HMV to close 60 stores (Irish stores affected as well)

RobitTV

Shares in music and books retailer HMV Group have fallen 21% after revealing falling sales, weak profits and trouble meeting the terms of a bank loan.

The firm - which also owns Waterstone's bookshops - plans to close 60 stores in UK And some in Ireland the next 12 months in order to get costs under control.

HMV was not the only retailer to suffer in the cold weather. Clothes chain Next said on Tuesday it had lost £22m in store sales because shoppers stayed away when the snow fell in the run-up to Christmas.

HMV's share price has declined steadily throughout 2010, and the latest drop brings its cumulative fall to 78% over the last 13 months.
(BBC News)

Nodin

Evidently the policy of charging the absolute maximum for stuff is no longer sustainable. Other than sales, the only reason to go into their place would be in order to be apalled at the prices.

blackalicious

its easy to see why i used to shop there all the time now i just download everything

Duggy747

Looks like the poor HMV dog will have to put down.

I'm sure listening to that old record player so closely wasn't good for it's ears, anyways.

The place was always crazy expensive.

Never liked HMV but that's pretty shlt.

RichieC

Jesus that's a lot of hipsters out of work..

ThisRegard

To be fair it hasn't been as expensive as it used to be in a few years, it's actually fairly reasonable these days.

af_thefragile

God bless torrents!!

Dyr

boo hoo...charged rip off prices for years in the bad old days and by the time they changed their ways people had moved on

Duggy747

ThisRegard wrote: »

To be fair it hasn't been as expensive as it used to be in a few years, it's actually fairly reasonable these days.

In regards to DVDs and boxsets they are better than what they used to be. I remember seeing a Robocop - Director's Cut DVD around 3 years ago for €35 :eek:

They were handy to walk into and get ideas on what movies to.....eh........aquire. :pac:

The Waltzing Consumer

RichieC wrote: »

Jesus that's a lot of hipsters out of work..

Ah they ain't as bad as Tower Records when it comes to hipsters, HMV is just full of students.

Back on topic. F**k them, they ripped us off for years, and I laughed when I saw it is the same company which owns Waterstones, another company which overcharges and has ripped us off for years. Yeah, yeah, pity about the jobs, but it is an awful company full of annoying security guards following you and unfriendly staff avoiding you. Not exactly a surprise people don't shop there.

Download everything!

Biggins

Any word yet which exact stores are to go?

ilovesleep

Horrific! HMV is my favourite shop ever. NO NO NO NO NO

diceyreilly

ThisRegard wrote: »

To be fair it hasn't been as expensive as it used to be in a few years, it's actually fairly reasonable these days.

Shameless Season 5 €56 hardly reasonable..

Phill Ewinn

probably trying to preserve profits than fight loses. poor people who worked for them. some of them were great TBH

Biggins

For those that don't know HMV stands for "His Masters Voice"
The logo that they use sometimes is a dog listening to his masters voice off a gramophone.

KnifeWRENCH

diceyreilly wrote: »

Shameless Season 5 €56 hardly reasonable..

Heh, I got a Shameless boxset there a couple of years ago. It was €40 but had all seasons 1-5 on it.
Paying €56 for one season is horrendous but €40 for five seasons ain't bad. Granted it was on sale but I was pretty happy with it.

On topic, this is dreadful news imo. I know people are downloading everything these days but I still love going into a music shop, browsing and buying actual physical CDs/DVDs. It works out a bit more expensive, but downloading just isn't the same.

homerun_homer

It's never good to see a chain get hit like this because if they can't survive then how can the little stores survive (well, they haven't been surviving. Just look at Road Records.).

Every music store needs to revolutionise their policies and prices. I still buy cds but barely buy DVDs anymore. I used to buy DVDs as soon as they were released and then be annoyed how cheap it got within 2 months. So I stopped buying new releases and bought cheap afterwards.

Then the powers that be bring out a superior quality product with Blu Ray and made my DVDs redundant to the possibility of perfect Widescreen video resolution and sound quality. I decided that if my collection needed upgrading then I wasn't buying DVDs until I had a Blu Ray player and I won't get one unless I have a big ass TV, which I don't and don't plan on for god knows when... when I settle down maybe.
It's the greedyness of corporations needing to resell us what we already have that's stopped me buying. No different than CDs. I'll download the CD somewhere or copy from a friend and wait until the band decides to repackage with new material when they need better Christmas sales. Being the first to buy an album matters not anymore. The completist will still be left annoyed at what they miss out down the line unless they let the record companies sucker punch them into repurchasing a title.

