I agree. My thoughts reading this article exactly!
Sounds like a really lame attempt to tap into Apple's market. What are they thinking?
Actually, what Blockbuster may be doing is their attempt to staunch the bleeding from a competitor like Netflix. So far as I know, AppleTV is not a solid threat until their rental library is much, much, much larger. The biggest part of the problem is the movie studios, at least according to Teh Steve™. The studios have few established resources dedicated to providing properly encoded movies to Apple.
I know everybody here is bashing and laughing at this merger, but I don't think very many people are actually thinking about it first.
OK, let's think...
Quote:
Originally Posted by Superbass
If the newly merged company puts a good online download store together in a similar style to Amazon that allows music downloads, they'll also be able to include an online movie rental/download service a la iTunes.
True. But how does purchasing Circuit City help with that goal? Maybe you say below...
Quote:
Originally Posted by Superbass
While it's true that Apple already offers movie rentals and sales, they don't have anywhere near the same kinds of agreements with the studios/catalogue that Blockbuster has, and they don't distribute movies outside the US yet, which Blockbuster does.
True. But where does purchasing Circuit City come into the picture? Maybe you say below...
Quote:
Originally Posted by Superbass
Blockbuster realizes that the physical movie rental business is being replaced by downloading, but at the same time, existing sites like iTunes and Amazon offer music as well as films.
OK. How does purchasing Circuit City make it easier to rival iTunes and Amazon? Oh, here it is...
Quote:
Originally Posted by Superbass
Buying Circuit City gives them full access to the music market as well as their existing film agreements.
Oh... I get it. Blockbuster pays Circuit City over a Billion dollars, and all they get is rights to sell? Like they couldn't get that for nothing as long as they agree to the same profit sharing terms that Circuit City has? And this guarantees Blockbuster will be able to produce a presence that competes with iTunes or Amazon? Circuit City's presence in the electronic download space is abysmal. Blockbuster is better off building from scratch, not paying a billion dollars for a poor product.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Superbass
The electronics distribution they get from Circuit City could also prove valuable, especially when you consider that CC carries not only Apple products, but also just about every other brand.
Weak. Very very weak. Circuit City has a business model that needs some serious fixing. What experience does Blockbuster bring to the table that is going to fix the problems?
Quote:
Originally Posted by Superbass
I'd say it's reasonable to assume that they'll also save a bunch of money short-term by having CC's eat nearby Blockbusters and they can use the millions they make laying Blockbuster people off and selling real estate to finance their foray into the downloadable content market.
They are going to have to take on debt to finance the merger. If Circuit City were so undervalued that they can be had at less than the cost of their assets, then I'd say this made sense... but that is a very very risky (and desperate) move.
Based on what I read in most replies, I would say that you have it backwards: the other people have thought things through quite well, and your opinion here shows very little logic and motivation.
If the newly merged company puts a good online download store together in a similar style to Amazon that allows music downloads, they'll also be able to include an online movie rental/download service a la iTunes.
Really? Says who? Why would you think that all of these movie studios who have so grudgingly allowed Apple to rent via download (still under 1000 titles) are going to allow BB to do any differently?
Before anyone dismisses this apparently ill-conceived idea, remember how successful it was for 2 sinking ships in KMART & Sears to join forces and domina....ok, dismiss 'til your heart's content.....
True. But how does purchasing Circuit City help with that goal? Maybe you say below...
True. But where does purchasing Circuit City come into the picture? Maybe you say below...
OK. How does purchasing Circuit City make it easier to rival iTunes and Amazon? Oh, here it is...
Oh... I get it. Blockbuster pays Circuit City over a Billion dollars, and all they get is rights to sell? Like they couldn't get that for nothing as long as they agree to the same profit sharing terms that Circuit City has? And this guarantees Blockbuster will be able to produce a presence that competes with iTunes or Amazon? Circuit City's presence in the electronic download space is abysmal. Blockbuster is better off building from scratch, not paying a billion dollars for a poor product.
Wow, no reason to be a jerk in your replies. Blockbuster didn't sell music before. If they get CC, they will. True, they could have started selling music on their own, but it's not exactly a simple task to start an international music sales company. Contrary to what you might think, acquiring stock, developing agreements with a large number of distributors, storing product and cataloging 100s of thousands of items actually costs a lot of money. Companies can't just decide they're going to start a giant international music-sales devision for free
Additionally, Blockbuster currently isn't currently set up with a large-scale, multi-product online sales department, while Circuit City is. Amazon has proved that the transition from a CC-style online retailer of physical goods to a retailer of digital content is possible, and possibly preferable to simply building a "new iTunes" entirely from scratch.
