Skip to main content

Blockbusted: A Once-Iconic Video Rental Store is Sinking Fast

blockbuster closes stores why i still miss
Image used with permission by copyright holder
The hits keep on coming for Blockbuster as it sits crumpled in the corner of the ring, waiting for the bell.

Last week, Blockbuster UK was forced into administration, a move which imperiled 528 stores and 4,190 jobs. Then – just yesterday – BBC News reported that Blockbuster UK would close 129 stores across the pond, leaving 760 employees facing the threat of layoffs. According to Joint Administrator, Lee Manning, the move is a “… consequence of having to restructure the company to a profitable core which is capable of being sold.”

Recommended Videos

To top it all off, the third punch in the recent flurry landed today. Multiple outlets are reporting that Blockbuster now plans to close 300 stateside stores in the next few weeks, leaving the chain with only 500 stores in the U.S. Though that may sound like a healthy amount, consider that Blockbuster once laid claim to over 4,000 locations.

Please enable Javascript to view this content

The surviving stores may now shift to selling smartphones and/or wireless subscriptions, as parent company Dish Network hopes something will stick to a wall that has repelled every projectile.

Dish insists that it still believes in the marketability of Blockbuster’s household name-brand, but if the company continues to be thwarted at every turn, we could see the complete dissolution of a one-time industry leader.

Can anything stop the internet from huffing and puffing and blowing brick and mortar down?

Adam Poltrack
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Adam is an A/V News Writer for Digital Trends, and is responsible for bringing you the latest advances in A/V…
How to set up your TV for watching Premier League soccer
Premier League soccer match

Whether you're a supporter of Manchester City, Liverpool, Arsenal, Nottingham Forest or any of the other 16 teams in the English Premier League, you're among the most-watched sports league in the world's estimated 1.9-billion person audience.

Call it whatever you like -- soccer, football -- if you're watching this global sport on an excellent TV, new or old, it's likely that it didn't come out of the box set up with Premier League football or sports in mind. The good news is, you can make a few tweaks to its settings to make sure your picture and audio experience is as good as it can be to make every goooaaal as exciting as possible. And you're going to want to do this beforehand by following our guide here so you're not doing it on game day.

Read more
Mixx packages a Bluetooth turntable with wireless speakers for $300
Mixx Analog System 5 turntable and Bluetooth speaker combo.

Mixx Audio, a relative newcomer to the budget audio category, has an intriguing new package for those who want to dip their toes into the world of vinyl -- without spending a fortune or foregoing the convenience of wireless digital audio. The Mixx Analog System 5 combines a Bluetooth-capable turntable with a pair of Bluetooth bookshelf speakers, for $300. The system comes in either black or white color options and you can grab it right now on Amazon.

The turntable sits on a wooden plinth and the angled aluminum tonearm comes with an Audio-Technica AT3600L moving magnet cartridge. It uses a belt drive and can run at both 33 and 45 RPM speeds, with a dedicated pitch control feature. A 45 RPM adapter is also included for playing singles.

Read more
Watch Kendrick Lamar’s Super Bowl Halftime Show in Dolby Atmos on Apple Music
An iPhone 15 Max displaying the Super Bowl LIX Halftime Show with Apple AirPods Pro 2 next to it on a wooden table.

One of the coolest technological advancements that happened for Super Bowl LIX, was the broadcast being available with both Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos. After 4K and HDR was added in recent years to improve the visual presentation and take advantage of newer TV technology (even if it is, in reality, a 1080p signal being upscaled with professional-grade equipment), the inclusion of spatial audio steps up the auditory immersiveness for those with a Dolby soundbar or discrete Dolby-capable speaker setup. Hopefully this signals a future where more live TV includes spatial audio presentations.

While getting the entire Super Bowl broadcast with Dolby Vision and Atmos is a great step forward, it was only available for Comcast subscribers that had the proper equipment. But Apple Music has made the full 13:21-long Super Bowl LIX Halftime Show available on the Music app in spatial audio (which makes sense considering the Halftime Show was officially the Super Bowl LIX Apple Music Haltime Show). The Atmos mix isn't groundbreaking in its use of sonic placement, but when the camera moves as much as it did during the performance, it's of utmost importance to keep the performers front and center aurally so there's a central focus.

Read more