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

stepbar

HMV = Overpriced toot......

In fact.... why do I never see decent CD / DVD's for 3-5 eur in the shops? Why is it that I have to constantly go to places like ASDA to get the deals?

Anyhow it's all relative, the likes of HMV are dying a slow death. On Demand TV and larger storage space is driving the change. In about 5 - 10 years there will probably be no HMV.

RobitTV

Oranage2 wrote: »

grafton street has the highest rents in all of Dublin, I'd have money on the grafton street HMV one closing

Actully now its quite a hard call lol

RobitTV

There has been rumors that a list of closures will be confirmed in the next coming days, be intresting to see what stores will be closed in ireland.

kensutz

Doubt it!

RobitTV

kensutz wrote: »

Doubt it!

Why?

Snake Plisken

L'prof wrote: »

Shocking value for BluRays, but I can't say I've found much value in any of the local shops.

Rubbish they do decent enough prices on Blu-Ray's look at Inception €17.99 on release date and €29.99 for the Briefcase edition which was a hell of a lot cheaper then the likes of Play Amazon etc, so yes they had some decent deals, its also good that they have the new releases out on the Friday before the UK which have to release on the Monday. Some stuff they are expensive, but they always have a sale going on and you will eventually pick up cheap an example was the Blu-Ray for Shutter Island was listed at something mad like €29.99, but I got that and Momento for €30 just before christmas. I hope the likes of Liffey Valley & Blach branches stay open.

L'prof

Snake Plisken wrote: »

Rubbish they do decent enough prices on Blu-Ray's look at Inception €17.99 on release date and €29.99 for the Briefcase edition which was a hell of a lot cheaper then the likes of Play Amazon etc, so yes they had some decent deals, its also good that they have the new releases out on the Friday before the UK which have to release on the Monday. Some stuff they are expensive, but they always have a sale going on and you will eventually pick up cheap an example was the Blu-Ray for Shutter Island was listed at something mad like €29.99, but I got that and Momento for €30 just before christmas. I hope the likes of Liffey Valley & Blach branches stay open.

Sorry, but you don't know what you're talking about!

Bluray|HMV|Amazon
Inception|€17.99|€17.68
Inception Case|€29.99|€26.50
Shutter Island|29.99|€11.71
Shutter Island & Memento|€30|€23.49

I've often been in HMV and been appalled that a Bluray would be €10-15 more expensive than I could get it on Amazon and then there's the whole issue of there not being a broad enough selection and having to manually search for what you want. The only reason I ever buy in HMV over Amazon is if I really, really, really want to watch the movie that evening, otherwise it's Amazon all the way!

RobitTV

HMV May be abit dear, but it a great store to go and have a look in and sometimes they do sales.

wyndham

RobitTV wrote: »

There has been rumors that a list of closures will be confirmed in the next coming days, be intresting to see what stores will be closed in ireland.

I'd put money on them pulling out of Ireland completely.

FreudianSlippers

Deleted User wrote: »

An Post do it;

http://www.anpost.ie/AnPost/MainContent/Personal+Customers/More+from+An+Post/Movies+by+Mail/

If you ever had netflix you wouldn't even consider recommending this joke of a service!

jackiebaron

Bambi wrote: »

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

Hear hear! Same happened to Blockbuster Video in the US. The stupid cnuts are bankrupt now. They refused to see the writing on the wall and also used to charge abominable late fees and even send you to a collection agency if you were more that 3 days late..thus fcuking up your credit history. Couldn't have happened to a nicer bunch. Long may they rot.

jackiebaron

wyndham wrote: »

I'd put money on them pulling out of Ireland completely.

They will, dude. They'll be chapter 11 by next year. I'd bank on it.

Snake Plisken

L'prof wrote: »

Sorry, but you don't know what you're talking about!