Everyone in the food chain is to blame, not just consumers for seemingly illegally pirating albums and films.

arybvtcw0eolkf

ThisRegard wrote: »

To be fair it hasn't been as expensive as it used to be in a few years, it's actually fairly reasonable these days.

I use it for buying DVD's, cheapest and best selection around IMO.

af_thefragile

^Get a playstation. Its a perfect bluray player!!

Its what I use for watching bluray movies and the quality is just sooooo much better than DVD!! You'ld never wanna buy a DVD again!

ThisRegard

The Waltzing Consumer wrote: »

Ah they ain't as bad as Tower Records when it comes to hipsters, HMV is just full of students.

Back on topic. F**k them, they ripped us off for years, and I laughed when I saw it is the same company which owns Waterstones, another company which overcharges and has ripped us off for years. Yeah, yeah, pity about the jobs, but it is an awful company full of annoying security guards following you and unfriendly staff avoiding you. Not exactly a surprise people don't shop there.

Download everything!

Your boards attitude obviously translates into your real life one ! I've never been followed by a security guard anywhere, never mind HMV, and have always founds the staff decent when looking for something or a quick chat about what you've just bought when at the till.

Dravokivich

Wouldn't happen to have a source by any chance RobitTv?

ilovesleep

Fcuk you FiannaFail. Protect your developer mates and save the banks and no one else. Fcuk you to hell.

I love hmv.

ThisRegard

Dravokivich wrote: »

Wouldn't happen to have a source by any chance RobitTv?

http://www.independent.ie/business/european/hmv-group-to-close-60-stores-2484497.html

speedboatchase

This whole 'download everything' philosophy from freetards is the greediest and most ignorant thing I've read in quite some time on this site - even if shops sold content producer's products at high prices for far too long (I remember The Strokes second album in Golden Discs for €25 on release), it doesn't mean the content producers aren't entitled to any reimbursement for their efforts anymore, but anyways I'm probably wasting my breath.

I like browsing HMV, especially on Grafton St, but personally I've moved onto Play and Amazon if I want to buy a game/Blu Ray/book these days. HMV and the rest are mostly relying on video game sales these days if I had to guess and digital distribution will eventually take over from there - surprised anyone would want to be a HMV shareholder to begin with

Minstrel27

Nearest HMV to me is 60 miles away. This news means nothing to me.

That's great speedboatchase but most people would never ever buy 99% of the stuff they download. I know I never had the money for a dvd so I'm not going to feel guilty for downloading.. It affects nothing.

Bill2673

Was in a friends house the other day, she had a copy of SADE album released in 1999.....the price on the CD was £18.99.....about €24.....that is ten years ago. Allowing for 3% per annum inflation since then, that is about €32 in todays money. It was galling how much they charged and the only reason prices have come down is competition. I've no sympathy for them. (And as another happy corrollory, you don't get folks like Coldplay and Robbie Williams on £60mn record deals any more either).

The Waltzing Consumer

ThisRegard wrote: »

Your boards attitude obviously translates into your real life one ! I've never been followed by a security guard anywhere, never mind HMV, and have always founds the staff decent when looking for something or a quick chat about what you've just bought when at the till.

Well there you go. I have never been followed anywhere else by security guards and pretty much never been aware of security guards anywhere else. I have worked in shops very similar to HMV and the difference is huge. It may be a bit more relaxed these days, but a few years ago, it was annoying as hell being in their shops (Grafton Street & Blanch) because you could just feel the security staff watch or follow you.

FreudianSlippers

Nodin wrote: »

Evidently the policy of charging the absolute maximum for stuff is no longer sustainable. Other than sales, the only reason to go into their place would be in order to be apalled at the prices.

Agreed... can't say I didn't see this coming for ages.

There is no room for these types of businesses to be competitive these days.
If Ireland had Netflix (or even anything close) these types of places would have been gone ages ago.

Biggins

Dravokivich wrote: »

Wouldn't happen to have a source by any chance RobitTv?

They did mention it on Sky news in the last hour.

Minstrel27

It is on BBC News also.

super_furry

Expect to see much more of this happening to the likes of GAME and Gamestop as digital distribution takes over. HMV is the only big chain entertainment store left after the likes of Our Price and Virgin died and will probably follow suit.

cursai

Damn. They had the worst security tags on their products:mad:

Now i'm gonna have to upskill and ply my trade at Tescos or golden discs.