I don't think I even have to mention how important branding is and how many millions of people have bought something at CC and will do so in the future. It might be difficult to all of a sudden convince people that they should buy music online from Blockbuster...
Quote:
Originally Posted by thompr
Weak. Very very weak. Circuit City has a business model that needs some serious fixing. What experience does Blockbuster bring to the table that is going to fix the problems?
Actually, the "Big Box" business model of CC, Best Buy, Amazon, Walmart, Home Depot, etc, etc, etc, seems to be doing pretty fine. The fact that they carry a lot of different products has protected them from the collapse of CD sales which has killed stores like HMV and Tower.
I'm wondering why you think their business model is "broken" when Amazon, Best Buy and Walmart prove that it's a huge-profit model, and are indeed among the most profitable companies in the world!
Quote:
Originally Posted by thompr
They are going to have to take on debt to finance the merger. If Circuit City were so undervalued that they can be had at less than the cost of their assets, then I'd say this made sense... but that is a very very risky (and desperate) move.
Sorry, are you the CEO of Blockbuster? I don't see anything in this article, or the associated news articles which states they's have to take on debt, or that Circuit City stock isn't undervalued... Maybe you know something we don't? In fact, considering that CC's revenue was over 12 billion last year (according to the wiki), paying a little over $1 billion for the company doesn't seem that crazy...
I think it's kind of funny that you seem to believe that the folks at Blockbuster haven't thought this through, and that you seem to somehow know more about taking corporate mergers and business models than their operators. Blockbuster became the world's largest video distributer in the world and Circuit City is maybe North America's 2nd or 3rd largest electronics retailer, and they didn't do it by making uneducated decisions.
Really? Says who? Why would you think that all of these movie studios who have so grudgingly allowed Apple to rent via download (still under 1000 titles) are going to allow BB to do any differently?
Well, Amazon got a better price, selection and bitrate than iTunes did when they began digital downloads, so who's to say Blockbuster can't do the same with video?
Really? Says who? Why would you think that all of these movie studios who have so grudgingly allowed Apple to rent via download (still under 1000 titles) are going to allow BB to do any differently?
How does a movie rental company (Blockbuster) bidding to buy an electronics retailer (Circuit City) threaten Apple? It doesn't...
I think the headline of this article is misleading and assumptive. Looking to "rival" Apple???? Yes a company that sells candy and rents movies buys a company that sells PCs (not Macs) and televisions and electronics is looking to "rival" Apple, who sells Macs, iPods and iPhones..
As a current employee of Blockbuster, I can assure you that we are not trying to "rival" Apple. Since we don't sell the current products of Apple and neither does Circuit City, I think you are safe. Maybe you should quit assuming that every merger or big announcement in the computer and electronics industry is a direct attack or attempted stab at Apple. Maybe, just maybe, 2 companies wish to merge to offer more products to consumers. People need a choice other than Apple in their lives, its called competition, or maybe you will understand the term non-antitrust? If anything, I am sure that Blockbuster/Circuit City will help Apple's bottom line by selling some of their products in it's stores.
In fact, Blockbuster awarded its employees who met certain sales goals last year with Apple iPods. Yes, thats right, this so called "rival" bought thousands of custom engraved iPods! OMG! And I own one.... Just my thoughts on the matter.
Well, you began by saying you didn't think others were thinking things through, and then you followed that comment up with a line of reasoning that had absolutely no logic to it. I think that deserved a bit of sarcasm.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Superbass
Blockbuster didn't sell music before. If they get CC, they will. True, they could have started selling music on their own, but it's not exactly a simple task to start an international music sales company. Contrary to what you might think, acquiring stock, developing agreements with a large number of distributors, storing product and cataloging 100s of thousands of items actually costs a lot of money. Companies can't just decide they're going to start a giant international music-sales devision for free
Contrary to what I might think? I never said it was easy, or cheap, or whatever you think that I think. What I DO think is that you don't dump over a billion dollars for a broken system that you are just going to have to overhaul (for a lot more cash). What I mean is this: the Circuit City music download presence is a joke. It is going to cost a hell of a lot of money to make it be what it needs to be: integrated with the hypothetical "Blockbuster Media Player", easy to use, and ubiquitous. These things are basically going to have to be "from scratched" anyway to get them the way they need to be. They are THAT far away from being the competitor that Blockbuster needs to stay relevant into the next decade. So what is the billion dollars getting you? We'll discuss the "other" part of Circuit City, i.e. the brick-and-mortar stores, below...