Bluray|HMV|Amazon
Inception|€17.99|€17.68
Inception Case|€29.99|€26.50
Shutter Island|29.99|€11.71
Shutter Island & Memento|€30|€23.49

I've often been in HMV and been appalled that a Bluray would be €10-15 more expensive than I could get it on Amazon and then there's the whole issue of there not being a broad enough selection and having to manually search for what you want. The only reason I ever buy in HMV over Amazon is if I really, really, really want to watch the movie that evening, otherwise it's Amazon all the way!

Sorry Yes I do!

They are prices now you are quoting pre-release prices for inception were a lot higher friend of mine who bought the Inception Briefcase paid 38 sterling for it! Also prices on the other movies were higher before xmas as I double checked the like's of AVforums and price comparison sites before I bought Shutter Island.

L'prof

Snake Plisken wrote: »

Sorry Yes I do!

They are prices now you are quoting pre-release prices for inception were a lot higher friend of mine who bought the Inception Briefcase paid 38 sterling for it! Also prices on the other movies were higher before xmas as I double checked the like's of AVforums and price comparison sites before I bought Shutter Island.

Those are the same prices from Amazon as before Christmas, I was looking at the time, so I know!

Snake Plisken

L'prof wrote: »

Those are the same prices from Amazon as before Christmas, I was looking at the time, so I know!

So was I so we'll beg to differ on this one.

L'prof

Snake Plisken wrote: »

So was I so we'll beg to differ on this one.

Haha, right. You can beg to differ, but you're wrong. If you want to see for yourself what bad value HMV is, try checking out some subtitled films the next time you're in there and comparing them to their prices on Amazon. A lot of new releases are overpriced too.

Snake Plisken

L'prof wrote: »

Haha, right. You can beg to differ, but you're wrong. If you want to see for yourself what bad value HMV is, try checking out some subtitled films the next time you're in there and comparing them to their prices on Amazon. A lot of new releases are overpriced too.

Typical Arse fan never admit that they are wrong :rolleyes:

Anyway of course there are titles that are mad money in HMV but that's what the internet retailers are for!

L'prof

Snake Plisken wrote: »

Typical Arse fan never admit that they are wrong :rolleyes:

Anyway of course there are titles that are mad money in HMV but that's what the internet retailers are for!

Why would I do something stupid like that when I know that I'm right...typical keyboard warrior argument :rolleyes:

LizT

L'prof wrote: »

Why would I do something stupid like that when I know that I'm right...typical keyboard warrior argument :rolleyes:

You cannot say for sure that you are right. I've gotten a lot of stuff on sale or special offer from HMV that's worked out to be cheaper than amazon and any other sites. But if I were to buy them now from HMV, maybe the story would be different.

They do have good deals, you just have to keep an eye out for them.

L'prof

lizt wrote: »

You cannot say for sure that you are right. I've gotten a lot of stuff on sale or special offer from HMV that's worked out to be cheaper than amazon and any other sites. But if I were to buy them now from HMV, maybe the story would be different.

They do have good deals, you just have to keep an eye out for them.

The bottom line is, they don't have enough good deals to entice me to buy there regularly! When I do choose to buy in town rather than online, HMV is where I go.

nitrogen

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.

Or to check what torrents might be available to download.

ThisRegard

jackiebaron wrote: »

They will, dude. They'll be chapter 11 by next year. I'd bank on it.

No they won't, chapter 11 is a US thing.

Orando Broom

Rush Hour 3; €32 in HMV. A bargain!!!!


Snakes on a Plane €41, where else could you buy these treasures for these absurdly low prices. It's no wonder they are closing with their crazy prices. You people sicken and disgust me. HMV are giving away these, these national treasures for a pittance!!!!!

nitrogen

homerun_homer wrote: »

It's the greedyness of corporations needing to resell us what we already have that's stopped me buying.

Kind of, but western economies wouldn't be as strong if technology didn't improve so quickly and there was no need to upgrade. No reason to upgrade means less employment in science, manufacturing, marketing, sales, etc.

But as others have said, I have no sympathy for an industry that has been ripping off consumers for years and failed to adopt to the modern market place.

nitrogen

Bill2673 wrote: »

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).

I reckon anyone that has 100 plus CDs in their collection is within their rights to download 20 times that.

