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Blockbuster Settles No Late Fee Suit 392

Posted by Zonk from the truth-in-advertising dept.
fistfullast33l writes "In a followup to a previous Slashdot story, Blockbuster has settled a lawsuit with 47 states and the District of Columbia over its No Late Fees advertising campaign. The New York State Attorney General's Office released the following: 'The Attorneys General alleged that the advertising campaign launched in late December 2004 was misleading because it failed to clearly disclose that, seven days after a movie or game's return due date, the consumer would be charged its selling price if the item were not yet returned. The Attorneys General also alleged there was insufficient disclosure that not all Blockbuster franchise stores were participating, leaving customers of those stores wrongly believing that they, too, would not have to pay late fees.' Blockbuster will be refunding customers as part of the deal." Additional commenary available on MSNBC.
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Blockbuster Settles No Late Fee Suit More

Blockbuster Settles No Late Fee Suit

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  • Late fees indeed (Score:5, Funny)

    by Bifurcati ( 699683 ) on Tuesday March 29, 2005 @06:01PM (#12082918) Homepage
    Guess that's some serious late fees for Blockbuster!
    • > Guess that's some serious late fees for Blockbuster!

      It said "Blockbuster will be refunding customers as part of the deal". It didn't say when... :-)

      • Oops! You're right *grin* I should have included brackets: "That's some (seriously late) fees for Blockbuster". I won't hold my breath...At least they've settled, and won't be "appealing the decision" for the next 10 years until the refund is worthless (and no-one is there to claim it!) anyway.
      • Nor did it say how. Most likely the infamous 'vouchers.'

        I like Spitzer. I would vote for him to clean out the White house. Special prosecutor like that guy they had chasing Bill Clinton around. But they got rid of him...

    • Re:Late fees indeed (Score:4, Insightful)

      by Chasuk ( 62477 ) <chasuk@gmail.com> on Tuesday March 29, 2005 @07:04PM (#12083579)
      ...it failed to clearly disclose that, seven days after a movie or game's return due date, the consumer would be charged its selling price if the item were not yet returned.

      I don't live anywhere near a Blockbuster, nor did I do any more than skim the contents of the advertising campaign when it came out, yet these details were sufficiently clear to me.

      ...also alleged there was insufficient disclosure that not all Blockbuster franchise stores were participating, leaving customers of those stores wrongly believing that they, too, would not have to pay late fees.

      See my statement above; it applies in this case as well.

      So, we penalize Blockbuster, who were trying to offer a service that I would have been glad to use had I lived within a reasonable distance from one of their outlets, because people are fucking stupid, or illiterate, or both?

      This isn't news. This would have been news:

      "American public too stupid to understand gist of simple advertising campaign. More news at 11:00."

      • Re:Late fees indeed (Score:3, Insightful)

        by Cylix ( 55374 ) *
        When I initially saw the ad I thought there was going to be some grievous catch.

        Being we don't have a Blockbuster anywhere near my location I didn't really need to look up the details.

        That said, it was obvious the advertisement was going to be misleading. You cannot say "No Late Fees" and simply re-word how you charge someone.

        It's still not a bad idea, but the wording needs to be honest. Maybe even go so far as an opt-in policy and run it as a "Try it and Buy it!" campaign.

      • There were a few disclosure problems:
        1. They advertised "No late fees", but did not sufficiently disclose their "restocking fees".
        2. They advertised on national TV this "no late fees" scheme, yet not all Blockbuster franchise stores participated, leading to customer confusion.
        3. Some Blockbuster franchises, who were not participating in the "no late fees" scheme, still used the "no late fees" marketing materials (banners, etc) despite not participating in the "no late fees" program!

        Now, I know that you are really s

  • And this is important becuase... (Score:5, Funny)

    by Nom du Keyboard ( 633989 ) on Tuesday March 29, 2005 @06:01PM (#12082919)
    And this is important to Slashdot readers who probably download their entertainment because...
  • I keep looking in my mailbox, but there are no Blockbuster DVDs there. The ad shows random people pulling DVDs out of their mailboxes; this is clearly a case of false advertising!
    • Seriously though, it's something to consider. The Blockbuster mail service, in my experience, has been something approaching a disaster. I didn't have good luck with Netflix either, but they were still better than Blockbuster's service.

      I think it's high time companies started being held accountable for their business practices and started having to be responsible for their advertisements as well. Huzzah for the consumer backlash!

