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Disney's Disposable DVDs Deemed Duds
An anonymous reader writes "It looks like disposable DVD's are headed the way of the dodo bird. Consumers (ahem, customers) in several markets are rejecting the $7 self destructing flexplay discs. Some stores have decided to stop selling. According to the stores, 'Customers aren't interested in paying more than $6 for a limited-play DVD when they can pay $2 at the video store. Even with a $2 late fee, it's cheaper than buying a disposable DVD.' and 'he hasn't seen one customer purchase an EZ-D, though some of them have been shoplifted out of the store.'"
I feel sorry for the shoplifters, they probably thought they were proper DVDs not coffee mats!
flexpay ;-)
Disney: Hey i have a great idea. Let's develop a dvd that costs more than average, and then make it self-destruct so their unusable after a certain time period!! I think it will really catch on!
Those who trade in their freedom for security, deserve neither.
Naw, he just licensed it.
Disposable DVD: $7 Matinee with Friends: $5.25 Renting the Same Movie: $2 Realizing your stock will soon be valued below the cost of one of your disposable DVD's: Priceless.
"Tolerance is the virtue of the man without convictions." -- G. K. Chesterton
Today, the Association of American Publishers announced a revolution in book publishing. A spokeman said "The book sector has been suffering for years from consumers abusing our products. Some of them read their books more than once. Many lend out books indiscriminately, sell them or even give them away for free to charity. This type of criminal behaviour must be stopped."
"Fortunately, we have come up with a solution. Our publishers will start to offer books which have been written in special ink sealed and are sold in vaccuum packs. Upon exposure to air, the ink gradually fades over the period of one week. We envisage law abiding consumers will love this new format, especially when they realise it is no more expensive than the old, inferior format."
Exactly how does one maintain a dvd collection?
You put them in order. You take one out to watch. You put it back after, where you got it from. Perhaps he's in management or advertising or something and can't do anything without a mission statement, a list of goals, etc.
They don't begin to selfdestruct until AFTER you open the package.
The solution is simple... get yourself an old (but still functional) lab quarantine box, put the DVD player in there with the unopened disc, fill with argon (available at any welding supply shop) and watch forever. Just be sure to seal the disc in an argon filled zip-top bag before opening the box to change discs. (Oxygen is what destroys the disc.)
Personally, I give it a few weeks in hacker hands before someone figures out how to kill the reaction.
Imagine the customer : "Damn! I can't save, I burned the menu the last time I used it !"
But seriously, I'd really not be surprise if Bill G. was thinking about using this technique. Software that only install once, after the CD is worthless.
Slashdot anagrams to "Sad Sloth"
they probably got their info from some marketing guy who figured that there was a huge untapped market for people who drive Hummers. If they never had to make the trip back to the rental store, they would save $4 in gas for the roundtrip, so they'd come out ahead!!
yea that worked out well didn't it.
Not with my positive-nitrogen-pressure DVD player! Although piping the vent outside so I didn't suffocate was a pain. And it's a bit of a hassle lugging around all those nitrogen gas containers. Ah, I guess there's no free lunch.
"The movie you're about to watch hasn't been pirated, illegally copied, or otherwise acquired in an illegal manner. However, a crime has been committed. You'll notice that your wallet is now approximately $5 lighter than it should be, due to the criminal pricing scheme of the distributor of this movie.
Your mission, should you decide to accept it, is to squash this worthless distribution scheme, primarily by ignoring it.
This video will self-destruct in approximately 48 hours (that is, if you don't destroy the disk in frustration sooner)."
Tim
You need to take your DVD collection out for a walk around the neighborhood at least once every 2-3 days so it can compare itself against your neighbors DVD collections.
You also need to worry about grooming, etc. Thankfully my neighborhood has a do-it-yourself DVD grooming parlor where they provide all the tools.
A computer once beat me at chess, but it was no match for me at kick boxing -- Emo Phillips
Sounds like a precursor to this.
-no broken link
I tried that but getting the laser to read through the shink wrap was a bit of a pain.
The Count of Monte Cristo
Andy: You'll like that one Heywood, it's about a prison break.
Red: Jailbreak? Maybe we ought a file that one under "Educational" too.
The only reason we have the rights we have is that people just like us died to gain those rights. -- Cheerio Boy
Maybe we could grind up our grandma's antioxidant vitimans and sprinke the powder over the surface of the disk to keep the reaction from happening.
You must have excellent taste in movies.