Orando Broom

nitrogen wrote: »

I reckon anyone that has 100 plus CDs in their collection is within their rights to download 20 times that.

250 albums or so! Huzzah!!

osizzle

Quote from HMV in Today's Metro:

‘The HMV and Waterstones stores destined to be closed down are likely to be located in large-city conurbations and may be in close proximity to each other, thus resulting in a dupication in relation to local demand, which is not really the case in Ireland.’

RobitTV

osizzle wrote: »

Quote from HMV in Today's Metro:

‘The HMV and Waterstones stores destined to be closed down are likely to be located in large-city conurbations and may be in close proximity to each other, thus resulting in a dupication in relation to local demand, which is not really the case in Ireland.’

Dublin has a good few That are near to eachother!

osizzle

RobitTV wrote: »

Dublin has a good few That are near to eachother!

yup, Waterstones Dawson St / HMV Grafton St,

Waterstones Jervis / HMV Henry St

quad_red

osizzle wrote: »

yup, Waterstones Dawson St / HMV Grafton St,

Waterstones Jervis / HMV Henry St

'Duplication of demand' doesn't apply like that though.

I mean, Waterstones in Dawson st isn't competing against HMV on grafton street.

I presume you mean HMV Grafton st competing against HMV Henry st.

LizT

At the end of the day, it's all about profit. If the grafton street and henry street branches are making reasonable profits, they're not going to close either of them down even if they are in close proximity.

JohnMearsheimer

When I got my first job when I was 16 you couldn't keep me out of the place. These days I'd only go in for a browse if a sale was on. You do find the odd bargains there but not enough to keep me consistently going back to the store. I have a large dvd collection and finding a place to keep them all is becoming a problem. I have started ripping them to a hard drive and these days if I buy a film I prefer to download it rather than getting a physical disc.

gubernaculum

1. Media retail is not like clothes retail. There is no 100% markup minimum. Record and distribution companies set the prices (and when you've 90+ % of your signings never recouping the invested money at the best of times, they set them high to try cover their sinking asses) and are only influenced by bulk buying. i.e. If you're Tesco and buying 50,000 of something you'll get it for cheaper. If you're Tom's Records in Louth or something, NOT A HOPE.

2. Retailers add on about 20-30%. Retailers remove 20-30% a day later when Tesco starts selling it below cost price as loss leader at the tills because customers come storming in going 'WTF THAT'S 5 QUID CHEAPER IN TESCO'. And it's still more expensive than Tesco 'cause they didn't get the original discount.

3. Nobody makes any money. Labels, shops, bands.

I personally love record shops. I don't have a moral problem with people downloading to check stuff out but I don't think all media should be free. Many musicians bemoan the fact that they have to tour like crazy to survive but can't say 'please don't download my stuff' because a) it does help people discover them and b) they'd be tarred as Lars Ulrich. And nobody wants that. Course buying online's cheaper. They're buying it in bulk, they have no overheads and are operating out of a warehouse. I agree, the music industry rode the good times, charged what they wanted and didn't adjust quickly enough to the reality of the internet. What I don't understand is why the music industry is singled out as some price insensitive monster. YES you can get it for free but you're nicking it. I'm nicking it. If we were all nicking clothes we'd be outraged by the prices in Penneys. People complain so much about how much they paid for cds just a few years ago and rightly so, but that's only because they are now ostensibly "free". CDs are now on average about a third of the price they were eight years ago by my reckoning. New releases are no longer in the arm/leg category. If you find an excessively overpriced cd/dvd it's usually one of two reasons: a - the retailer bought it as a new release, cost price to them was higher and they didn't sell as much as anticipated but can't cut it below cost price or b) it's on import. There is no grabby mentality out there anymore because no physical shop has a way to justify it when customers will just turn round, thank you for your recommendations and go home to torrent it. I've stood behind people in a queue saying "thanks but I'll just download it". Perhaps the day of the record shop is coming to an end but most of the people operating them sure as hell don't keep them going for the profits. HMV is a chain that's publically traded and has to behave more like a business but many are run like a vocation. I know a lot of people think f-them but I'll be really sad if they all dwindle away and miss the experience of them as a customer greatly.