  • Am I the only one? (Score:5, Insightful)

    by slapout ( 93640 ) on Tuesday March 29, 2005 @06:03PM (#12082946)
    Wow. Am I the only one that said "there's got to be a catch to this" when this thing started and went to their website to check it out. I knew that they would charge you for the movie because I looked it up. Did you think they were just going to let you keep the movie?

    • You must be the only one (Score:5, Insightful)

      by AtariAmarok ( 451306 ) on Tuesday March 29, 2005 @06:04PM (#12082958)
      "Did you think they were just going to let you keep the movie?"

      That is what the ads strongly implied.

      • Agreed. On their website, it was burried in the small fine print. It definitely was not easy to find.

        I'm a consumer whore! And how! [bitterfilms.com]
        • "Agreed. On their website, it was burried in the small fine print. It definitely was not easy to find. "

          I've been driving by these Blockbusters for a while now. They all have giant round signs that say "No late fees!". There is no fine print on the signs.

      • That is what the ads strongly implied

        Sure, you're right. But who would actually believe this? Who would be naive enough to think that "no late fees" means you keep a movie you rent? After I saw the commercial, I was skeptical. So I went to Blockbuster and asked for details. They gave me a pamphlet that explained it clearly, and now I happen to think it's a good system.

        Lawsuits like this are disappointing. Yet another example of people believing that the law should protect themselves from their own

        • Who would believe it? (Score:5, Insightful)

          by AtariAmarok ( 451306 ) on Tuesday March 29, 2005 @06:33PM (#12083259)
          "Sure, you're right. But who would actually believe this?"

          Looks like we agree that the ads are rather deceptive. I hate frivolous lawsuits as much as the next guy, but it is not frivolous to sue over late-free harassment when you respond to a "no late fees" ad. What part of "no" do you not understand?

        • Re:You must be the only one (Score:2, Interesting)

          by Anonymous Coward
          I would believe this. NetFlix survives with no late fees. When I first saw the commercial I thought that perhaps they had adopted the NetFlix subscription model instead of paying by the rental. They sort of have, but it's not via this program.

          This program is pretty cool, because it allows you a bit more flexibility with the rental and it punishes those who abuse it. It's just stupid that they'd flagrantly say "no more late fees" as if you could just rent a movie and never return it.

        • Re:You must be the only one (Score:4, Informative)

          by MightyMartian ( 840721 ) on Tuesday March 29, 2005 @06:54PM (#12083478) Journal
          Well, to some extent that is the entire purpose of consumer protection laws. People can be very naive, particularly when a marketing campaign is designed specifically to tug at the ol' greed strings.
      • What? Exactly how did the ads "strongly imply" that?

        Not being a moron, I assumed I would be charged for the movie if it wasn't returned. I mean, jeez.

        • "Not being a moron, I assumed I would be charged for the movie if it wasn't returned. I mean, jeez"

          So you figured that there really WERE late fees even if the ads said NO late fees. More agreement that the ad campaign was all false.

          • So you figured that there really WERE late fees even if the ads said NO late fees. More agreement that the ad campaign was all false.

            No, I figured out that a "late fee" means a fee charged in addition to the normal rental fee if it was returned late. This is opposed to a fee charged to purchase a video. I figured out that, not wanting to give videos away for free, that Blockbuster would simply charge the retail price of the video.

            In other words, if you keep the video then you buy the video. This really

      • Re:You must be the only one (Score:5, Interesting)

        by Rufus88 ( 748752 ) on Tuesday March 29, 2005 @06:33PM (#12083253)
        I figured there was probably a catch, but also thought that maybe they were adopting a Netflix-type model, where a customer could keep a movie as long as he likes, but couldn't rent any more until the late one was returned.
    • Am I the only one that said "there's got to be a catch to this"

      Of course not, but try telling explaining this to the general public. They hear "no late fees", and they think "no late fees, I can keep it as long as I want", they just don't get it. But in the end, it's not really their fault, people just need better education on all the facts. It also helps if you have a tinfoil hat and already think everybody's out to get you.
      • Well, the old expression "If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is" should be the maxim of any consumer. Whether its Mr. Ben Ahore, representative of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company promising large sums for almost no work, or Blockbuster claiming they no longer charging late fees, the fact is that people should use their common sense.

        The sad part about this is that I can compare Blockbuster with Mr. Ben Ahore of the Central Bank of Nigeria on behalf of the Nigerian National Petroleum Comp


    • No, I expected it would be like Family Video operates. Unofficially, you can just never pay your fines. They did exceptionally well because when people had fines at BB, they just never rented there again. If you have fines at Family, you go in and just rent more movies. Which one makes more money on you?

