BlockBUSTer, How'd You Let This Happen?

There's a scene in Austin Powers, where Austin is driving a steamroller right towards a security guard. He waves, 'Move! Move!' and yells, 'Watch out!', but the security guard is frozen with fear and can only yell, 'STOOOOOOOOOP!!' it what seems to be a last-ditch plea for his life. It is then hilariously revealed that the steamroller is about 50 yards away, giving more time than a snail would need to get out of the way. But he doesn't, and the steamroller keeps going, ultimately right him over. (You can watch the scene again below).

This movie moment came to mind when Blockerbuster filed for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy last Thursday. Let's be real, we all saw this coming years ago, as did they, but nothing was done to stop it. Instead, they sat back and watched the competition gain strength and power as the video business continued to shift online, and now...here we are. 

Jim Keyes, Blockbuster’s chief executive, said “After a careful and thorough analysis, we determined that the process announced today provides the optimal path for recapitalizing our balance sheet and positioning Blockbuster for the future as we continue to transform our business model to meet the evolving preferences of our customers." 

So...the transformation starts now? Seriously? I gotta admit, for the past few years, I thought Blockbuster had something secretly cooking. I mean, this was Blockbuster! They were the only game in town in most towns. There was no way they were going to let Netflix and Co. take over the show. But that's exactly what just happened. 

As a place that's given me tons of great memories, as much as I would like to, I can't feel any remorse for Blockbuster. They had lots of time to move their business model out of the way of the proverbial steamroller and shift service online...but, instead, they just let it roll right over them. ~ p