RobitTV

Bit more news:

Isleofman.com contacted HMV's head office to find out if the Island's branches of HMV and Waterstone's would be affected.

A spokesman for HMV said: "At the end of the day we are talking about a relatively small number of stores which in the main are likely to be located in large city conurbations and trading in close proximity to each other resulting in a degree of duplication in relation to local demand.

HMV's chief executive Simon Fox said: "Whilst HMV has had a challenging year to date it remains a profitable and cash-generative business and a powerful entertainment brand. The pace of change in the markets in which we operate underlines the urgency with which we must continue to transform this business."

Run_to_da_hills

HMV to close sixty stores.

Is this the Vinyl Countdown?

Mrs Shuttleworth

One factor that's been overlooked on this thread is just how brutal most of the content that's coming from music and film providers really is. As has been mentioned only a select few TV shows from the UK and US are worth watching, let alone purchasing.

I was such a "muso" as a child and teenager, bought tons of vinyl and CDs both mainstream and obscure in both the rock and funk genres, but there's nothing and no one out there at the moment that holds my interest or makes me want to part with money. Before you say that it's an age thing - I'm in my 30s - the last CD I bought was Ke$ha's (who IMHO and I know I'm alone in this beats the pants anyday off the likes of shouty frauds such as Beyonce and Rihanna) and the next one I'll get is the Tron soundtrack by Daft Punk.

47% of top ten singles last year were in the hip-hop/r&b category and pretty much the rest were Cowell's whores. The age range of artists is also too narrow to capture the interest of large groups of the public. It wasn't like this years ago, all ages and styles were acceptable, have a look at the BBC DVD Old Grey Whistle Test set. Sadly, guitar rock is no longer being selected by our corporate overlords for promotion. All they seem intent on is making middle class kids in Kiltimagh yearn for the ghettoes of Compton.

I've started listening to dance music, even though when I go to a gig I'm twenty years older than most of the audience. If I buy dance stuff I have no option but to download it for the most part and dance CDs are predominently pre-mixed. So if you intend DJing, they're out.

Films are atrocious - lousy editing, charisma free actors and incoherent plotlines, promoted by tedious, repetitive articles in weekend newspapers about the latest "starlet", and how this one "is different", before the movie tanks and she fades into obscurity again. Who the f**k is going to buy a DVD of a crap romcom starring Jen Aniston or Kate Hudson? Nobody cares about these people anymore.

There's practically nothing in contemporary popular culture that inspires or makes me want to part with money and that's the real reason HMV is drawing its last breath. Christmas television was padded with wistful nostalgia for times gone past, which if the media companies genuinely wanted to replicate in the present day they could do in a heartbeat.

Our Masters expected too much from us and thankfully they were wrong.

LizT

Mrs Shuttleworth wrote: »

One factor that's been overlooked on this thread is just how brutal most of the content that's coming from music and film providers really is. As has been mentioned only a select few TV shows from the UK and US are worth watching, let alone purchasing.

I was such a "muso" as a child and teenager, bought tons of vinyl and CDs both mainstream and obscure in both the rock and funk genres, but there's nothing and no one out there at the moment that holds my interest or makes me want to part with money. Before you say that it's an age thing - I'm in my 30s - the last CD I bought was Ke$ha's (who IMHO and I know I'm alone in this beats the pants anyday off the likes of shouty frauds such as Beyonce and Rihanna) and the next one I'll get is the Tron soundtrack by Daft Punk.

47% of top ten singles last year were in the hip-hop/r&b category and pretty much the rest were by Cowell's whores. The age range of artists is also too narrow to capture the interest of large groups of the public. It wasn't like this years ago, all ages and styles were acceptable, have a look at the BBC DVD Old Grey Whistle Test set. Sadly, guitar rock is no longer being selected by our corporate overlords for promotion.

I've started listening to dance music, even though when I go to a gig I'm twenty years older than most of the audience. If I buy dance stuff I have no option but to download it for the most part and dance CDs are predominently pre-mixed. So if you intend DJing, they're out.