Quote:
Originally Posted by Superbass
Amazon has proved that the transition from a CC-style online retailer of physical goods to a retailer of digital content is possible, and possibly preferable to simply building a "new iTunes" entirely from scratch.
Amazon sells a lot of MP3's, but they are also not anywhere near what they need to be to compete in the digital video future. I am talking like 5 years (or perhaps a bit more) off. You are witnessing the paradigm shift to the digital delivery future, where physical disks go the way of the dinosaur. iTunes is in the catbird seat, and until some other company realizes that they need to go whole hog to compete (and not just try to morph the current lame attempts into an iTunes competitor) that situation is not likely to change.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Superbass
I'm wondering why you think their business model is "broken" when Amazon, Best Buy and Walmart prove that it's a huge-profit model, and are indeed among the most profitable companies in the world!
The "Big Box" model is alive and well, as your examples of Wal Mart and Best Buy indicate. (I don't know why you mention Amazon here. That is a completely different business model, but I'll ignore the reference and accept the other two exemplars.) What is clearly broken is Circuit City's implementation of the model. They are getting their butts kicked by both Best Buy and Wal Mart in just about every relevant metric (to physical stores) you can compute. Here's one: Slaes per square foot... Best Buy $967.63 to Circuit City $675.01. That one is particularly harsh. If you search online to find out what could be the root cause of CC's decline, you find that they slashed costs by firing their senior sales and service (the most knowledgeable ones) personnel. I don't know if this is truly the problem, but many people claim that it is a serious issue.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Superbass
Sorry, are you the CEO of Blockbuster? I don't see anything in this article, or the associated news articles which states they's have to take on debt
From Yahoo finance: Blockbuster Market Cap: $534.36 Million, Cash $182 Million. Blockbuster doesn't have the cash or the shares to make the deal. Many stories are reporting that the deal would be "financed" by new investors (e.g. Carl Icahn, Mark Wattles, etc). Relative to current owners of the stock, getting outside investors (who then suddenly own a large piece of the combined assets) causes dilution of your ownership (the fraction of the company that you own) in return for the hope that good things will come in the future to pay you back for your loss of
stake in the company. They better hope that CC is indeed undervalued... although in the stock market, that is not the norm.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Superbass
Maybe you know something we don't? In fact, considering that CC's revenue was over 12 billion last year (according to the wiki), paying a little over $1 billion for the company doesn't seem that crazy...
Ummm... do you know anything about how to compute stock valuation, like P/E ratios, etc? The relevant comparison is between profit (not revenue) and market cap. Circuit City lost about $330 million dollars last year. That is a serious problem to pay 1 Billion dollars for. Correcting that is going to take drastic measures of cost cutting, and if the stories are true, they have already been doing that (perhaps to their detriment). That is why I'm saying that CC needs some serious fixing.
Stockholders that approve this merger better hope that CC is indeed undervalued... although in the stock market, that is not the norm.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Superbass
I think it's kind of funny that you seem to believe that the folks at Blockbuster haven't thought this through, and that you seem to somehow know more about taking corporate mergers and business models than their operators. Blockbuster became the world's largest video distributer in the world and Circuit City is maybe North America's 2nd or 3rd largest electronics retailer, and they didn't do it by making uneducated decisions.
Well, there's education, which I don't doubt that they have plenty of, and then there's vision, which they seem to be lacking in Spades. The vision of the digital content future is all about online delivery (which Blockbuster can't seem to come to grips with) and the purchase of a money loser in Big Box retail that happens to have an also-ran online music store is not going to get them to that vision.
Many, many, educated people keep trying to take on iTunes by tweaking their offerings or teaming up, but they just can't get it right. (Microsoft "Plays For Sure", Microsoft "Zune", Real Networks, Napster, Rhapsody... even Amazon is not quite there with their Video plans.) What they need to do is start with a fresh paradigm, or they're just going to lose money. Once bandwidth and storage are more ubiquitous, iTunes will be king. I give it about 5 years for this to happen in both music and video, unless someone stops futzing around with tweaks and builds something new.
