My wife and I rented two movies from Blockbuster this past weekend.
Whoever is in charge of producing the DVD’s has now decided that we cannot skip the trailers or commercials by hitting the DVD menu or the skip button on the DVD player remote.
They have crammed each trailer with just about every important scene from the movie. If I haven’t watched the movie yet I would prefer a teaser not a spoiler. If I have seen the movie, I’d like to skip the trailer. Also, If you rent more than one of this weeks releases you are going to see the same trailers again.
Now I don’t mind a little advertising but there is a limit. My wife and I timed how long it took before the menu finally came up. Below are the two movies we rented and the time it took for the trailers and advertisements to play out:
“Whiteout“: Fifteen Minutes.
“The Hangover“: Sixteen Minutes.
Fifteen minutes drove us well past being annoyed and far into being angered and we are never doing this again.
This is not the case with all rental companies. At least it isn’t yet. A friend rented “The Hangover” from Netflix. She said that she wasn’t forced to watch the trailers on her rental.
I e-mailed this complaint to Blockbuster customer service. They were very responsive. I got this reply within an hour.
“Thank you for providing the account information for speedy escalation of your concern.
I have forwarded this issue on your behalf to the District Manager and hope to have it resolved for you as quickly as possible. I sincerely apologize for the inconvenience.
Should you have further concerns, please let me know.”
Quick reply but no answer. I have yet to hear whether this is a Blockbuster policy, if it will continue, if it has been forced on them by the distributors or if it was an error in the production of the DVD’s.
I will not be renting from Blockbuster until I know it will not happen again. I will be using pay per view or some other rental service. I hope the cable company has not been forced to turn off the DVR buttons while the trailers are on.
This better not be the case for purchased DVD’s. I will not be forced to wait fifteen minutes each time I watch a movie that I have purchased?
I guess that I will have to go back to watching TV, reading or actually talking to my family. I just had a scary thought. No, not the part about talking to my family. Do you think that the Kindle is a conspiracy. When paper books have been replaced, will we be forced to watch commercials before we can read? Someone call Jesse Ventura!
I’ll let you know what Blockbuster has to say about this when I get an answer. -Tim
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It’s not just Blockbuster. I’m sitting through at least 20 MINUTES of movie & DVD trailers, and the studio pimping THEMSELVES, before I can get to my movie.
Never. Renting. Again.
ps: rented from Hollywood. Was so angry I forgot ro finish my rant!
To skip trailers on a DVD …
When the first trailers starts press
Movie will start.
To skip trailers on a DVD …
When the first trailers starts press STOP and STOP again then PLAY
Movie will start.
Paul,
Thanks for the tip. I might just rent one more time to try that. The FF, skip and disc menu or DVD menu certainly didn’t work. Never thought to try STOP and STOP and PLAY.
Haven’t rented since I wrote this article.
Well..it happened. I just got a DVD from Neflix “Invention of Lying” and I had to sit through 15 minutes of forced previews without the ability to hit the menu or fast forward. This is completely ridiculous – I’m paying for the damn thing – I should have control over how it is played on MY DVD!
Yeah, just had to sit through about 20 minutes of trailers on Edge of Darkness, rented from Blockbuster. This is my first time experiencing forced trailers, and close to 20 minutes, that is longer than the trailers before major films.
The whole anti-piracy s[expletive removed] and FBI warnings are like 30 sec tops, no big deal. 15+ minutes of trailers is just bull****.
Guys,
Paul’s little tip doesn’t work. That’s the bad news. The good news is that forced trailers are sporadic. It doesn’t happen with every rental.
Me. I am not going to take the chance anymore. They need to fix the problem and then let the public know that it is fixed.
They should know that this causing a loss of customers.
We just had that same problem with netflix. 20 minutes of trailers forced to sit through. Tried to email netflix but you can’t, they only have a phone option. We are so seriously po’d right now, we will probably cancel netflix and just wait for it to come to tv, at least then we can fast forward.
Pam,
I hear ya!
I am known on the internet as the man in the tin foil hat.
I seriously think it is a conspiracy to drive us to buy blu-ray players that connect to the internet and rent our movies via download.