Films are atrocious - lousy editing, charisma free actors and incoherent plotlines, promoted by tedious, repetitive articles in weekend newspapers about the latest "starlet", and how this one "is different", before the movie tanks and she fades into obscurity. Who the f**k is going to buy a DVD of a crap romcom starring Jen Aniston or Kate Hudson? Nobody cares anymore.

There's practically nothing in contemporary popular culture that inspires or makes me want to part with money and that's the real reason HMV is drawing its last breath. Our Masters expected too much from us and thankfully they were wrong.

Just because you don't enjoy that type of music and that genre of films doesn't mean other don't enjoy it.
I think you're underestimating the power of the teeny boppers and teenage market. They are the ones who buy the films and music you have described.

Guy:Incognito

Orando Broom wrote: »

Rush Hour 3; €32 in HMV. A bargain!!!!


Snakes on a Plane €41, where else could you buy these treasures for these absurdly low prices. It's no wonder they are closing with their crazy prices. You people sicken and disgust me. HMV are giving away these, these national treasures for a pittance!!!!!

Selective price checking? Ive seen snakes on a plane in the various 3 for €21 or whatever they are sections.

Mrs Shuttleworth

lizt wrote: »

Just because you don't enjoy that type of music and that genre of films doesn't mean other don't enjoy it.
I think you're underestimating the power of the teeny boppers and teenage market. They are the ones who buy the films and music you have described.

The point is, they're not buying it.

LizT

Mrs Shuttleworth wrote: »

The point is, they're not buying it.

They obviously are, otherwise HMV would be shutting down completely. Go into HMV on a saturday, even when there's no sales and tell me people aren't buying...

lcrcboy

does anyone know will the HMV in Limerick city close???

grizzly

Mrs Shuttleworth wrote: »

The point is, they're not buying it.

Your post made me think of this research;

http://www.digitalmusicnews.com/stories/112910averageage

aligator_am

Biggins wrote: »

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.

Isn't there a painting of the same name with the dog in it, iirc the dog's name is Nipper.

Coeurdepirate

Am I the only one who thought that HMV's prices were very reasonable, (except for international movies/shows) especially in comparison to Zhivago?
I'll be sad if the one in Galway is closed.

John_Cultane

gubernaculum wrote: »

3. Nobody makes any money. Labels, shops, bands.

Not true. The labels have been making super normal profits for years. They can afford to sell music much cheaper. They are really the people who killed the music industry. The labels are in a death throw like the movie industry was before. They survive but not as we know it today.

The stores and labels are also comparing their sales to a time when people were buying replacement cds for records. That was the biggest rip off ever. AFAIK we are still paying extra for cds for new technology development. That money is probably actually spent on stopping new technology at the moment.

I loved searching for music but you don't need to do that now. I kind of miss it. The 2000 odds cds I have now could probably be downloaded in a month or two. Pretty much worthless now when you see Gamestop selling and buying 2nd hand cds at such low prices. The game shops will kill of the independents the quickest and hit HMV quite badly too hence their sale of 2nd hand games.

The new look hmv stores barely sell music now anyway.

Monty Burnz

blackalicious wrote: »

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

That sentence is a great example of why we need punctuation - I had to read it 3 times to get the intended meaning!

Yeah, good point - I remember queueing to buy CDs there and at sale times HMVs were always jammed. Now you never see them busy - at least from the outside, as I download everything too. The idea of paying (as I used to) nearly 20 quid for things that I can get for free now...:eek:

LuckyFinigan

RobitTV wrote: »

Shame, down in Waterford no HMV Store, so we usually have to go to cork, But My brother does download stuff alot, But its not the same, I Like going around the Place, and going into tesco, and xtravision, and golden discs looking at dvds and games, it may be dear but i think downloading and buying stuff of the internet, sometimes ruins the whole point of shopping, which is to go out have fun, shop around, and help your local economy, but in waterford the shops are rubbish!, so sometimes its not worth going around.