Does anybody know what kind of security tags they use at Tescos?

Dravokivich

OisinT wrote: »

Agreed... can't say I didn't see this coming for ages.

There is no room for these types of businesses to be competitive these days.
If Ireland had Netflix (or even anything close) these types of places would have been gone ages ago.

Actually tried signing up to netflix over a year ago, was dissapointed we don't have that avail, or a similar service here alright.

super_furry wrote: »

Expect to see much more of this happening to the likes of GAME and Gamestop as digital distribution takes over. HMV is the only big chain entertainment store left after the likes of Our Price and Virgin died and will probably follow suit.

Game and Gamestop are making their money re-selling in the 2nd hand market. Digital Distrobution is only a problem for them really in the PC market and even then they've always been more geared towards consoles.

pablomakaveli

HMV are pretty good for new releases with games. They often have them a few euro cheaper than the likes of Game and Gamestop.

speedboatchase

Deleted User wrote: »

That's great speedboatchase but most people would never ever buy 99% of the stuff they download. I know I never had the money for a dvd so I'm not going to feel guilty for downloading.. It affects nothing.

I'm sure they'd buy a lot more than 1% - people download things they want - simple as that. Whether or not they would buy it or not is irrelevant because they're downloading anyways - that 1% is just you pulling a figure out of your head. The most torrented game of last year was Call of Duty: Black Ops, which was also the best-selling game. It's not about whether you feel guilty or not, you can't justify downloading something for free on the basis you can't afford it or don't want to buy it. And you say 'it affects nothing' - of course you downloading has an effect in the wider sense, it just doesn't have the effect you getting a slap on the wrist because it's not stringently enforced, but that will change in few years I reckon. They should just introduce a taxed, monitored ISP plan where your bill is based on usage - I shouldn't have to pay the same or be on the same pay plan as a pirate who's downloading TB's of illegal content ever day

RichieC

It's quite fallacious of the record industry to count illegal downloads as lost sales, but yanno, what ever looks good in ink for the Ba**ards.

Hail 2 Da Thief

ThisRegard wrote: »

To be fair it hasn't been as expensive as it used to be in a few years, it's actually fairly reasonable these days.

+1, bought a 6 movie boxset from there the other day for €18. Great value imo!

FreudianSlippers

Dravokivich wrote: »

Actually tried signing up to netflix over a year ago, was dissapointed we don't have that avail, or a similar service here alright.



Game and Gamestop are making their money re-selling in the 2nd hand market. Digital Distrobution is only a problem for them really in the PC market and even then they've always been more geared towards consoles.

I lived in the US for a few years and Netflix + Gamefly was amazing.
I think it's 3 films at a time for $9.99 plus unlimited streaming on PS3 with Netflix.

The Waltzing Consumer

speedboatchase wrote: »

I'm sure they'd buy a lot more than 1% - people download things they want - simple as that. Whether or not they would buy it or not is irrelevant because they're downloading anyways - that 1% is just you pulling a figure out of your head. The most torrented game of last year was Call of Duty: Black Ops, which was also the best-selling game. It's not about whether you feel guilty or not, you can't justify downloading something for free on the basis you can't afford it or don't want to buy it. And you say 'it affects nothing' - of course you downloading has an effect in the wider sense, it just doesn't have the effect you getting a slap on the wrist because it's not stringently enforced, but that will change in few years I reckon.

The only thing I buy is boxsets. Why? Because it is quality programming such as The Wire or other HBO/BBC stuff. They invest in their product, making it a product worth having. You cannot say that about most other film/music companies and that is why I don't give a sh** about downloading it.

People download Call of Duty because they do not want to pay 60 Euro for a game they finish in half an hour. Most people just want it for the multiplayer and the downloads only count for PC version anyway.

Einstein

Deleted User wrote: »

That's great speedboatchase but most people would never ever buy 99% of the stuff they download. I know I never had the money for a dvd so I'm not going to feel guilty for downloading.. It affects nothing.

Without turning this into a pirating download thread, it's fairly obvious that downloading does affect something, given that the largest chain of Music stores in the UK and Ireland are closing 60 of their stores. If you and everyone else that downloaded, just paid €30 for 4 Dvd's instead of dloading it from a torrent, I'm pretty sure we wouldn't be having this conversation.

OisinT wrote: »

Agreed... can't say I didn't see this coming for ages.

There is no room for these types of businesses to be competitive these days.
If Ireland had Netflix (or even anything close) these types of places would have been gone ages ago.

