Best Buy "Rewards" program is getting more rewarding

Best Buy Co., Inc.'s (NYSE:BBY) "Reward Zone" in-store program rewards consumers with "points" based on dollar-amount purchases at its stores. It's part of an intense loyalty program the nation's largest retailer launched a few years ago.

It sounded great on paper. But upon closer personal experience with the system, the "rewards" are not that great compared to the amount of money one has to spend to actually see the "rewards." I'd prefer something a little nicer than a $50 DVD player if I were to drop a bundle on that plasma HDTV, for example.

But I may be getting my wish. The rewards are looking more opulent going forward. The retailer will be hosting a movie-themed sweepstakes exclusively for "Reward Zone" members that will feature a grand-prize trip for four to the Bahamas as a tie-in with the upcoming DVD release of the hit movie from Walt Disney, "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest."

The DVD is released on December 5th and comes on the heels of a recent re-alignment of Best Buy's Reward Zone program. In September, Best Buy dropped the annual membership fee of $9.99 in lieu of a co-branded MasterCard offer that gives extra reward "points" to Reward Zone subscribers.