Xtra Vision to be placed into Receivership

Arawn

****ing add 5e to all games in gamestop now like they did when game and hmv closed

brianregan09

I think alot of the bile coming from people comes from when Xtra Vision came in 1st they ran every other video shop out of business, Il miss it myself as people have said it lessens the amount of places you can even go to browse pain in the hole it is for the poor people losing there jobs too

Cantona's Collars

My local one is probably one of the busiest shops in the town apart from supermarkets,even in this day of downloads and streaming it's still popular.I don't use it to rent stuff but it's the only place near me to buy games etc. without having to go online.Plus a good look through their shelves can unearth some bargains.
It's odd how some people still rent dvd's despite having access to online content.A neighbour of mine downloads like a fiend yet still rents dvd's??

If they do go,I'll miss my local store,I bought my PS1,PS2 & PS3 there over the years.

Loafing Oaf

Went in to the Baggot Street one for the first time in ages the other day, to but the Hobbit blu-ray cos it wasn't in Tesco. Found it unrecognisably different from what I remembered: as many games as movies, extensive range of food & drink etc. Same vibe as HMV really, flailing around desperately trying (and evidently failing) to find a niche...

Most of their stores are profitable so I doubt that it'll be closing it's doors any time soon.

tinyk68

What about those of us who live in rural areas with slow broadband. Downloading movies is a pain in the a**e. I'll miss being able to rent a dvd

Galvasean

brianregan09 wrote: »

I think alot of the bile coming from people comes from when Xtra Vision came in 1st they ran every other video shop out of business,

I used to work in MovieMagic until Xtra Vision bought it out and closed the store a few months later. Do I hold any grudges? Well, no, not really. It was foresight on their behalf really as the place wasn't doing good business and was gonna die sooner or later. MovieMagic saw it for the sinking ship it was and abandoned ship, leaving Xtravision to pick up the tab.

Fun fact: Once XtraVision took over they stopped the selling of 'erotic features' (as per company policy). Shop then goes bust. It could be a coincidence,but I think those things had been keeping the place afloat! :pac:

Loughc

Deisler wrote: »

Are they still accepting gift vouchers?

According to their official Facebook page they are. And they will continue to release new movies and games and any cash deposits are still being honoured.

For anyone with vouchers it's prob the time to cash them in now. Don't leave them like HMV!

JP Liz V1

meoklmrk91 wrote: »

I hope they find a buyer, I have to say I really like xtravision. Their popcorn is serious. They are often much cheaper than GameStop for games. And usually have done great deals on. I will miss it of it goes.

I dont rent but do find a few deals with previously viewed films so I hope also a buyer is found

eyeball kid

Its a shame to see it go, especially for the people working there. I rent quite a bit as my internet at home is only a 3G dongle.
Not download/streaming a film on that!

Hope they find a way to keep the profitable shops open.

Rabidlamb

tinyk68 wrote: »

What about those of us who live in rural areas with slow broadband. Downloading movies is a pain in the a**e. I'll miss being able to rent a dvd

eyeball kid wrote: »

Its a shame to see it go, especially for the people working there. I rent quite a bit as my internet at home is only a 3G dongle.
Not download/streaming a film on that!

Hope they find a way to keep the profitable shops open.

4G is coming, your prayers will be answered soon

krudler

Rabidlamb wrote: »

4G is coming, your prayers will be answered soon

That's a while off for a full rollout though, sure some places still barely have 2G/Edge reception, the broadband infrastructure in this country is shocking.

sweetie

netflix was the final nail I think - my brother in law has it working well on 3mb broadband in the schticks

Gorilla Rising

Loughc wrote: »

Harsh considering 1,024 people will be out of a job when it eventually does die.

I was talking about the name and business model.

Find a buyer and many will remain employed depending on what they want to do with it.

krudler

Galvasean wrote: »

I used to work in MovieMagic until Xtra Vision bought it out and closed the store a few months later. Do I hold any grudges? Well, no, not really. It was foresight on their behalf really as the place wasn't doing good business and was gonna die sooner or later. MovieMagic saw it for the sinking ship it was and abandoned ship, leaving Xtravision to pick up the tab.

Fun fact: Once XtraVision took over they stopped the selling of 'erotic features' (as per company policy). Shop then goes bust. It could be a coincidence,but I think those things had been keeping the place afloat! :pac:

Ha I used to work in MovieMagic as well, the one on the Dublin road in Limerick, and yes the dirty oul fellas probably kept that place afloat :pac:

That was the handiest job ever, I used to do the day shift but didnt drive at the time so my dad would drop me into work on the way to his job and I'd be there an hour or more before the store even opened, but I didnt care as I'd get everything that needed doing done in no time cos there was no customers interrupting and spend the rest of the day sitting there watching movies
I had the imdb top 250 list and would go through it trying to watch as many of them as we had in stock, ahhh teenage jobs with no responsibility, they were the days.

Dempsey

Cant see anyone putting money into a sinking ship, they need a serious think about their business model

Retail Excellence Ireland seem like idiots

Rabidlamb

There was one of the independent video shops across from where I lived in Naas years ago.
If the right lad was on he'd show you the under the counter stuff

Can you imagine From Dusk 'til Dawn used to be under the counter, oh the times we lived in

krudler

Rabidlamb wrote: »

There was one of the independent video shops across from where I lived in Naas years ago.
If the right lad was on he'd show you the under the counter stuff

Can you imagine From Dusk 'til Dawn used to be under the counter, oh the times we lived in

or when some big blockbuster came out and they'd have a waiting list :pac: kids these days will never know what it was like waiting over a year to see something on home video. now stuff is barely out of the cinema and its out to buy, was 12 months at one time, then about 6, now its what, 3-4? The Hobbit is out and that only came out at Christmas.

