Will there be many "unhappy returns" after Christmas season?

[tron3]

Returns are an inevitable aspect of retail. The more liberal the return policy, it seems the more abused it can become. In the case of Costco, my sister has returned broken merchandise months or YEARS after buying them. Why do they allow that? Well, probably to keep the customer and on the large scale, the percentage is probably negligable. On paper, anyways.

But now consider what happens when all those HD DVD players and movies are bought in time for Christmas, or in some cases, with monetary gifts after Christmas up until 12/31/07. Will major retailers accept returns on HD DVD products after January 31, 2008? I'm saying "Not on your life."

If another major revelation occurs early in the new year to begin the killing off of HD DVD, you can expect panic and returns enmasse. I predict return policies will be rewritten overnight. Returns absolutely refused, exchanges for broken items only, and in some cases only store credits issued. This can become a nightmare.

Sure, some people won't care as long as they play their movies, but a great number of customers will definately feel screwed by this PR nightmare. Anyone at the major retailers reading this? Damage control plans should be written NOW!

Thoughts?