I'm sorry but even with reading the article I don't see how blockbuster+cc would be anything like apple or an apple store. It'd be more like a bestbuy with a rentals department.
Comments
I agree. My thoughts reading this article exactly!
Sounds like a really lame attempt to tap into Apple's market. What are they thinking?
Actually, what Blockbuster may be doing is their attempt to staunch the bleeding from a competitor like Netflix. So far as I know, AppleTV is not a solid threat until their rental library is much, much, much larger. The biggest part of the problem is the movie studios, at least according to Teh Steve™. The studios have few established resources dedicated to providing properly encoded movies to Apple.
I know everybody here is bashing and laughing at this merger, but I don't think very many people are actually thinking about it first.
OK, let's think...
If the newly merged company puts a good online download store together in a similar style to Amazon that allows music downloads, they'll also be able to include an online movie rental/download service a la iTunes.
True. But how does purchasing Circuit City help with that goal? Maybe you say below...
While it's true that Apple already offers movie rentals and sales, they don't have anywhere near the same kinds of agreements with the studios/catalogue that Blockbuster has, and they don't distribute movies outside the US yet, which Blockbuster does.
True. But where does purchasing Circuit City come into the picture? Maybe you say below...
Blockbuster realizes that the physical movie rental business is being replaced by downloading, but at the same time, existing sites like iTunes and Amazon offer music as well as films.
OK. How does purchasing Circuit City make it easier to rival iTunes and Amazon? Oh, here it is...
Buying Circuit City gives them full access to the music market as well as their existing film agreements.
Oh... I get it. Blockbuster pays Circuit City over a Billion dollars, and all they get is rights to sell? Like they couldn't get that for nothing as long as they agree to the same profit sharing terms that Circuit City has? And this guarantees Blockbuster will be able to produce a presence that competes with iTunes or Amazon? Circuit City's presence in the electronic download space is abysmal. Blockbuster is better off building from scratch, not paying a billion dollars for a poor product.
The electronics distribution they get from Circuit City could also prove valuable, especially when you consider that CC carries not only Apple products, but also just about every other brand.
Weak. Very very weak. Circuit City has a business model that needs some serious fixing. What experience does Blockbuster bring to the table that is going to fix the problems?
I'd say it's reasonable to assume that they'll also save a bunch of money short-term by having CC's eat nearby Blockbusters and they can use the millions they make laying Blockbuster people off and selling real estate to finance their foray into the downloadable content market.
They are going to have to take on debt to finance the merger. If Circuit City were so undervalued that they can be had at less than the cost of their assets, then I'd say this made sense... but that is a very very risky (and desperate) move.
Based on what I read in most replies, I would say that you have it backwards: the other people have thought things through quite well, and your opinion here shows very little logic and motivation.
Thompson
If the newly merged company puts a good online download store together in a similar style to Amazon that allows music downloads, they'll also be able to include an online movie rental/download service a la iTunes.
Really? Says who? Why would you think that all of these movie studios who have so grudgingly allowed Apple to rent via download (still under 1000 titles) are going to allow BB to do any differently?
OK, let's think...
True. But how does purchasing Circuit City help with that goal? Maybe you say below...
True. But where does purchasing Circuit City come into the picture? Maybe you say below...
OK. How does purchasing Circuit City make it easier to rival iTunes and Amazon? Oh, here it is...
Oh... I get it. Blockbuster pays Circuit City over a Billion dollars, and all they get is rights to sell? Like they couldn't get that for nothing as long as they agree to the same profit sharing terms that Circuit City has? And this guarantees Blockbuster will be able to produce a presence that competes with iTunes or Amazon? Circuit City's presence in the electronic download space is abysmal. Blockbuster is better off building from scratch, not paying a billion dollars for a poor product.
Wow, no reason to be a jerk in your replies. Blockbuster didn't sell music before. If they get CC, they will. True, they could have started selling music on their own, but it's not exactly a simple task to start an international music sales company. Contrary to what you might think, acquiring stock, developing agreements with a large number of distributors, storing product and cataloging 100s of thousands of items actually costs a lot of money. Companies can't just decide they're going to start a giant international music-sales devision for free
Additionally, Blockbuster currently isn't currently set up with a large-scale, multi-product online sales department, while Circuit City is. Amazon has proved that the transition from a CC-style online retailer of physical goods to a retailer of digital content is possible, and possibly preferable to simply building a "new iTunes" entirely from scratch.