      When it turned out that it was 7days past due date they bill you for the movie, then you can return it in 30 days, then if you bring it back they charge you a seemingly arbitrary reshelving fee... it st

    • Re:Am I the only one? (Score:5, Insightful)

      by porcupine8 ( 816071 ) on Tuesday March 29, 2005 @06:21PM (#12083149) Journal
      Well, given that Netflix really has no late fees for real, I don't think that it's entirely ridiculous to think that Blockbuster was offering the same. True, Netflix works on an entirely different business model, with a subscription fee and a limit to the number of movies you can have out at one time, so upon further inspection BB's deal is unlikely to be the same.

      But for some random guy whose buddy is using Netflix and just knows his buddy can keep movies as long as he wants, why shouldn't he take BB's claim at face value?

      (Aside from the inherent problem in taking any advertised claim at face value - but in reality, you can't expect the general public to think that way.)

      • Well, given that Netflix really has no late fees for real ...

        Netflix may not have what is traditionally thought of as a late fee, but you simply can't stop paying for the service and keep the movies forever like some people "fooled" by Blockbuster's program seem to mistakenly believe.

        In fact, I believe if you look at Netflix's terms of service, as soon as your account is terminated for lack of payment, you're required to return the movies within seven days or be charged for the replacement of those movie

    • netflix model (Score:5, Insightful)

      by xant ( 99438 ) on Tuesday March 29, 2005 @06:22PM (#12083161) Homepage
      This is precisely what the Netflix model is. They send you a movie, you keep it as long as you want. Along with the 2 movies we received recently I've got a DVD next to the TV we've been meaning to watch for 3 months. Netflix doesn't care. You send it back when you're done, you get another DVD. The only thing sending the movie back does is refresh the choices you have next to your TV.

      Buried underneath those somewhere are a couple of DVDs we had when we closed one of our Netflix accounts to change the name it was under. That was over a year ago. Netflix doesn't care.

      Blockbuster introduced "no late fees" as a direct answer to the Netflix model.. at least, that's what people apparently thought. They only wanted to create the impression that they were like Netflix, obviously, without actually doing any of the work.
    • I don't know why these people think that "no late fees" means you don't have to return the movie when it's due anymore. Just because you don't have to pay a penalty fee doesn't mean the rules cease to apply.

      And the restocking fee for a rental is a lot less bullshit than the restocking fees at Best Buy for something I actually bought!

      I LOVE the no late fees policy. I usually return my movies on time, but there's always that one time you forget to take it in on the way to work and you can only drop it o

    • Yes, I thought the same thing. I won't give blockbuster my business anymore... they lie too damn much.

      "No late fees" was the first lie... turns out you had to pay a monthly fee to have no late fees (a blockbuster plus membership or some such thing, iirc).

      "Here's a free movie rental" was the second lie. My ex-gf and I used to rent movies from blockbuster all the time... sometimes they'd give us a "free" movie as an incentive to come back. We later learned that "free" actually meant "free until the end o
    • Did you think they were just going to let you keep the movie?

      I for one thought it was like the NetFlix deal where you *could* in theory keep the movie but they would just not let you rent any more until you returned them and nag you about it. Given the fact they sell these discs for about $10-$20 it wasn't too good to be true. A short term loss but would balance out if it got more people in the store.

  • No Late Fees - You Just Have To BUY It... (Score:5, Insightful)

    by Stanistani ( 808333 ) on Tuesday March 29, 2005 @06:03PM (#12082948) Homepage Journal
    Truth makes lousy advertising slogans, dunnit?

  • Good. (Score:5, Insightful)

    by LewsTherinKinslayer ( 817418 ) <lewstherinkinslayer@gmail.com> on Tuesday March 29, 2005 @06:03PM (#12082949) Homepage
    I used to work at GameCrazy (a part of the Hollywood Video chain,) and we had a lot of customers who would come in, and basically say, why should we be renting from you anymore? Blockbuster has no late fees. When we informed them that if they didn't return the movie within a week of the due date they would be charged the full price for the item, not a single customer told us they were made aware of that fact.

    I went to Blockbuster myself a couple months ago and the man who checked me out, the manager, said to me "And don't forget, we no longer have any late fees!" Certainly a misleading comment.
    • You'd have to be a moron not to question the "No Late Fees" policy. The first thing I did when I saw the ad in the store was ask the checkout guy, "So how does this no-late-fees thing work?"