Rabidlamb

krudler wrote: »

or when some big blockbuster came out and they'd have a waiting list :pac: kids these days will never know what it was like waiting over a year to see something on home video. now stuff is barely out of the cinema and its out to buy, was 12 months at one time, then about 6, now its what, 3-4? The Hobbit is out and that only came out at Christmas.

Oscar screeners are leaking now before the film has had it's Irish cinema release date, kids today have it too easy [shakes fist]

Looper007

This sucks really. I loved going there every month looking at their bargain dvds and 2nd hand rentals ever since HMV closed. Where to go now to buy dvds apart from Tesco and Tower records .

ShagNastii

Suffered from the same problem as HMV. As I heard somebody say "It great having DVDs for €3/4 but there are only so many copies of Cemetery Junction people need".

Plus the RENTAL prices are absolutely ludicrous. 2 Blu Rays 2 nights €10. When you can stream countless movies and TV on Netflix and its rivals for €7.99 a month it's no surprise it went south.

Huuuuuge overhaul needed if we are to have Xtra-vision remain on the high street.

iColdFusion

I had wondered why their stock had gone downhill over the last few months, I have bought a load of pre-owned/ex-rental blu-rays and games in my local one and would be sad to see it go as there isn't anything else within 30mins drive of home

Dee24

Hi All

I'm SO sad to hear of this. I always rent DVD's or Blu Rays.

I did have Netflix for a while (had been able to get the US version) and the US catalogue was great. But then it got blocked on me and I was only able to get the Irish catalogue which is a total disgrace. None of the current new releases or anything. I was also hoping UPC on demand would be good, and fair enough it has a decent enough selection with most of the new releases on there - but not all.

So what am I going to do now? Seriously I would love if someone could answer this question for me. Where can I get the best selection of New Releases (as Xtravision currently has)? I really dont want to have to download illegally (dont really know how anyway).

I would rent at least 10 or so DVD's a month.

Sad Professor

Dee24 wrote: »

So what am I going to do now? Seriously I would love if someone could answer this question for me. Where can I get the best selection of New Releases (as Xtravision currently has)? I really dont want to have to download illegally (dont really know how anyway).

iTunes.

Tinie

Dee24 wrote: »

So what am I going to do now? Seriously I would love if someone could answer this question for me. Where can I get the best selection of New Releases (as Xtravision currently has)? I really dont want to have to download illegally (dont really know how anyway).

http://screenclick.com/

Its an option.

du Maurier

I always wondered how the likes of Golden Discs stayed around, but then thought the oldies probably kept them in the game. But even at that, with Xtravision closing, will the oldies have to get with the Netflix thing now?

QikBax

There's still a market for a Music/DVD Retailer on the market but people will have to get used to it working a little differently than it has in the past. HMV's business model was majorly flawed over the last decade. Selling most new releases as a loss leader isn't sustainable when the rest of your core product is Music and DVD. Tesco can do it because they get a bigger discount on the cost price and can absorb any losses by selling everything else they stock at a high margin to the same customer.

People will always look at Xtra Vision as a rental store so, no matter how how hard they tried to diversify into sales and second hand and electronics, customers were generally going to look online or in other shops for their purchases. Once torrenting and legal downloads became widespread they were treading water.

I work as a DVD buyer for a Music/DVD shop and sales are OK at the moment. Nothing earth shattering but we're getting by. The problem is stock generally has to be paid for upfront which means stocking a bigger range of DVDs is difficult. HMV could always return stock to the wholesaler or move it to one of their larger shops. We have to focus on promoting Special Ordering of items that the customer wants which affect the "browsing experience" a bit. We've recently started stocking Vinyl again and the reaction has been huge so there are areas of growth.

I think over the next year or 2 independent retail stores will work out any kinks they have in the wake of the HMV/Xtra Vision vacuum and supply a reasonable alternative to online. Obviously they're fighting a losing battle but there is a place for them. Especially if credit loosens up with the banks and major labels.

Decuc500

Dee24 wrote: »

So what am I going to do now? Seriously I would love if someone could answer this question for me. Where can I get the best selection of New Releases (as Xtravision currently has)? I really dont want to have to download illegally (dont really know how anyway).

Good question. The problem I have is that no online service has the same choice of new releases as Xtravision. So renting blu-rays and having a choice of all new releases is about to become obsolete? Ah sure, as long as I can stream an old film onto my laptop or watch an illegal download in rubbish quality it’ll be grand…

I loved having a choice of all newly released, high definition films to watch on my hd tv. Without Xtravision I simply won’t have this.

Saying that, I don’t know what’s available on itunes. Is it even in HD? The idea of hooking up my laptop to my tv is so quaint. It’s a step back if you ask me. Maybe when Smart tv's are the norm the situation will be better.

Sad Professor

Decuc500 wrote: »

Saying that, I don’t know what’s available on itunes. Is it even in HD? The idea of hooking up my laptop to my tv is so quaint. It’s a step back if you ask me. Maybe when Smart tv's are the norm the situation will be better.

You can watch iTunes rentals on your TV with an AppleTV. 109 euro from Apple.

iTunes has a pretty excellent selection of new releases these days, most of which are in 1080p HD. I wouldn't recommend buying films but it's grand for renting.

hfallada

I wonder will they keep the profitable ones and close the loss making ones.