Paul’s tip works for some people some of the time.
Anger at Netflix, Blockbuster, and other rental venues is largely misdirected. This behavior is hard-coded into the discs by the rapacious, blood-sucking studios–Warner Bros. being a notable offender.
So unless you have other issues, canceling your Netflix subscription is probably just cutting off your nose to spite your face.
I just put in Edge of Darkness and it drove me mad that I was forced to first watch 2 minutes of BlueRay promotions.. then 10 minutes of previews.
I finally clicked and HELD the chapter skip/fast forward, and if you HOLD it, it will advance faster, about twice speed.
Then I surfed the net to find a solution, and found this site.
David,
Thanks for letting us know who is responsible. If you continue to rent then you should keep letting the Rental Companies know when it occurs. I found this one issue annoying enough to keep me from renting. It isn’t the first time I cut off my nose to spite my face. It won’t be the last.
One solution would be to talk to the rental company if possible and get them to agree to a refund or free rental every time it happens. They can check the disc to verify your claim. This way the complaint would eventually reach the boardroom.
Luc Terje,
If you are able to fast forward or skip then you don’t have the problem. If that worked, I would never have complained. Whenever I tried that I got the universal “THIS FUNCTION NOT ALLOWED” or “DISABLED” symbol.
Thanks to both of you for stopping by and leaving a comment about your experience.
Yeah, I was completely p*ssed! I was trying to watch Book of Eli – btw, Whiteout is the previous WB movie that I tried to watch last week so I’m more than familiar with the 15 minutes of bs you have to watch first. I got around it by immediately pressing the ‘menu’ button on my dvd player as soon as the disc loads, if you let the trailers load it locks you out and you have to watch all of them. Hope this helps someone.
I rented a movie today at a local rental store(not a big chain like blockbuster), and I had to sit through 15 minutes of previews. I remember seeing on the video cover at the store that it said “INTENDED FOR RENTAL ONLY, NOT FOR RESALE”. That pretty much indicates to me that these videos are pretty much made that way at the factory. A couple of previews just like in the theaters would be OK, but not 15 minutes worth. Greedy, stupid movie promoters. Why is it we never hear about the Mob anymore. Maybe they own a little bit of everything now.
Yeah, I just got the same forced preview torture experience on the Edge of Darkness disc that I rented from Blockbuster. This is shameful. I almost threw the disc across the room when I realized they were going to force me to watch the preview for Sex and the City 2. Almost even as annoying is the auto-start function. No longer can you put the movie in, and take a piss or make food. You get back and have to rewind.
Just rented Invictus from Netflix and had this issue. The Menu and Chapter Skip buttons are disabled (so is Stop, so the Stop-Stop-Play trick doesn’t work). Got through to a native-English-speaking Netflix support agent within one minute on a Sunday evening (that was impressive). She basically said thanks for the feedback, we have some clout with the studios and we’ll pass it along.
I’m also leaving a complaint at http://www.warnerbros.com/main/help/customer_service.html.
Just download magic dvd ripper and rip the damn movie. I hate to recommend stealing movies, but if they want to force us to watch 2o minutes of commercials, then we should get something for our time. Rip the dvd and bingo… no more commercials. Of course this will take about 15 – 25 minutes
Jeremiah, as much as I detest the idea of ripping DVD’s, it’s an entertaining premise, that one is driven to ripping DVD’s because of the ads one is enforced to endure. I love the point you make that the time it would take to rip a DVD is about the same amount of time one is forced to endure ads. Though, I have to reiterate that I don’t condone or will allow much chatter about illegal processes, here on http://www.brusimm.com. But dang, this was funny.
I also had the same problem with Invictus last night — 14 minutes of previews that I couldn’t skip, even with all the procedures people have posted here. I doubt that Netflix is an innocent party in this, and wouldn’t be surprised if the forced previews are part of a deal worked out with the studios. I called Netflix and cancelled my membership, and never did get around to watching the movie.
