruptcy, so it’s not surprising they are quietly cutting corners. Yes quietly, since customers were not notified of this change unless contacting Blockbuster directly or speaking to in-store employees.

The advantages of Blockbuster Online vs Netflix have begun to dwindle with this recent change, as Blockbuster is trying to catch-up with Netflix in the online streaming arena. According to Netflix ready devices FAQ, it now currently has over, “…12,000 movies & TV episodes available to watch instantly, but very few are new releases.” Meanwhile, a recent email (January, 2009) to a Blockbuster customer reported, “Roughly 2,000 titles are currently available. The library changes frequently.” Comparing set-top boxes, the Roku player for Netflix recently added Amazon Unbox to it’s library of available streaming, shortly after adding 720p streaming for some of the content.

The below chart compares the two services, updated with the newest information. Let the exodus to Netflix begin.

Comparison of Netflix vs Blockbuster mail and online video rental services

	Blockbuster Online	Netflix
1 DVD at a Time	$11.99 2 free in-store exchanges*	$8.99
3 DVDs at a Time	$19.99 3 free in-store exchanges*	$16.99
Blu-Ray Discs	Yes	Yes**
Trial Available	2 weeks	2 weeks
Online Streaming	2,000 titles	12,000 titles (3,500 movies, 8,500 tv)
* Counts toward disc-at-a-time total
** Additional $1/month fee

Tags: blockbuster, netflix