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Blockbuster Gives Up on Plan to Compete with Netflix

Oct 5, 2012  •  Post A Comment

Blockbuster is abandoning its plan to transform into an online video provider that would rival Netflix, reports Bloomberg.

The plan is being scrapped after U.S. regulators didn’t immediately approve a waiver that would allow Dish Network, which bought Blockbuster out of bankruptcy in 2011, to use its satellite spectrum for terrestrial data and voice transmission, according to the story.

"You make a lot of mistakes in business,” billionaire Charlie Ergen, Dish’s founder and chairman, told Bloomberg. “I don’t think Blockbuster is going to be a mistake, but it’s unclear if that’s going to be a transformative decision.”

Dish no longer intends to use Blockbuster as a video-streaming or DVD-by-mail service, Ergen said.

Dish has started closing some Blockbuster stores, with the goal of allowing Dish to make a profit on the acquisition, Ergen said. Some DVD rental stores will be able to operate profitably in rural areas, Ergen added. As of August, 900 U.S. Blockbuster stores remained.

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