Is the end of Blockbuster Video finally here?

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The discussion centers around the closure of Blockbuster and the shift from physical video rental services to online streaming platforms like Netflix. Participants reflect on their personal experiences with Blockbuster, noting issues such as scratched DVDs that affected playback quality. Some express nostalgia for renting games and movies from Blockbuster, while others highlight the convenience of streaming services, even with slower internet connections. There is a consensus that businesses must adapt to changing consumer preferences, with many acknowledging that they would consider upgrading their internet for better streaming capabilities in the future. The conversation also touches on the broader trend of traditional rental services becoming obsolete as digital distribution becomes more prevalent.
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Your late fees are waived: Blockbuster closes (cnn.com)

I don't think my wife and I ever rented a video. :rolleyes: We've never been really "into" movies, and seldom have enough time at home in the evening to sit down and watch one through. If we get bitten by the bug after we're both retired, I guess we'll just have to use Netflix et al. on our Apple TV box. We'd have to upgrade our Internet connection to get enough bandwidth to make it usable for serious video streaming, though.
 
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It is pretty natural for businesses to close which no longer provide a useful product or service.

Almost every DVD I rented from Blockbuster had playback issues during some parts due to scratches. I had to skip whole chapters quite often. Part of why I made the decision to go to online distribution only, about two years ago.

You don't need a ridiculously fast connection to watch movies. I'm on 3 Mbps DSL and I can watch Netflix just fine.
 
Where do places like this go when they die? Are photo mats floating around somewhere in another dimension. I had some pictures that I forgot to pick up. Sorry that is just silly. It must be the wine I drank after my last post in the American Dream thread.
 
I only ever went to Blockbuster when I needed game cards for this MMO called Cabal that I used to play back in junior high/high school xP
 
Back when I was a kid I rented tons of SNES and N64 games from them. Those were fun times.
 
Ben Niehoff said:
You don't need a ridiculously fast connection to watch movies. I'm on 3 Mbps DSL and I can watch Netflix just fine.

We have what most people would consider a ridiculously slow connection: 0.75 Mbps "DSL Lite". :-p It's not even fast enough to watch most YouTube videos. When I find something I want to watch for more than a minute or two, I download it with a Firefox plugin and play it offline.

That connection started out at $15 per month, then AT&T raised it to $25 about a year ago. When we feel really cramped by it, we'll upgrade to a faster service. Right now it's not a high priority.
 
I think I've used BlockBuster once in my life.
 
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  • #10
I used to rent video games for the PlayStation 1 from Blockbuster all the time as a little kid. Great memories; felt like a kid in a candy store.
 
  • #11
South Park called this years ago.
 

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