Andre Yoskowitz
15 Nov 2009 21:48
Blockbuster, the struggling video rental chain, showed another quarterly loss for the Q3 2009, with net loss increasing almost $100 million year-on-year.
The company said the increased loss was due to store closings and a 14 percent drop in same-store sales. Blockbuster plans to reverse the loss by next year using newly refinanced debt agreements and boosting videogame advertising and sales.
Overall, the net loss was $114.1 million for the quarter, along with a drop in revenue of 21 percent to $910.5 million.
The new refinancing agreements will give the chain up to $600 million to invest in more Blockbuster Express kiosks as well as digital movie offerings.
Blockbuster Chief Executive Officer Jim Keyes added: "We temporarily changed our approach... but I can assure you we're glad that phase is over. We've now returned our focus to transforming the core business."
The chain is set to close 960 stores by the end of 2010 and has closed 215 already this year.