I don't think I even have to mention how important branding is and how many millions of people have bought something at CC and will do so in the future. It might be difficult to all of a sudden convince people that they should buy music online from Blockbuster...
Weak. Very very weak. Circuit City has a business model that needs some serious fixing. What experience does Blockbuster bring to the table that is going to fix the problems?
Actually, the "Big Box" business model of CC, Best Buy, Amazon, Walmart, Home Depot, etc, etc, etc, seems to be doing pretty fine. The fact that they carry a lot of different products has protected them from the collapse of CD sales which has killed stores like HMV and Tower.
I'm wondering why you think their business model is "broken" when Amazon, Best Buy and Walmart prove that it's a huge-profit model, and are indeed among the most profitable companies in the world!
They are going to have to take on debt to finance the merger. If Circuit City were so undervalued that they can be had at less than the cost of their assets, then I'd say this made sense... but that is a very very risky (and desperate) move.
Sorry, are you the CEO of Blockbuster? I don't see anything in this article, or the associated news articles which states they's have to take on debt, or that Circuit City stock isn't undervalued... Maybe you know something we don't? In fact, considering that CC's revenue was over 12 billion last year (according to the wiki), paying a little over $1 billion for the company doesn't seem that crazy...
I think it's kind of funny that you seem to believe that the folks at Blockbuster haven't thought this through, and that you seem to somehow know more about taking corporate mergers and business models than their operators. Blockbuster became the world's largest video distributer in the world and Circuit City is maybe North America's 2nd or 3rd largest electronics retailer, and they didn't do it by making uneducated decisions.
Really? Says who? Why would you think that all of these movie studios who have so grudgingly allowed Apple to rent via download (still under 1000 titles) are going to allow BB to do any differently?
Well, Amazon got a better price, selection and bitrate than iTunes did when they began digital downloads, so who's to say Blockbuster can't do the same with video?
Really? Says who? Why would you think that all of these movie studios who have so grudgingly allowed Apple to rent via download (still under 1000 titles) are going to allow BB to do any differently?
Because they're not Apple.
I think the headline of this article is misleading and assumptive. Looking to "rival" Apple???? Yes a company that sells candy and rents movies buys a company that sells PCs (not Macs) and televisions and electronics is looking to "rival" Apple, who sells Macs, iPods and iPhones..
As a current employee of Blockbuster, I can assure you that we are not trying to "rival" Apple. Since we don't sell the current products of Apple and neither does Circuit City, I think you are safe. Maybe you should quit assuming that every merger or big announcement in the computer and electronics industry is a direct attack or attempted stab at Apple. Maybe, just maybe, 2 companies wish to merge to offer more products to consumers. People need a choice other than Apple in their lives, its called competition, or maybe you will understand the term non-antitrust? If anything, I am sure that Blockbuster/Circuit City will help Apple's bottom line by selling some of their products in it's stores.
In fact, Blockbuster awarded its employees who met certain sales goals last year with Apple iPods. Yes, thats right, this so called "rival" bought thousands of custom engraved iPods! OMG! And I own one.... Just my thoughts on the matter.
Wow, no reason to be a jerk in your replies.
Well, you began by saying you didn't think others were thinking things through, and then you followed that comment up with a line of reasoning that had absolutely no logic to it. I think that deserved a bit of sarcasm.
Blockbuster didn't sell music before. If they get CC, they will. True, they could have started selling music on their own, but it's not exactly a simple task to start an international music sales company. Contrary to what you might think, acquiring stock, developing agreements with a large number of distributors, storing product and cataloging 100s of thousands of items actually costs a lot of money. Companies can't just decide they're going to start a giant international music-sales devision for free
Contrary to what I might think? I never said it was easy, or cheap, or whatever you think that I think. What I DO think is that you don't dump over a billion dollars for a broken system that you are just going to have to overhaul (for a lot more cash). What I mean is this: the Circuit City music download presence is a joke. It is going to cost a hell of a lot of money to make it be what it needs to be: integrated with the hypothetical "Blockbuster Media Player", easy to use, and ubiquitous. These things are basically going to have to be "from scratched" anyway to get them the way they need to be. They are THAT far away from being the competitor that Blockbuster needs to stay relevant into the next decade. So what is the billion dollars getting you? We'll discuss the "other" part of Circuit City, i.e. the brick-and-mortar stores, below...