      What they have now is still a better deal than before - now, you can keep the movie for a month, return it, and only be charged a $1.25 restocking fee. Before, you'd be charged the price of a full rental for every extra day you kept it. It looks like a couple of idiots have ruined this deal for the rest of us.
      • Actually, when the whole "No Late Fees" thing came around, one of the local TV news stations (I live in Oregon) did a piece about the whole thing, including the catches. So, at least in Oregon, there's not as much excuse of an excuse for ignorance.
        • Unless you didn't happen to watch that particular newscast. Geez, a report on the news does NOT excuse deceptive advertising.

    • Re:Good. (Score:5, Interesting)

      by MightyMartian ( 840721 ) on Tuesday March 29, 2005 @06:09PM (#12083010) Journal
      You've revealed the other side of this dishonest advertising campaign. It hurts competitors by convincing customers of an impossible scenario. When the competitors refuse to stoop to the same level as Blockbuster, customers are lost. This campaign in particular is so unbelievably slimey that you just have to wonder at the people running the company's legal department. I mean, I can understand crooked executives and mentally-challenged marketers, but did the lawyers actually think that they were going to get past consumer protection laws?

  • Anyone know... (Score:4, Interesting)

    by LoganAvatar ( 869001 ) <loganavatar@gmail.com> on Tuesday March 29, 2005 @06:03PM (#12082951) Homepage Journal
    ... what 3 states were not involved, and why?

    • Re:Anyone know... (Score:5, Informative)

      by blueskies ( 525815 ) on Tuesday March 29, 2005 @06:09PM (#12083017) Journal
      Why?

      Probably because they are demanding more from blockbuster? It was a settlement not a judgement, so I'm assuming that the other states are holding out for a bigger settlement.

      Blockbuster wants to settle:
      Blockbuster spokeswoman, Karen Raskopf, said the settlement excluded the state of New Jersey, which last month filed a lawsuit accusing Blockbuster of failing to disclose key terms of its new rental policy.

      ``We continue to talk to them. We are hopeful we can reach a resolution with New Jersey,'' Raskopf said.

  • Hidden charges (Score:5, Interesting)

    by Bifurcati ( 699683 ) on Tuesday March 29, 2005 @06:05PM (#12082969) Homepage
    I really hate companies that try and slip extra charges into the fine print. There was a phone card company in the UK that advertised "No connection fee!" but when you looked in the fine print there was a "Disconnection fee" of 25p - the same as everyone else's connection fee! What a crock!

    And the problem is that when people get hit by this fee, they don't do anything about it - they just roll over and pay. So good to see some action being taken!

    • Re:Hidden charges (Score:3, Funny)

      by Synn ( 6288 )
      So like, what if you refuse to pay the disconnection fee. Do they just not disconnect you?

  • Bittorrent: No late fees! (Score:5, Funny)

    by AtariAmarok ( 451306 ) on Tuesday March 29, 2005 @06:06PM (#12082984)
    Anyone care to evaluate the slogan in the topic?
    • Congratulations! You've been randomly selected to be assessed 15,000 dollars per DVD you downloaded as part of our "The MPAA sucks and charges you late fees when you least expect it" program. It's easier than driving out to your mailbox! All you have to do is download movies. Don't worry, sooner or later, we'll catch you!

  • The entire store has no movies now (Score:5, Insightful)

    by diediebinks ( 62408 ) on Tuesday March 29, 2005 @06:08PM (#12083003)
    Anybody actually been in a Blockbuster since they instituted the No Late Fees? The only thing this promotion did was make it so there are no movies in stock.
    • Anybody actually been in a Blockbuster since they instituted the No Late Fees? The only thing this promotion did was make it so there are no movies in stock.

      I think this forced our Giant Eagle's "Iggle Video" stores to make everything a 7 day rental instead of the previous 1 day rental for new stuff and 5 days for older stuff. As a result there is never anything new in stock. I wish they'd go back to the 1 day rental for new movies.


    • I only noticed a lack of customers, and the inability of the cashier to give me an adequate sized bag for the 12pack of Coke that I bought. I was informed that the lack of bags was due to "cutbacks".

  • Its in the details (Score:4, Interesting)

    by smashin234 ( 555465 ) on Tuesday March 29, 2005 @06:11PM (#12083042) Journal
    I went to a blockbuster a couple days ago, and they have a big sign on their door that explains the details.

    Yes, they will charge you full price for the item after 7 days. However, if you bring the movie back after 7 days you will not be charged full price. You will be charged a "restocking fee" instead of a "late fee". Granted, it wasn't that bad at $1.50, but I still laughed after reading about the "restocking fee."

