Struggling Blockbuster Eliminates Rental Fees

From: Struggling Blockbuster Eliminates Rental Fees | The Onion - America's Finest News Source

FT. LAUDERDALE, FL—Blockbuster, the flagging video-store giant that has recently resorted to eliminating late fees and waiving replacement fines for lost or damaged movies, announced Monday that it would also be doing away with its long-standing rental charges in an attempt to stay competitive in the ever-changing home-video business.

One of Blockbuster’s 39 Phoenix locations.

According to press releases, Blockbuster’s new nationwide program, "The End Of Fees," promoted using $7 million of the company’s last remaining $10 million, will eliminate all costs associated with DVD rentals as well as per-unit charges for its video games, snacks, carbonated drinks, gumball machines, promotional cardboard standees, and literally anything else a customer comes across at one of its thousands of nationwide locations.

It is really sad when it is impossible to figure out which part of an article from The Onion is real and which part is fake. What do you do with a company so big that has so little clue as to what is going on in its market of choice? Is there a corporate equivalent to shooting a wounded horse?

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