Amazon has proved that the transition from a CC-style online retailer of physical goods to a retailer of digital content is possible, and possibly preferable to simply building a "new iTunes" entirely from scratch.
Amazon sells a lot of MP3's, but they are also not anywhere near what they need to be to compete in the digital video future. I am talking like 5 years (or perhaps a bit more) off. You are witnessing the paradigm shift to the digital delivery future, where physical disks go the way of the dinosaur. iTunes is in the catbird seat, and until some other company realizes that they need to go whole hog to compete (and not just try to morph the current lame attempts into an iTunes competitor) that situation is not likely to change.
I'm wondering why you think their business model is "broken" when Amazon, Best Buy and Walmart prove that it's a huge-profit model, and are indeed among the most profitable companies in the world!
The "Big Box" model is alive and well, as your examples of Wal Mart and Best Buy indicate. (I don't know why you mention Amazon here. That is a completely different business model, but I'll ignore the reference and accept the other two exemplars.) What is clearly broken is Circuit City's implementation of the model. They are getting their butts kicked by both Best Buy and Wal Mart in just about every relevant metric (to physical stores) you can compute. Here's one: Slaes per square foot... Best Buy $967.63 to Circuit City $675.01. That one is particularly harsh. If you search online to find out what could be the root cause of CC's decline, you find that they slashed costs by firing their senior sales and service (the most knowledgeable ones) personnel. I don't know if this is truly the problem, but many people claim that it is a serious issue.
Sorry, are you the CEO of Blockbuster? I don't see anything in this article, or the associated news articles which states they's have to take on debt
From Yahoo finance: Blockbuster Market Cap: $534.36 Million, Cash $182 Million. Blockbuster doesn't have the cash or the shares to make the deal. Many stories are reporting that the deal would be "financed" by new investors (e.g. Carl Icahn, Mark Wattles, etc). Relative to current owners of the stock, getting outside investors (who then suddenly own a large piece of the combined assets) causes dilution of your ownership (the fraction of the company that you own) in return for the hope that good things will come in the future to pay you back for your loss of
stake in the company. They better hope that CC is indeed undervalued... although in the stock market, that is not the norm.
Maybe you know something we don't? In fact, considering that CC's revenue was over 12 billion last year (according to the wiki), paying a little over $1 billion for the company doesn't seem that crazy...
Ummm... do you know anything about how to compute stock valuation, like P/E ratios, etc? The relevant comparison is between profit (not revenue) and market cap. Circuit City lost about $330 million dollars last year. That is a serious problem to pay 1 Billion dollars for. Correcting that is going to take drastic measures of cost cutting, and if the stories are true, they have already been doing that (perhaps to their detriment). That is why I'm saying that CC needs some serious fixing.
Stockholders that approve this merger better hope that CC is indeed undervalued... although in the stock market, that is not the norm.
I think it's kind of funny that you seem to believe that the folks at Blockbuster haven't thought this through, and that you seem to somehow know more about taking corporate mergers and business models than their operators. Blockbuster became the world's largest video distributer in the world and Circuit City is maybe North America's 2nd or 3rd largest electronics retailer, and they didn't do it by making uneducated decisions.
Well, there's education, which I don't doubt that they have plenty of, and then there's vision, which they seem to be lacking in Spades. The vision of the digital content future is all about online delivery (which Blockbuster can't seem to come to grips with) and the purchase of a money loser in Big Box retail that happens to have an also-ran online music store is not going to get them to that vision.
Many, many, educated people keep trying to take on iTunes by tweaking their offerings or teaming up, but they just can't get it right. (Microsoft "Plays For Sure", Microsoft "Zune", Real Networks, Napster, Rhapsody... even Amazon is not quite there with their Video plans.) What they need to do is start with a fresh paradigm, or they're just going to lose money. Once bandwidth and storage are more ubiquitous, iTunes will be king. I give it about 5 years for this to happen in both music and video, unless someone stops futzing around with tweaks and builds something new.
Thompson