Hollywood Video - Unlimited rentals of DVD 's for $9.99 per Month

[Richard98]

Pretty good DVD rental deal, I think:
Hollywood Video

Pay $9.99/month for the first 3 months, then $14.99/month. Three out at a time and they must be returned within 5 days (you can return them anytime within the 5 days for another DVD without incurring additional rental charges). New releases are not available for rental under this plan for 2 to 6 weeks after they're released.

I signed up during lunch. Probably try it at least for the 90 day promotional period.

 

[ponyo]

Good deal. I'm going to sign up later tonight. Thx.

 

[Mongals]

Tempting....

 

[woodscomp]

Now that is a good deal...

Thanks OP...

 

[dr150]

Super new releases aren't eligible. That bites.

Blockbuster doesn't have that restriction. Hollywood Video has a bigger selection though.

No program is perfect.

The search continues (maybe Blockbuster Online).........

 

[JafCo]

Hmm, I wonder if the lean closer to the "2 weeks" or closer to the "6 weeks." Heck, I wonder if they even stick with the 6 weeks given how annoying Hollywood can be.

 

[sumrtym]

The website infers it's typically 4-6 weeks (4 is minimum as the usual case). Remember their policy...if a new release is out of stock, you could a raincheck for it for free. They're not going to want a rush of people on this offer on new releases for that reason, thus the delay.

 

[imported_earthslash]

Also the website says you can sign up for 3 months ($30 at this point in time), and have it be non-renewable, so you can pay by cash and not have to deal with cancelling your membership. Also you can only have rentals 5 days at a time I believe, otherwise they will hit you with late fees. Thats a bit strange.

 

[sumrtym]

Originally posted by: earthslash
Also you can only have rentals 5 days at a time I believe, otherwise they will hit you with late fees. Thats a bit strange.

That's their normal policy (5 days). I actually like that. I did the Blockbuster deal for a month, and I can think of several titles (older flicks) that took FOREVER to be returned. At least this encourages them to be recycled, and really....if you take some movies, you ought to be able to find time in 5 days to watch them even if something unexpected comes up.

I took a look at the selection at the store nearest me. Better than Blockbuster, but I'm amazed at the size of the video selection over DVD still. Looked like 2 to 1 to me. Also, some of the movie selections were a bit off for my taste (non-collector's where Blockbuster would have had a collector's set, or the American Pie films that were the first releases, not the "unrated" ones). Just a little odd there.

 

[JohnAn2112]

I take it that games aren't included in this deal?

 

[mscdex0]

Originally posted by: ZePHyRaNTHeS
I take it that games aren't included in this deal?

Technically I think that they should, because PS2 and Xbox games are on DVDs

 

[Richard98]

Originally posted by: ZePHyRaNTHeS
I take it that games aren't included in this deal?

No, they're not.

 

[erikatcuse]

Signed up a few days ago...It allows us to catch up on our rentals and can cancel at any time. I figure we can use it for a month cancel it and in a few months sign up again. Or just keep it really depends on if we can rent more than 3 movies a month it pays for itself

 

[spikemasta]

ttt

 

[seebhh]

4-6 weeks for new releases? blah! those are the movies i really want to see. NOT HOT in my opnion unless you've been sitting in a cave for the past 15 yrs and haven't seen any movies since then or your really into the classics. For me, i've seen most of the old movies i wanted to see anyways.

 

[Richard98]

Originally posted by: seebhh
4-6 weeks for new releases? blah! those are the movies i really want to see. NOT HOT in my opnion unless you've been sitting in a cave for the past 15 yrs and haven't seen any movies since then or your really into the classics. For me, i've seen most of the old movies i wanted to see anyways.

If you don't want to wait the 4-6 weeks, there's a similar plan at Blockbuster with no restrictions, but it was $24.99 when I checked.

 

[Richard98]

Bump.
I've been using this for a couple of weeks now. I've been satisfied with availability and price.

 

[rmrfhomeoops]

Do they restrict you to a *single* Hollywood store? Or is it you can rent video from *any* Hollywood video for 14.99/month?

I just read their FAQ, the only real drawback is:

Can I use the Movie Value Pass program at any Hollywood store?
No. The Movie Value Pass is not transferable to another Hollywood Video store. It must be used in the store where it was purchased.