Unfortunately you're right. The only problem with Netflix in Ireland is that nobody would send the Dvd's back...

FreudianSlippers

The Waltzing Consumer wrote: »

The only thing I buy is boxsets. Why? Because it is quality programming such as The Wire or other HBO/BBC stuff. They invest in their product, making it a product worth having. You cannot say that about most other film/music companies and that is why I don't give a sh** about downloading it.

People download Call of Duty because they do not want to pay 60 Euro for a game they finish in half an hour. Most people just want it for the multiplayer and the downloads only count for PC version anyway.

You have to remember that HBO is a subscription channel in the US and isn't cheap. So on top of your basic cable package you have to pay $10/month or something like that extra for HBO, another $10 for Showtime etc.

GSF

If they charged people for browsing, the stores would be profitable.

martineatworld

I think it's a bit of a shame really. HMV are the only half competitive B&M shop left that specialise in optical media. I know online is cheaper and some stuff is still overpriced, I know torrenting is "free", I know they're rip off merchants blah blah blah.

But surely there's something to be said for the simple transaction of obtaining physical media? Spotting a DVD you've been after on sale, buying a CD/game you've been anticipating on release, spotting something quirky that you may have not come across otherwise...

I mostly buy online and will always do so, but I think getting on HMV's back is a bit much. They provide an old fashioned service which appeals to some people, and I'll appreciate the fact I have the option there. Online shopping just isn't the same at times.

Korvanica

Duggy747 wrote: »

They were handy to walk into and get ideas on what movies to.....eh........aquire. :pac:

Quite the handy, see something you like, take a pic with the phone... "acquire" it later....

Hope they have mental sales in the stores they're closing... and i hope theres one near me .... (thinks back to the virgin sale in dundrum when it was closing)

General Zod

Minstrel27 wrote: »

Nearest HMV to me is 60 miles away. This news means nothing to me.

do you live in OHHHH VIENNAAAAAA (du du du)

speedboatchase

The Waltzing Consumer wrote: »

The only thing I buy is boxsets. Why? Because it is quality programming such as The Wire or other HBO/BBC stuff. They invest in their product, making it a product worth having. You cannot say that about most other film/music companies and that is why I don't give a sh** about downloading it.

People download Call of Duty because they do not want to pay 60 Euro for a game they finish in half an hour. Most people just want it for the multiplayer and the downloads only count for PC version anyway.

People play Call of Duty for hundreds upon hundreds of hours a year, as you say, for the multiplayer, the single player length had nothing to do with their reasoning for downloading it. I expect WoW subscriptions will be introduced for monthly use from next year to CoD from now on, at least, to curb this kind of piracy (4.2m PC players have downloaded it, since November!) and maximise Activision's bottom line, but its the actions of those 4.2m that will impact and cause players that pay for the game every year to pay a little more the year after.

I love buying box sets and I completely agree with you about the quality of HBO and AMC's programming, but they're shows from subscription-based shows in the US that don't care about ads - the showrunners make their money from box set sales mainly. As much as you like buying box sets and feel its a product worth having, there's plenty of people that will download the same box set, potentially hurting the future of the show (if it's fairly niche especially) and then complain 'oh TV is crap these days, I wouldn't even buy these things I have on my hard drive'

blueser

diceyreilly wrote: »

Shameless Season 5 €56 hardly reasonable..

HOW MUCH????? No great loss as far as I'm concerned. Very high speed broadband hasn't got out as far as the sticks yet, so it's Play.com for me. Not a Shameless fan really, but look at this;
http://www.play.com/DVD/DVD/4-/5125867/Shameless-Series-5/Product.html?ptsl=1&ob=price&fb=1


€21.22, and free delivery.

Kinetic^

Don't think I've bought anything in there since my 30% staff discount back in 2002.

The Waltzing Consumer

OisinT wrote: »

You have to remember that HBO is a subscription channel in the US and isn't cheap. So on top of your basic cable package you have to pay $10/month or something like that extra for HBO, another $10 for Showtime etc.

Exactly. Whilst other tv companies are flogging reality tv because it is cheap, easy to make and pretty much cack, HBO charges a little more so it can invest in quality programming and the audience appreciate that. Look at the best tv programs, they are HBO, look at the boxsets that sell, I would bet HBO is up there at the top. If there were more music/film companies that toook risks like HBO, you may see a better performing industry, but majority don't and they figure people will buy any crap, which is obviously not the case anymore.