My wife just had the problem with 10 minutes of trailers on the new Sherlock Holmes movie from Netflix. When the Netflix DVD content that we rented will not play within a reasonable time (1 minute), I cut the disc in half and send it back as defective. When Netflix tries to charge me for destroying too many of their defective discs, that’s when I’ll walk away.
Update:
Blockbuster Inc on Thursday September 23, 2010 filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.
Same problem with Red Box – the movies are being returned cracked in half. The cost to replace them is less than my time.
Oh my gosh. I just rented A Nightmare on Elm Street, the remake, from Blockbuster Video… I couldn’t get to the menu to start the movie, and not only that, there was no Chapter Selection. What’s the world gotten itself into!? Very disappointing. No more Blockbuster rental for me… I’ve been skeptical about NetFlix, but I will check them out now. I’ll rent the same movie and see if they’re playing the same game…
NetFlix, it seems by the comments, are up to no good too. I’ll stick to my DVR… for now.
Seems to me that it’s the studios. They give the rental firms (Blockbuster, Netflix) a special rental edition, probably at a low price, then feel they are allowed to force advertising on consumers to make up the difference.
First of all, it’s the studios putting the content on the disc, not Netflix. It’s been there since the begining of time – even VHS had it. It’s also there on discs you purchase from the store, too. It’s just that now they are blocking the FF and Menu control. Yes it’s wrong. People like John W. are morons though. Destroying property because you are upset does not solve the problem, particularly when it is not a Netflix problem to begin with and it just raises rates for everyone else. I have seen this dope, John W., post the same comments on several other sites as well. I am copying the links and forwarding to Netflix consumer affairs. IPs can be followed and identified if they are concerned enough, particularly when a crime like this is involved. John W, you might just walk away and right in to a court room. Good luck, buddy.
The movie studios don’t understand I DO NOT want advertising on products purchased.
Not a 30 second ad that plays after starting my ten year old paid off car
Not an ad for anti-virus software when I turn on my computer
No ads that accompany my receipt at the ATM machine.
and so on….
It’s an intrusion to me. The first DVD I bought is 9 years old. I DO NOT care to see the same ads from movies released 9 years ago. Although a little aged this is the movie I enjoy and care to see.
can’t append to my previous comment…
I also don’t want to remember right-right-stop-stop-forward-forward like remote control codes to bypass the ads. Maybe I’m nearly impervious to advertising but the last movie I saw based on the theater preview was the Punisher back in 2005. I would have made plans the second I heard about it’s release anyway, preview not required.
Oops! Disk arrived cracked
Thanks, Luc Terje – your trick “I finally clicked and HELD the chapter skip/fast forward, and if you HOLD it, it will advance faster, about twice speed” worked for me. At first, it gives you the sign that you can’t fast forward, but if you keep holding the button down anyway, a few seconds later it will start to fast forward.
So far, the movies mentioned, as well as “The Town” which I just rented from Netflix and was furious with the 15-minutes of trailers and self-promotion by Warner Bros./Time Warner, are all Warner Bros.
Perhaps the rental companies have a deal with Warner but I will investigate before renting next time to see what company made the film.
Rented Death Race 2 from RedBox last night. I was unable to bypass any of the trailers and promos using any skip or fast forward functions.The “forced to watch” commercials, as I call them lasted about 6 minutes. I realize it is not the fault of RedBox but this type of must watch ads before feature nonsense, discourages me from future rentals unless I am really desperate for a must see title. The titles may not be as great as compared to new DVD releases but for now streaming Netflix has no commericals or promos and no disc to return.
Hey people…its gotten worse. I just rented skyline from a redbox. I’m playing it in my bluray player. 2 min of bluray promos, 5 min plus of movie ads…AND….AND, an anti-smoking ad. It wouldn’t let me skip, fast forward, go to function menu….hell, it wouldn’t even let me STOP PLAYING the disk! OMG, seriously…redbox needs to wise up. Or, the people need to wisen up.
My wife and I just sat through 14 minutes of forced DVD previews that we can not skip, stop or avoid. If there are DVD features that even the menu button or online tricks to stop/start can’t fix then Warner Brothers is FORCING us to watch previews and ads? I don’t think so!