 

[monkuboy]

I signed up at the location in Burbank - it's $7.99 for the first three months. You can only use the MVP pass at one location, and after three months it goes up to $14.99 a month. While you can't use this on brand new releases (anything within 4 weeks of release), this is still a great deal if you watch a lot of movies and don't absolutely have to have the latest and greatest right away. If there is something I want to see that badly then I just buy the dvd since it is something I'd want to keep anyway (like the Star Wars Trilogy coming out next week).

 

[bigwill01]

Are you only allowed to have one movie out at once? This seems OK if you live right on top of a Hollywood Video store if that's the case.
Link to Hollywood's MVP FAQ

Just saw 3 at a time listed in the OP, can anyone verify, since I can't seem to find it anywhere on Hollywood's site?

 

[Keen314]

Hi all, I work for Hollywood Video as a GSR (i.e. low-level peon), so I'll answer questions and post some useful info.

Re: going up to $15 after 90 days:
Apparently, it won't necessarily go up. We've been told that they're still experimenting/figuring out how to pull this off well, and if it's as popular as they're hoping, then it'll stay at $10/mo. Also, you will be notified before any price raises.

Originally posted by: earthslash
Also the website says you can sign up for 3 months ($30 at this point in time), and have it be non-renewable, so you can pay by cash and not have to deal with cancelling your membership.

You can also buy up to 4 of the 3 month blocks at the $30/3 month rate, which means 360 days of MVP at the $10/month rate (a 'month' is technically 30 days as per the fine print).

Originally posted by: monkuboy
I signed up at the location in Burbank - it's $7.99 for the first three months. You can only use the MVP pass at one location, and after three months it goes up to $14.99 a month.

Sounds like you're in a test market. One of the local managers told me that they had variations on the MVP deal in some markets. I had previously heard $8 for 2 titles out at a time, is this the case for you? Just curious.

Originally posted by: bigwill01
Are you only allowed to have one movie out at once? This seems OK if you live right on top of a Hollywood Video store if that's the case.
*SNIP*
Just saw 3 at a time listed in the OP, can anyone verify, since I can't seem to find it anywhere on Hollywood's site?

You'll have to check with your local store, but the majority of the nation gets 3 titles out at a time.

 

[rmrfhomeoops]

Originally posted by: Keen314
Hi all, I work for Hollywood Video as a GSR (i.e. low-level peon), so I'll answer questions and post some useful info.

Originally posted by: earthslash
Also the website says you can sign up for 3 months ($30 at this point in time), and have it be non-renewable, so you can pay by cash and not have to deal with cancelling your membership.

You can also buy up to 4 of the 3 month blocks at the $30/3 month rate, which means 360 days of MVP at the $10/month rate (a 'month' is technically 30 days as per the fine print).

That would be great. Are you sure you can buy a year long of movie membership? Do they *all* expire at the same time? Or are they activated on the first day that you actually use them?

Thanks -

 

[monkuboy]

Originally posted by: monkuboy
I signed up at the location in Burbank - it's $7.99 for the first three months. You can only use the MVP pass at one location, and after three months it goes up to $14.99 a month.

Sounds like you're in a test market. One of the local managers told me that they had variations on the MVP deal in some markets. I had previously heard $8 for 2 titles out at a time, is this the case for you? Just curious.
[/quote]

Nope, it's a full three dvd's at a time for $7.99, same terms as what is on the website at $9.99. They even have glossy flyers advertising that price on the counter, and the deal is good for three months. This one is near my office; another Hollywood Video near my home has the MVP for the regular $9.99. The only drawback to the Burbank location is that they have these old shelves that don't hold the dvd's very well so you have them stacked 2 or 3 deep (the shelves don't allow them to be stored with the spines showing, only with the face showing). So if you don't mind sliding and moving the front dvd's so you can see what is in back of them, it's an even bettter deal at $2 off the normal price (which is in itself a great deal).

Personally I would much rather patronize Hollywood Video because Blockbuster is a ripoff. Even the way BB counts the number of days is a ripoff.

 

[Avalon]

Hmm, not bad. I think it slightly edges out the movie pass over at Blockbuster, where I'm also working as a low level peon. $9.99 a month for 3 introductory months for 3 movies out at a time is better than our 1 month $14.99 introductory deal for 2 movies out at a time. Then our regular price is $24.99, ten bucks more than Hollywood's normal price. We let you use the pass on brand spankin new release rentals, though. Strengths and weaknesses for each, I guess.

 

[MaxDSP]

too bad there's no Hollywood Video within 5 minutes of me...closest one is like 15-20 minutes away. Good deal