DVD slip cases rant

[rallynavvie]

A lot of new DVD releases are going on shelves with cardstock slipcases over the plastic DVD cases, and while they are a nice touch sometimes I've noticed a few issues with them. First, retailers are still putting pricing stickers right on the cardstock cases that don't come off unless you tear off part of the slipcase. I've noticed Best Buy has started putting another sticker layer underneath the pricing sticker which comes off a lot easier when you're trying to get it off so hopefully this will become less of a problem in the future. I guess one could just discard the outer slip entirely and just put the regular old case on the shelf with the rest. However this doesn't work if the DVD case inside the slip isn't even the correct DVD.

I went to Best Buy to pick up the I Heart Huckabees DVD and decided on the special edition release of it since I had a coupon for DVD purchases over $25 and I am kind of a tool for special releases and such anyway. Both versions of the DVD are in single-sized cases with different slipcase art over them, but the special edition has 2 discs in it. I pulled one of the special editions off the shelf and paid for it thinking nothing of it. I got home and since we hadn't seen the movie yet my girlfriend and I opened it up to watch it. Unfortunately once I actually opened the DVD case I found only one disc. I looked to the DVD case and it didn't say anything about it being the special edition version of it, though the slipcase said it was (and was also the price I paid for it). Right away I knew exactly what had happened: someone swapped a special edition DVD case into the regular slipcase (that has the pricing sticker on it) and I ended up with the switched one.

Am I mad about? Not really, I'll just have to exchange it later and they won't give me any hassle about it I'm sure (if they do, out will come the BBB complaint). The movie is all the same so we still got to watch it that night. I actually have to admit that this scam was a perfect exploit of someone not thinking on the marketing end of the production company. Normally the extra slipcases are only on special editions so this wouldn't be a problem, or the special edition uses the larger DVD case. However this release uses the same standard size case so you can't tell unless you inspect the actual DVD case inside the slipcase which most people probably aren't doing as often as they should.

I'm not recommending you go out and do the same thing as you're inconveniencing someone out there (like myself), though likely they'll get their issue resolved in time. However since this is an obvious marketing blunder should we not exploit it so that somone takes notice and this sort of thing does not happen again in the future?

[Conquest10]

First, retailers are still putting pricing stickers right on the cardstock cases that don't come off unless you tear off part of the slipcase.

I HATE that. I love keeping all my movies in mint condition (kind of hard now with a baby in the house, though). But I hate when they put the price sticker on there on top of another price sticker with another sticker at the bottom talking about special offers and then another price sticker on the back of the box. Just one going off wrong ruins the whole case.

[drjtech]

I'll just have to exchange it later and they won't give me any hassle about it I'm sure (if they do, out will come the BBB complaint).

http://www.bestbuysux.org/cust.html

[rallynavvie]

I'm not gonna bash Best Buy, they have the best prices on music and DVDs if I want to get them now, I don't use them for much else beyond that, games, and the occasional cables and such. I've never had any troubles returning or getting exchanges from them. I also live in the same state as their HQ so I think we enjoy a little better customer service here