Blockbuster withdraws plan to buy Circuit City CEO says acquisition would not make sense given market conditions
The Associated Press updated 7:27 p.m. CT, Tues., July. 1, 2008 http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/25485206/ DALLAS - Blockbuster Inc. said Tuesday it is withdrawing its proposal to buy Circuit City Stores Inc., the big-box retailer whose sales have tumbled this year. Chief Executive James Keyes said in a written statement that the proposed deal, at a price of $1 billion or more, didn't make sense because of market conditions. Blockbuster, the nation's largest movie-rental chain, will still try to merge content such as movies and games with the sale of electronic devices under one roof but it will be at Blockbuster's own stores, Keyes said. Dallas-based Blockbuster announced in April that it had offered at least $1 billion for Circuit City and planned to create a 9,300-store chain. Blockbuster went public with its offer after its initial overtures were ignored by Circuit City's board. Eventually, the Richmond, Va.-based company agreed to open its books to Blockbuster. But the deal was viewed with skepticism by many investors, and pressure on Blockbuster to walk away grew in June, when Circuit City reported that its loss tripled and same-store sales plunged 11 percent in the quarter that ended May 31. It was a difficult period for other retailers too, but Circuit City's performance was worse than rival Best Buy Co., which saw its profit decline in the same period by 7 percent. URL: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/25485206/ ================================ George Antunes, Political Science Dept University of Houston; Houston, TX 77204 Voice: 713-743-3923 Fax: 713-743-3927 antunes at uh dot edu ******************************* * POST TO [EMAIL PROTECTED] * ******************************* Medianews mailing list [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://lists.etskywarn.net/mailman/listinfo/medianews
