Netflix (NFLX) + Facebook = Old News; Blockbuster Sale a Boon
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Netflix shares are still in positive territory today, as the market is clearly shrugging off competition by Time Warner (NYSE: TWX) and Facebook, Amazon.com (Nasdaq: AMZN), and others. The stock is up 1.6%.
News today has Blockbuster (OTCBB: BLOAQ), potential buyers, and its creditors have reached a plan which might avert the potential liquidation of America's once de facto movie rental chain. The hashed-out deal ends demands from some creditors that the company close its doors and liquidate assets.
Thursday, a judge from the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District in New York said that he would approve the sale to a group of lenders. Bids for the company will start at $290 million and go up from there.
But will the sale be a boon for Netflix, or were investors hoping for more of a liquidation ruling?
Getting off topic a little, some analysts have pointed to Coinstar (Nasdaq: CSTR) as the potential beneficiary to Blockbuster's troubles.
Coinstar operates those convenient RedBox kiosk's at locations like Wal-Mart and Target, which allow someone to rent a DVD right there on the spot, and return it the next day. Merriman Capital notes that most DVD rentals are for new releases, and that RedBox will see and immediate boost as consumers look to fill that gap.
But Blockbuster, whether liquidated or sold, will still be in the picture moving forward. Netflix, which is hashing out new deals regularly, will be able to offer a bigger and bigger selection to consumers, potentially turning those that don't want to be locked into a contract around as they view the $8 - $10 per month fee worth it for the access to such a vast library. Analysts also see any potential buyer closing a good portion of the unprofitable stores and locations, another boon for both Netflix and Coinstar.
Furthermore, today Pacific Crest said that Netflix could be working on a
deal with Facebook. But this news shouldn't come as a surprise to investors, as Netflix has had a position posted on their Job Site for a Facebook
Integration Engineer Architect, suggesting the potential for Facebook integration. The post has been up since at least mid-December.
But Netflix is agin in the green today, up 1.6%, amid market uncertainty surrounding the earthquake in Japan.
News today has Blockbuster (OTCBB: BLOAQ), potential buyers, and its creditors have reached a plan which might avert the potential liquidation of America's once de facto movie rental chain. The hashed-out deal ends demands from some creditors that the company close its doors and liquidate assets.
Thursday, a judge from the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District in New York said that he would approve the sale to a group of lenders. Bids for the company will start at $290 million and go up from there.
But will the sale be a boon for Netflix, or were investors hoping for more of a liquidation ruling?
Getting off topic a little, some analysts have pointed to Coinstar (Nasdaq: CSTR) as the potential beneficiary to Blockbuster's troubles.
Coinstar operates those convenient RedBox kiosk's at locations like Wal-Mart and Target, which allow someone to rent a DVD right there on the spot, and return it the next day. Merriman Capital notes that most DVD rentals are for new releases, and that RedBox will see and immediate boost as consumers look to fill that gap.
But Blockbuster, whether liquidated or sold, will still be in the picture moving forward. Netflix, which is hashing out new deals regularly, will be able to offer a bigger and bigger selection to consumers, potentially turning those that don't want to be locked into a contract around as they view the $8 - $10 per month fee worth it for the access to such a vast library. Analysts also see any potential buyer closing a good portion of the unprofitable stores and locations, another boon for both Netflix and Coinstar.
Furthermore, today Pacific Crest said that Netflix could be working on a
deal with Facebook. But this news shouldn't come as a surprise to investors, as Netflix has had a position posted on their Job Site for a Facebook
Integration Engineer Architect, suggesting the potential for Facebook integration. The post has been up since at least mid-December.
But Netflix is agin in the green today, up 1.6%, amid market uncertainty surrounding the earthquake in Japan.
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