In the past month we have purchased two DVD’s that had the same problem. I returned them both to the retailers and said they were broken – to me they were broken.
Seriously, if I own the DVD, I don’t need to see 14 minutes of previews for other movies. If I want a “movie experience” I go to the movies.
Does your car force you sit through a sales pitch every time you put in the key? Does the Bank force you read a “free checking” brochure while you wait in line? Does the supermarket force you to go down every aisle if all you want to buy is milk?
All studios are going to do is upset customers. When they force viewers to watch their paid ads, all they are doing is forcing us to walk away from their content. By the time the movie starts, we’ve lost interest… I can say for SURE that I will avoid Warner Bros. movies, for this reason alone.
Next stop, Amazon, my blog, and comments on sites that sell WB titles. Let’s see what the social network of friends, colleagues and the rest of the online community think of their heavy-handed advertising. Happy customers are the best advertising – unhappy customers are like a virus. Congratulations, WB, you have started your very own virus factory! From now on, I will let the forced previews play in the “muted” background and use that time to post complaints in as many sites as possible.
It looks like after this post, I’ll still have another 12 minutes of writing ahead of me. Cheers!
Just rented sanctum from blockbuster and I was forced to watch nearly 20 minutes of movie previews. Couldn’t fastforward or skip, nothing worked. I am having a hard time putting into words what complete and total bull[expletive removed] this is. Someone is making money off of us by forcing us to watch ads in a movie that we already paid to watch. Because of this, I no longer have a problem with piracy, screw them all.
Why can’t they just make a DVD player that performs the functions anyway? Why does the disk get to tell my hardware how to behave? If I say fast forward, the disk should not be able to prohibit it.
And the industry wonders why so many people pirate movies…. I’m not saying it’s right that it happens, but you can only earn so much by providing an honest product and that doesn’t buy to many luxury cars out in California. Yeah though it is the studios putting the trailers on before the movie, and I’m sure that sooner or later someone will find a way to circumvent them, then it will be a felony to circumvent them. After all, it’s already a felony to share your Netflix password in Ten. and there is a bill making the rounds at the moment that will make streaming any copyright content a felony. Better drop that music from your YouTube video. Netflix is still great, but sooner or later the studios will find a way to ruin that as well. Frankly folks there are only three answers to this little situation, either stop paying to see movies in any form where a good 20 minutes of trailers are forced on you which would include theatres and rentals now, buy them only, or don’t pay anything for them; so I guess pirate them or stop watching them altogether. I don’t care which you do, for me I just pretty much stopped watching anything that isn’t on Netflix instant play and I don’t have that much interest in seeing most of what comes out of Hollywood these days anyway. I even show up to movies 10 minutes late just to skip the previews when I actually feel like shelling out 9 bucks for a ticket and another 8 for a bottle of water.
WTF!!! Like I have 20 minutes of my life for you to control. Asses!!! I cannot believe that this is okay. What to do? Who to do it to? Now we can’t even rent a movie. Still, there is some way for us to be controlled, controlled to sit and be force fed their crap. Unfreakinbelievable!!!
Its a sad sign of the times. I refuse to support crimson box any more.
Thanks for the link to WB for feedback. Amazing what a nation of “consumers” treated as atm machines by corporations are subjected to these days. I imagine a bunch of newly minted MBA’s earning serious money sitting around over charts that cross reference consumer rage against increased profits. In a less sheeplike country I would imagine them stepping outside their homes to drive to work through a bunch of people with signs saying things like “Who Gave You Control Over My DVD Player” and “Are You Proud Of What You Do For A Living?” Might give them pause (and us fast forward ability); that’s quite legal, and I bet their neighbors wouldn’t like it…..any retirees with enough time on their hands to try that? Bet it would make the news, and might make a difference.
With my Panasonic DVD player ( DVD-S-29)
Stop – Stop then play —- Does not work
Keep hitting Fast Fwd button —- WORKS !!!!
Quick tip I found with a Sony Brand Blu Ray player.
