Remember when the New York Times started selling off part of its front page to CBS earlier this year, generating a brief bit of buzz? The Los Angeles Times does, and now it’s trying to one-up that stunt: Instead of just running an ad on the paper’s front page, it’s running an ad that’s masquerading as one of the paper’s news stories.
No one wants to pay for music on the Internet. But starting a free music service on the Web takes a whole lot of cash. Just ask the folks at Seeqpod, which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection last week. The company’s biggest expense: Lawyers to help it fend off copyright lawsuits from the big music labels.
Can troubled video rental giant Blockbuster survive without filing for bankruptcy protection? Yes, says a former competitor, who is betting a few million dollars on that proposition. But if the company does file Chapter 11, Mark Wattles has some protection.
Why did Blockbuster release some of its fourth-quarter numbers today–two weeks before it was scheduled to do so? Because it wanted to impress investors who freaked out on Tuesday when the company had to swat away rumors that it was headed for Chapter 11. Alas, investors are giving the numbers mixed reviews.
The movie rental business is supposed to be recession-proof. That was true for Netflix, which posted great results at the end of 2008 and said this year would be even better. But that hasn’t panned out for Blockbuster, which is reportedly mulling a Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection filing. No confirmation from the company yet, but investors aren’t waiting around to find out: BBI shares are now less than a quarter a piece.
As predicted, Sam Zell’s Tribune Co. has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. In the company’s initial filing, it lists assets of $7.6 billion and $12.9 billion in liabilities. Much of that debt belongs to big banks, of course–J.P. Morgan has more than $1 billion by itself. But Tribune owes lots of money to lots of media companies, too.
Peter Kafka has been covering media and technology since 1997, when he joined the staff of Forbes magazine. Most recently, he has been the managing editor of the tech and media Web site, Silicon Alley Insider. Read more »
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