I was acually thinking recently about the lack of HMV or Virgin megastore in Waterford. Allway hoped they would open up here but it looks like it will never happen.

johndoe99

LuckyFinigan wrote: »

I was acually thinking recently about the lack of HMV or Virgin megastore in Waterford. Allway hoped they would open up here but it looks like it will never happen.

From what I've been reading online and from what HMV have been stating, they have too many stores located within a certain distance to each other such as the east of Ireland (9 stores) and they have now almost exhausted the area. I have heard from a mate on the grapevine that they are looking for alternate areas after closing the stores to bring in new business. I don't see why Waterford won't be considered. I agree totally with Waterford being rubbish, Xtravision has the monopoly here, Golden Discs and BPM charge way too much.

gubernaculum

John_Cultane wrote: »

Not true. The labels have been making super normal profits for years. They can afford to sell music much cheaper. They are really the people who killed the music industry. The labels are in a death throw like the movie industry was before. They survive but not as we know it today.

Sorry for the delayed reply but wasn't subscribed to this thread.

Yeah I was speaking generally; many aren't bringing in money but some are still profitable - Universal stand out but they're a huge monopoly at this stage because they've merged with anything they could. Digital music sales are way up but probably not enough. Most labels can't exist on the scale that they did before and many regional outposts (Irish offices for example) are being shut up. The row that's currently stumbling through the courts regarding EMI and Terra Firma demonstrates how nobody quite appreciates how bad things are until they're in the middle of it. They could sell things cheaper to retail but as I said in my previous post it's a pretty woeful business plan at the best of times when the majority of your investments fail. Things need to change dramatically and fundamentally but whether it's stubborness or pure panic, I don't think they will. I always wanted to work in the music industry growing up but not now.

John_Cultane wrote: »

The stores and labels are also comparing their sales to a time when people were buying replacement cds for records. That was the biggest rip off ever. AFAIK we are still paying extra for cds for new technology development. That money is probably actually spent on stopping new technology at the moment.

I'm not sure about new technology development but they tried the whole stopping technology thing and it was useless and alienating. Nobody does DRM anymore and haven't for the last couple of years - direct from wikipedia: "audio CDs containing DRM are no longer released by the four record labels." Most records now come with download codes which is the approach they should have gone with fecking ages ago. Shops know they won't make the profits they once did but clearly any profits are the problem given the amount of small record shops that have shut up in the last few years and that's what I'll miss. There's not as much diversity out there anymore and the proportion of people who do still buy music are increasingly frustrated that they want to invest but the range isn't necessarily there in the physical shops, particularly outside Dublin. Mostly because the market isn't there anymore. It's a vicious cycle. HMV has changed its focus to games and as you said, they're being beaten at that by the games shops so it's not hard to see why investors are wondering where the whole thing is going.

I found this image (about James Blunt of all people!) which I think sums up well how dysfunctional things are. 1,000 cds might not seem a lot but having worked behind merch stands and seen nationwide sales figures in the past, it's rarer then you think especially when you're doing it independently or not getting tour support from a label. Those are solo artist figures, bands would need to be selling multiples of them to get by.

article-1314353-0B4F075A000005DC-411_634x1024.jpg

jahalpin

I think that HMV is actually very good value at the moment

Most of the DVD's and games are the same price or cheaper than play.com etc

PLAY.COM, the Hut and Sendit.com are based in a warehouse in Gurnsey, which is outside the EU and do not charge VAT on their goods, so it actually unfair for them to charge the same price as an EU-based store, they should be at least 17% cheaper.

I have bought a lot of stuff from HMV over the years and find it to ba a very nice place to shop. They have huge stocks and the staff are quite knowledgable about their products. Their sale prices are also very good.

As I usually shop in Grafton St., Henry Street or Blanchardstown, which are highly unlikely to close, the shop closure program will probaly not affect me at all.

I'd say that the smaller country shops are likely to close eg. Kilkenny, Sligo and Newbridge

HMV group includes Waterstones and the 60 stores to close probably include some Waterstones branches