Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

Gamefly Complains of Poor Treatment From USPS

Posted by Soulskill on from the spurring-rubber-dvd-development dept.

Gamefly, the popular video game rental service that operates through the mail, has filed a complaint with the Postal Regulatory Commission about the high number of games that are lost or stolen in the mail. The complaint (PDF) asserts that the postal service's automated sorting machines have a tendency to break a small percentage of discs, and that preferential treatment is given to DVD rental services like Netflix and Blockbuster. "According to Gamefly's numbers, it mails out 590,000 games and receives 510,000 games back from subscribers a month. The company sees, depending on the mailer, between one and two percent of its games broken in transit. ... Even if you assume the number is one percent, and a game costs $50 to replace, that's an astounding $295,000 a month in lost merchandise. ... That's not the only issue — games are also stolen in transit, which has lead to the arrest of 19 Postal Service employees."

10 of 269 comments (clear)

  1. Heh heh.. riiight by TinBromide · · Score: 5, Funny

    Those lost game disks were lost in the mail... Heh heh... *hides stack of reported "lost" disks under the couch* Nothing to see here, move along!

    --
    Is it sad that I am more likely to recognize you and your posts by your sig than your name or UID?
    1. Re:Heh heh.. riiight by digitig · · Score: 5, Funny

      So how can you tell that the 'high percentage of (disks) lost' in the mail were really 'lost in the mail' and not merely reported as such?

      The arrests may be a clue. If they translate into prosecutions they will be an even bigger clue. If they translate into convictions, I reckon they've nailed it.

      --
      Quidnam Latine loqui modo coepi?
    2. Re:Heh heh.. riiight by guyminuslife · · Score: 2, Funny

      No, it isn't.

      Sending obscenity through the USPS is a federal offense. What obscenity is exactly is not very well-defined, but it is not the same as pornography.

      The United States Postal Service will dutifully deliver your Girls Gone Wild DVDs with vigor and spunk.

      --
      I don't believe in time. It's a grand conspiracy designed to sell watches.
    3. Re:Heh heh.. riiight by longacre · · Score: 2, Funny

      Their aggressive use of drop shadow in the banner on top of their page surely strikes fear into the heart of any postal thief.

      --
      Airplane Photos, Airline News, Planespotting Guides
  2. XXX by Rick+Bentley · · Score: 5, Funny

    ...constant emails like 'have you got XXX yet?' or 'When did you send back XXX?'.

    I see we rent the same stuff.

    --
    My favorite quote doesn't fit into 120 characters. Now no one will like me.
    1. Re:XXX by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

      Hey, I love that movie, too!

  3. Re:USPS / USPO isn't bad... by Boss+Sauce · · Score: 2, Funny

    Whatever-- I know you never sent that check.

  4. Re:wrong by cerberusss · · Score: 4, Funny

    Look, these threads are the same every time:

    [...]Because it's all just a bunch of random personal anecdotes, it doesn't mean anything.

    Very true. But in my experience, this happens even more at digg.com. I sometimes visit the Ars Technica forums and the problem doesn't seem to exist there.

    Of course, YMMV.

    --
    8 of 13 people found this answer helpful. Did you?
  5. Re:That's why I quit Zip.ca by l0ungeb0y · · Score: 1, Funny

    "3 DVDs within 3 months failed to end up win my locked mailbox"

    Id tht how babby be formed?
    instain?

  6. Re:wrong by Sponge+Bath · · Score: 3, Funny

    The United States Post Office (U.S.P.O.) was created in Philadelphia under Benjamin Franklin on July 26, 1775...

    First post!