  • Appearance of Impropriety? (Score:3, Interesting)

    by sanityspeech ( 823537 ) on Tuesday March 29, 2005 @06:11PM (#12083047) Journal
    Perhaps my cynicism has got the best of me, but I have a question to ask the crowd. How unlikely is it that Blockbuster is going to suffer in the court of public opinion as a result of this fiasco?

    It is rather hard to find news reports of organizations that have crumbled due to such odious behavior.

    ...from the truth-in-advertising dept...

    Hear, hear!!

  • Blockbuster's Slogan (Score:5, Insightful)

    by mikeboone ( 163222 ) on Tuesday March 29, 2005 @06:11PM (#12083050) Homepage Journal
    Their slogan was honest. I remember the commercials:

    "The end of late fees. The beginning of more."

    I jokingly said to myself that they meant the beginning of more fees, but I guess they weren't joking and instead were being honest.

  • Damn Government (Score:3, Funny)

    by brjndr ( 313083 ) on Tuesday March 29, 2005 @06:11PM (#12083051)
    This sickens me. How could we let the government do this?

    Clearly, this should have been left to the people. (By people I mean a huge class action suit where lawyers get millions and each customer would get a free rental or some other nominal compensation. That is how the system is supposed to work.)

    Stupid government. THEY TOOK OUR JOBS!!!
    • I mean a huge class action suit where lawyers get millions and each customer would get a free rental or some other nominal compensation. That is how the system is supposed to work.

      This is OT, but timely: We got a notice just yesterday that we were in a 'class' for a suit against an insurance company and the case has settled. What do we get?

      A $9 credit report.

      I was once also in a class in which the award was (iirc) $1.23 per member. A multimillion dollar lawsuit it was, too.

      I didn't even bothe
      • The purpose of most class-action lawsuits is more to punish the wrongdoer that the reward the injured. Without the class-action system, such actions would go entirely unpunished, because no one is going to bring suit for $1. However, when 10 million people bring suit for $1, then the company can be appropriate punished.
  • The worst part is the stores that don't participate. I wanted to test out the no late fee policy, I returned 3 movies 3 days late. What do you know, I get a late fee notice in the mail. I go in all cocky... "but you don't have late fees anymore!" Ah, but they don't participate in that.

    I'm so glad this happened, I was about to switch my Netflix account over to Blockbuster even though I knew deep down they were still evil. Same on me, fooled my twice.
  • I haven't been in a Blockbuster's in years, but having to buy the movie sounds like something that should be on the advertising posters in small (compared to the main) print.

    What surprises me the most is that the program is optional to franchises. I think autonomy of franchises in promotions is probably one of the worst moves a business can make. If McDonalds advertises the Big Macs for 10 cents but the local McD's isn't doing that sale, I'm less likely to go to any McD's anywhere because if a company

  • What's the big deal? (Score:3, Interesting)

    by ssand ( 702570 ) on Tuesday March 29, 2005 @06:16PM (#12083105)
    Here in Canada, all members of BlockBuster recieved a brochure outlining the terms of this, and it really isn't all that surprising. Does anyone really expect a video store to allow you to keep a video for as long as you want?
    • Here in Canada, all members of BlockBuster recieved a brochure outlining the terms of this, and it really isn't all that surprising.

      In Canada, they probably assumed that people knew how to read.

  • Heavy hand at a gentle game. (Score:3, Informative)

    by _Sambo ( 153114 ) on Tuesday March 29, 2005 @06:17PM (#12083111)
    I tried the monthly takeout subscription with Albertsons about a year ago. After one month, they had no more movies that interested me. Blockbuster has a much larger video library, but not all locations are created equal. There is a blockbuster in the Albertson's complex near my home and it is one of the "less equal" locations. Their library is not much better than that of Albertsons.
    I'd choose netflix if I didn't have Dish Network now. Oh, and if that weren't enough, I play WoW. I haven't rented a movie since December 20th.

  • Never trust these ad campaigns (Score:5, Funny)

    by AtariAmarok ( 451306 ) on Tuesday March 29, 2005 @06:24PM (#12083174)

    Blockbuster: No late fees.

    McDonalds: Our fried lard-balls are fat free!

    NBC: Must-see TV

    Click the monkey and win a free iPod

    Napster 14 day trial: Download a million songs for FREE

    Nigeria: Give us $14,000 and we'll give you millions.

