Blood of the Daleks Pt. 2 & Companion CDs due in soon.

Admin Joined : 01 Feb 2007 Posts : 999

From Big Finish (Feb. 1, 2007)

Blood of the Daleks Pt 2 is due 6th Feb
All 4 companions cds due on 5th Feb

These are approximate dates

Joined : 01 Feb 2007 Posts : 3

Great news! Really looking forward to the Companion CDs. What's the policy on pre-orders? (IIRC you do it for DVDs... what about upcoming BF & BBC audios?)

TGH

Age : 52 Joined : 01 Feb 2007 Posts : 38

You sold Blood of the Daleks, Part 1 for $9.95, I believe. Will you be doing the same with all the other BBC7/Big Finish CDs?

Admin Joined : 01 Feb 2007 Posts : 999

Age : 31 Joined : 04 Feb 2007 Posts : 3

Will the Companions CDs also be $9.95 each?

Joined : 04 Feb 2007 Posts : 95

I'm wondering what these companion cds will be like. They're not full-cast dramas, nor do they seem to be just plain audio books. Memoirs with music or something?

Joined : 01 Feb 2007 Posts : 3

Admin Joined : 01 Feb 2007 Posts : 999

Joined : 01 Feb 2007 Posts : 3

Admin Joined : 01 Feb 2007 Posts : 999

You are correct in your understanding. We learned long ago that release dates in the UK were non-binding and fluid. Items could be delayed for months. It became impossible to determine which items would be arriving when, as the dates always changed without notice. Pre-orders for the DVDs has always been different due to a firm domestic timetable. It does create a logistical problem for us, as product accompanying a pre-ordered item must always be pulled from the warehouse floor and stored in our packing room until it can ship. If someone ordered a TARDIS playset, for example, and a pre-ordered DVD, that TARDIS playset would sit in our packing room, taking up space, until we can ship it. We allow for an exception with DVDs, but we have no genuine open storage space to do this on a regular basis. Because we allow customers into our warehouse, product must be removed any time an order takes place, even if it cannot ship immediately (this includes orders that wait for mailed payments). At any given time, we will have 20 or so orders waiting for a check or money order. Throw on top of this any orders that might be waiting for a pre-ordered item, and we simply cannot handle the logistics in our current facility. We would need a "holding room" for product, as we typically receive 100+ pre-orders for the DVD titles alone. While roughly 1/2 of these will be pre-orders for nothing more than the new DVDs, the other half could include large items that take up space and make it difficult for us to navigate around when packing orders.

As DVDs are released in 2-3 month intervals, we can handle this occasionally, but to do it for every product line would be impossible for us to maintain. We function by quickly turning around orders, as it is the only way we keep up with demand. We also have to take in the logistics of listing new product when it arrives, which is time consuming in its own rights. We pride ourselves in having, what we believe, the most accurate representation of our inventory amongst any of the Doctor Who web sellers, whether domestic or abroad. We also operate on the principle that you stay in business by selling what you have, not by what you don't have. I know many companies use money from pre-orders to pay last month's bills, but that means you are starting in negative territory. We try to avoid that trap altogether and pay for current bills with current product.

Joined : 13 Feb 2007 Posts : 10

I just ordered the Companion CDs and the Blood of the Daleks and a couple of other things including the long sought DWM 356 (which had been sold out here last I looked). Anyway, not to look a gift horse in the mouth, but I was wondering about the new less expensive pricing on the Big Finish audios. With the rate of exchange being so unfavorable to the US these days, seeing these cheaper prices is a big surprise. There used to be not that big a difference in ordering directly from Big Finish. I am presuming that Big Finish is rewarding you for consistent orders in the past by giving a better deal than in the past. Is there anything more to it?

Thanks,

Neil

Age : 46 Joined : 05 Feb 2007 Posts : 2

It was nice to finally listen to a Big Finish Dalek story that did not mess up the continuity. "Blood of the Dalek" was a nice straight forward 8th Doctor Dalek story which was long over due, and a big improvement over there last set of Dalek stories like "Terror Firma." I look forward to the rest of the series.

John

Admin Joined : 01 Feb 2007 Posts : 999

Joined : 04 Feb 2007 Posts : 95

That's rather rubbish of BF to do that to you. I, for one, can't afford to subscribe, nor do I need to have every single disc they put out. I'd much rather order from you when I'm ready for them instead of being nudged to subscribe. Sounds almost like they're punishing the retailer for taking on their product!

Age : 34 Joined : 22 Feb 2007 Posts : 35

Rplath -- I agree, I think BF does not treat their non-subscribers well -- and the ones who get hurt most in the process are the companies selling their products.

While it might sound nice to give subscriber exclusives -- I think it is better to make these CDS free to subscribers but not exclusive to them (i.e., sell them). I would have liked the new Dalek "exclusive," but I will never subscribe to BF -- I buy their main products (from WhoNa), yet I find it is easier to pay for them once a month than a one-time big chunk of change. But, having these exclusives just sticks it even more against the retailers, especially since they are not offering the main retailers deals to sell their products.

Age : 46 Joined : 05 Feb 2007 Posts : 2