Blockbuster Total Access Extra Movie Hack?

Kevin might have discovered a bug in the Blockbuster Total Access software that lets customers with only 5 in-store exchanges get additional exchanges.

In the process of trying to figure out the limits of the system, I realized that different Blockbuster stores are keeping track of the in-store exchanges separately. Yes, that’s right. After getting my free 5 in-store exchanges at one store, I simply took my next 5 online movies to another nearby Blockbuster and was able to get another 5 in-store exchanges during the same month.

Basically, I not only saved the $15 price difference between the unlimited in-store exchange and the 5 in-store exchanges, but then I got 5 more free rentals from the store. I haven’t yet tried going to a 3rd store to see if I can continue to take advantage of the separate accounting systems, but I encourage other readers to give it a try for the month of April and leave a comment with how it worked for you.

Has anyone tried this?

Thanks to Jeff for sending this in.

Comments

[Old Timer Too]

Given the nature of the system, that doesn't surprise me. I went to mail only when they cranked up the price, so I have no way to test this.

On a related note, I just received an offer for a free month of limited total access from BB on the account I canceled. Of course, it is only for the one at-a-time program with two free exchanges during the month. Am I interested?

Huh? You asked me a question?

[CJ]

Sounds like a dishonest gaming of the rental system to me...

[Ann]

Isn't this stealing?

[Jeff from Knowzy]

For me it wasn't stealing since I have a Premium account. But the different counts on the receipts was telling.

I suspect two things will happen:

1. Blockbuster will catch on and fix the problem.
2. Blockbuster will catch some customers doing this and take action against them.

It's still not clear this works universally. My regulular BB is a franschise and the other one I tried is corporate owned.

Kevin isn't sure what flavor his two stores are but said he would find out.

In any case, enjoy it while it lasts. Now that it's appeared on HackingNetflix, I'm sure BB will take notice!

[Craig]

I remember reading in a magazine for hackers called 2600 about a way to cheat the Blockbuster system and get rid of your late fees. From what the person was saying, it seems that each store keeps track of almost everything separately.

[Nick]

Like Old Timer...i also received the free month thing. I will TOTALLY use them for 1 month of free shit and then cancel.

TOTALLY.

[Edward R Murrow]

Nice; I'm going to use my ATM, take all the money out of my checking account at one machine then drive across town and take even more money out of my accoount at another machine. It's the 2nd law of Economics - money is neither created nor destroyed.

[Laddy]

Doesn't work for me. I had already used my 5 in-store exchanges at home in IL. When I arrived at my second home in FL and did an additional exchange at the store there, I was charged $2.

[Michael]

If you had the "premium" deal, you would have unlimited exchanges and there would be no need to "steal".

[Kevin Tostado]

A quick update. I got a call from the Blockbuster Corporate office yesterday. Unfortunately, I was at work and could not talk with them, but they did say it was regarding my post. I'm smelling a "cease and desist" in my future just for pointing out a flaw in the system...

[ANGST]

You can not do this. When they scan the barcode at the store it lets them know how many rentals you have left for that month. The only way to get away with it would be if you took two dvds that you got at the same time and went to seperate stores. You may get 1 or two extras but your not going to get 5 at every bb that you want.

[Oliver Ortega Chua]

I actually mentioned this in my blog a week before Kevin did.

http://www.oliverchua.com/wordpress/2008/03/18/my-fling-with-blockbuster-total-access/

I wasn't looking to cheat the system, but it was pretty easy to figure out. I'm surprised it hasn't been mentioned more.

BTW, how hard is it to network the stores, even if it's just updating a central server once a day?

[Jeff from Knowzy]

If you had the "premium" deal, you would have unlimited exchanges and there would be no need to "steal".

You got me there! :)

What I was trying to explain is that even though Premium customers have unlimited exchanges, the store receipt still shows the number of exchanges for the month. When I took an envelope to a different store, my exchange count was back to one. (Follow the "Jeff" link at the end of the post to see the receipts side-by-side.)

Strictly as a Premium customer, I wouldn't have bothered trying this out. As a (wannabe) journalist, I was excited to try this out in pursuit of an, ahem, blockbuster story.

Laddy may have demonstrated what I suspect: Franchise stores don't feed their exchange counts to the mother ship, whereas corporate stores know the score and keep each other in the loop.

Neither myself nor Mike are suggesting that everyone go out and cheat Blockbuster out of $2 rentals. As evidenced by Kevin's comment, they are acutely aware of the loophole. They may even be able to detect overrents after the fact.

What we are doing is discussing a hack.

A hack is something that provides a deeper understanding of a system. A hack reveals how to use a system in unintended ways.

Like many hacks, you risk repercussions with your service provider if you actually put the it into use.

Let's not forget the title of the blog we're all reading.

[Brandon]

The post is gone now, but I reposted it with some additional analysis at http://www.tehposse.org/brandon/?p=219

[someguy335]

This total works, and I've been doing it since Blockbuster started limiting my in store exchanges last August/September.

I discovered it completely by accident. I have about 5 Blockbusters within reasonable driving distance around me, and one time when I had my two dollars ready for my additional rental, the cashier was like "nope, all set! have a good day!" So why not take advantage of this? With my 1-Out Plan, I never ran out of free in store exchanges between the 5 Blockbusters around my home and by where I work.

Blockbuster claiming they keep track of this is Bullshit... if their computers are not even networked between stores, I doubt they are watching this stuff closely.

If they were, I'm sure I would have gotten my subscription service taken away months ago.