As the DVD starts and likely shows you some truth commercial about smoking, QUICKLY ‘TAP’ your ‘advance’ button on your players remote. This is the one thats different than normal fast forward, but lets you advance 10-20-30+sec. at a time. I was able to skip everything in about 10 seconds! I can verify that this works after taking the disk out several times and almost returning it in frustration; to find this trick.
I actually liked the netflix user John W’s method of dealing with forced advertisement dvd’s. He just kept cracking and returning them as “defective”. No one be misled, this is on purpose with the foreknowledge that it will be very annoying for the consumer to deal with, but compared to the extra money made from ad revenue, your annoyance is a distant second to their greed.
JesseAaron,
Cracking the disks out of anger toward the studio doesn’t teach the studio anything. It only enables them to sell more DVDs to providers like Netflix. It won’t be annoying to the consumer either, as it will be transparent to them since Netflix weeds out the broken disks upon return. It isn’t Netflix’s fault the ads are there. Costing Netflix money only results in further price increases which get passed on to the consumer, so in the end the consumer still loses. So, your logic is not only flawed, but frankly stupid. On top of all of that, its distruction of property and a crime whether you like it or not. It’s not YOUR disk. You are borrowing it. Wise up, sir.
I actually got a response from a VP at Netflix regarding comments in this thread. I am happy to report they are on to the practices of fools like John W. and are cracking down on them. Good for Netflix!
Providers like Netflix have a lot more pull with studios than single consumers. You’re obviously naive to the intricacies of these business relationships, and business, period. Netflix, blockbuster, (any large distributor) is buying millions of dvd’s from studios, dvd’s that are pissing people off, causing them to rent less, or go on strike and not rent at all. This is effecting the revenue of providers. If it’s effecting the revenue of providers, then they would put pressure on studios to take out forced ads. Since this has not happened, the only thing left to assume, by the process of deduction, is that the ad revenue is dispersed between the studios and the providers, making up for any lost revenue from pissed off customers. Business is about making money, not losing it, you damn sheep. “poor multi billion dollar business, so innocent, so misunderstood”-That’s me paraphrasing you.
I should also mention (because you’re an idiot) that netflix raising their price would do more harm than good to themselves, that’s what capitalism is for. There’s always something cheaper on the horizon waiting for the status quo to [expletive removed] up and get too greedy.
Anyway, John W inspired me. If blockbuster ever rents me a forced ad dvd again, I’m going to immediately take it back, get a refund, then watch the movie online. I’m sure that’ll give you something to cry about jason, you mindless gimp.
I found a simple solution for watching via computer. Use/install the VLC Media Player. Goes right to the main menu. Ahhh…
These idiots just don’t get it…crap like this is why people pirate as a matter of course. I’ll pay for a quality product. I will NOT pay for forced ads that hijack my player! Maybe we can sue the studios for malicious hacking.
I don’t rip dvds nor do I advocate ripping dvds illegally. However, the situation has become so bad with these previews that I’ve turned to AnyDVD (a program that deactivates the security features of DVDs). AnyDVD runs in the background and lets you advance immediately to the movie if you so choose. It’s a pain in the butt that I have to connect my laptop to my computer to watch a rented DVD but that’s just what the studios are forcing with this bullcrap.
Fear not, rage not people. It is just another attempt by the corporate machine to subvert consumer freedom and democracy…but there is a peaceful solution. No need to get angry, destroy discs or pirate movies…get even by getting methodical.
Stop-Stop-Play may work on some players for some discs, but not all.
You will need to learn the quirks of your own unit by bringing a mindful presence or child-like curiosity to the task (think like a zen monk or a 10 yr old).
On my Panasonic Blue-Ray with the movie “Truth”
1) insert DVD and let copyright warning play thru
2) during first preview, press stop
3) press top menu (it will display error…but wait)
4) when error has cleared, press top-menu again
(or try play, wait until error clears then press top-menu…experiment until you find the pattern)
On another DVD it would not stop until I pressed top-menu a couple of times. The trick is to identify the key sequence adndtiming that work on on your player. Enjoy the experiment, impress your friends. Consider writing a note to a movie distributer to remind them of the importance of consumer goodwill.
Blog (and watch movies) in peace.
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