Blockbuster to trial ‘DVD trade-ins’ in Scottish stores

Blockbuster Video, the video rental chain owned by US media giant Viacom, is testing a DVD trade-in programme at some of its Scottish stores.

Traded products, which do not have to have been bought from Blockbuster, are put back on sale in a specially allocated section of the store.

The scheme allows Blockbuster members to trade in DVDs and either get cash or credit off future purchases or rentals.

The scheme has already been trialled in a small number of US stores, and Blockbuster last week announced that it will be rolling out the Big DVD Trade-In to more than 2,000 of its North American outlets.

It is understood that the decision to expand the trade-in scheme in the US is an attempt to stop Blockbuster customers deserting the retailer for new and cheaper rivals, some online, which use standard postal services for delivery and return of videos and DVDs.

To add to the company’s problems, parent company Viacom, which owns 82 per cent of the shares and also owns CBS, MTV and Paramount Pictures, has put the retailer up for sale, saying that it is not one of its long-term core brands.

Blockbuster was hit two weeks ago by the sudden departure of marketing director Sarah Baxter after just seven months (MW April 22). Baxter quit to “go travelling”.