    Slashdot: Our moderation system is fair and balanced.

    Fox: Our news is fair and balanced.

    On the other side, you have one of the most true ad campaigns in history, for the Eagle car company: "Eagle: Not intended for the general public". The general public wholeheartedly agreed.

  • This whole rent free thing came out of the fact that they are desperate for customers who they turn down at the counter.

    They live with the impression that they lend gold jewelry and not movies on 25 cents media. I went to a Blockbuster in my new area where I wanted to open a account. They asked for a credit card and I gave them a VISA debit card. They turned me down because they didn't want a card which has check card written on it. They wanted an actual credit which I didn't want to give them. Next I proc
    • I have a similar experience with Hollywood Video. I've never even opened an account with them. When I go in I just give them my California drivers license, and they let me take out the video. I have no idea why they let me do this but I don't want to question it.

  • Automatic Purchase Program and Franchise Revolt (Score:5, Interesting)

    by HackingNetflix ( 871785 ) on Tuesday March 29, 2005 @06:25PM (#12083191)
    They just changed late fees to an automatic purchase program. Worse, when you return the movie after you've "bought" it, they give you a store credit and sock you with a handling fee.

    Up to 20% of stores are franchises and many revolted against the "No More Late Fees" program, causing customers to be totally confused. "No More Late Fees" commercials running on all channels and yet my local Blockbuster still charges late fees?

    I've been covering this story and more at: http://www.hackingnetflix.com/ [hackingnetflix.com]

    - MikeK @ HackingNetflix.com

  • The Restocking Fee is hardly a "Late Fee"..... (Score:2, Insightful)

    by Anonymous Coward
    In defense to Blockbuster...but not to troll, the restocking fee is a set fee. It is not dependent on how late the movie is and so if you keep it for months on end and then choose to return it, you will only be out the fixed $1.25 (that's the fee in AZ). That would hardly be considered a "late fee".

    If you look at it that way, you could consider renting the movie for $4, allow them to charge you the additional $17 (sale price is based on the DVD's "used" value), and then own it.....one day you can choose t
  • Although I haven't heard of any lawsuits in Canada.

    It seems like a coincidence, but since the inception of the no late fees policy I have never seen Blockbuster less busy. It is a veritable ghost town at my local stores, even on Tuesdays the big release day of the week.

    Rogers Video, their main competitor and where I rent now, is always busy. I haven't rented from Blockbuster for quite some time as they never seem to have the movie or game I want in stock and Rogers Video has a much better selection of old
  • My biggest problem with this isn't the $1.50 restocking fee, but that they no longer have a lot of the latest movies I want to see in stock. I'm signed up for the Blockbuster.com NetFlix rip-off mostly because of the 2 free in-store rentals (which are nice when I decide on a whim that I want to see a certain movie). However, that's really not doing much for me if they don't have what I want in stock... Hopefully it's just growing pains with the new terms and they'll iron things out soon.

  • I'm just wondering which three states can't be bothered to prosecute for false and misleading sales tactics?
    I just want to be sure and not trust any claims made by businesses in those three states.

  • Pay in Pennies! (Score:3, Funny)

    by CyberGarp ( 242942 ) <ShawnNO@SPAMGarbett.org> on Tuesday March 29, 2005 @06:54PM (#12083476) Homepage
    The US says that pennies are acceptible forms of payment. I went to a block buster and a big sign said "5 day rentals". Turns out they really meant 4 1/2 so I had to pay a late fee. They have a history of deception, so they deserve to pay. Why print a big sign or a big ad, when reality is slightly different. So I paid in pennies and counted very slowly and very loudly and never went back. When interrupted, I started the count over. End of relationship with these slimeballs.

  • Spin! (Score:3, Interesting)

    by OldManAndTheC++ ( 723450 ) on Wednesday March 30, 2005 @12:07AM (#12085975)

    You have to admire the chutzpah of their PR guys. From today's press release:

    Blockbuster Enhances Communications Regarding Popular No Late Fees Program; Program Is Favored By Customers for Flexibility, Convenience and Value

    I doubt they're too worried about the $630,000 settlement. This is a company that took in almost $6 Billion in the last twelve months. As an AP story puts it:

    ...numbers of monthly subscribers and rental transactions increased for the first time in two years after the launch of the "No Late Fees" advertising campaign. He said the company is on schedule to have 2 million subscribers by spring 2006.

    So even after putting out nearly a million bucks to pay off the states and put up new signs, they will still make money. Just consider it a cost of doing business.

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