In early November, DISH Network Corporation announced the closing of the remaining company-owned Blockbuster stores in the United States. By January 2014, all 300 stores will be closed.
On Nov. 9, most Blockbusters ceased video rental services. By Nov.14, many of the stores began to sell their entire inventory.
Blockbuster’s video by mail service will also be shut down by the end of this year.
“It was expected since they weren’t keeping up with their competitors,” Kymontae Payne, an Eastern Michigan University sophomore, said.
Blockbuster began its video rental chain in Dallas, Texas in 1985. At its height, there were over 9,000 stores worldwide. But a new generation of companies such as Netflix, Redbox, TiVo,and video streaming websites that offer better technology and convenience have made video rental stores obsolete.
Payne feels that Netflix is more convenient because movies and television shows can be instantaneously streamed into your home, eliminating the need to go out and rent a movie or wait for it to be mailed to your house.
“I am not sad since over time I came to prefer Netflix and Redbox over Blockbuster because of the cheaper prices and convenience,” Payne said. “But it is sad to see one of the classic movie rental places go.”
Blockbuster was bought by DISH Network Corporation at an auction in 2011 for $320 million. At the time, Blockbuster was filing for bankruptcy.
About 50 Blockbuster franchises will remain open after the final company-owned store closes its doors in January. Blockbuster On Demand will remain open as well.
The local Ypsilanti Blockbuster is located on Ellsworth Road, in front of Walmart. It is currently liquidating the remainder of its products. It is selling everything from DVDs and games to framed pictures and even its gumball machine.
