July 1 - 10:50pm EDT   Video retailer Blockbuster tonight said it has withdrawn its offer to buy Circuit City. The company provides few details as to the reason for its sudden exit but says that a combination of "market conditions" and the process of due diligence, or examining the health of Circuit City as a business, have led it to believe that a takeover of the electronics chain is not in its best interests. Blockbuster still argues that the idea of unifying media and electronics under one name but that it will have to do so through its own stores rather than Circuit City's locations. [full story]

May 28 - 2:50pm EDT   Blockbuster will soon launch a pilot program of in-store movie downloads, says the company's CEO. James Keyes revealed the information at an annual shareholder meeting Wednesday, noting that a trial will take place sometime within the next month, and involve store visitors inserting a form portable device into a kiosk, and copying movies in a process that should take approximately two minutes. At present the major issue is said to be studio support, as Blockbuster is still negotiating for available content. [full story]

May 13 - 5:15pm EDT   Activist investor Carl Icahn may use his clout to instigate a proxy battle that pushes Yahoo towards accepting a Microsoft takeover, CNBC says. Those talking to Icahn allegedly say he will push for the nomination of three or four candidates to Yahoo's board of directors that would favor a Microsoft buyout, giving just enough influence on the ten-person board to have it vote in favor of the acquisition that it has resisted in the past. Dissatisfaction with Yahoo's rejection of Microsoft offers could make this simple, the sources explain. [full story]

May 9 - 10:15am EDT   Circuit City today sent mixed responses to Blockbuster's proposed takeover of the company. The suffering electronics retailer now says it will let both Blockbuster and its backing investor Carl Icahn conduct due diligence, effectively letting the movie rental house explore Circuit City's finances to judge whether the buyout would be practical. Circuit City warns, however, that the agreement isn't a sign that it has finished investigating Blockbuster's bid and that the company believes it can succeed without help from an outside buyer. [full story]

April 24 - 4:30pm EDT   Last week saw video and game rental chain Blockbuster make a public $1 billion bid for electronics retailer Circuit City. At that time, Blockbuster accused Circuit City of not providing information the suitor requested to make a definitive proposal. Yesterday, investor group Wattles Capital Management, representing Blockbuster, sent a letter outlining the reasons for such disclosure to Blockbuster's board members. Circuit City's same-day response questioned Blockbuster's ability to finance such a deal in light of the rough economy. [full story]

April 21 - 3:50pm EDT   Sony's anticipated PlayStation 3 video store could be available as soon as this summer and with wide support, sources tell the LA Times. The console maker is allegedly in talks with multiple major studios and would open the store with a mixture of full-length movies and TV shows. No information has yet been supplied as to which companies are likely to be onboard or whether Sony will offer any videos in HD. [full story]

April 14 - 9:05am EDT   Blockbuster today made a surprise, unsolicited bid for Circuit City. The offer would provide $6 per share and equate to $1 billion, or approximately 54 percent more than Circuit City's current value. The offer is meant to seize on the increasing unity between media and technology and would create a "game-changing retail concept," according to Blockbuster chief Jim Keyes. Circuit City has not yet formally responded to the offer but is said not to have offered the "due diligence" necessary to provide a full assessment of Circuit City's worth; doing so could boost the offer to $8 per share, or more than $1.3 billion. [full story]

April 10 - 4:25pm EDT   Blockbuster Video has announced that it is finally moving to to expand its Blu-ray services. Although Blu-ray discs formally went on sale in the US in June of 2006, Blockbuster only began stocking the media in July of 2007, and then only in 1,700 of its outlets. The company now says that it will start selling and renting discs in some 5,000 stores, scattered throughout Canada and the United States. For people renting by mail, Blockbuster plans to offer Blu-ray as an optional default medium. HDTVs paired with PlayStation 3 consoles will serve as demonstration kiosks. [full story]

April 10 - 9:30am EDT   Blockbuster today is subject to rumors which claim the movie rental house is developing its own networked media hub. Similar to stand-alone devices such as the Apple TV or the Vudu, the unnamed project would let users watch Internet-streamed movies on TV and would take advantage of Blockbuster's union with Movielink to supply the content, with an unnamed electronics maker assembling the hardware itself. The device could be announced as early this month, though it may not be available until at least May. [full story]

November 28 - 3:30pm EST   Blockbuster Video is in the midst of developing a service that would let users bring video downloads more easily to cellphones, company chief James Keys says. The executive notes that his video rental firm is in talks with "virtually all" cellphone manufacturers as well as some software producers to create the service. Its exact function is not described but is believed to involve converting videos downloaded from an online store to a portable form. The decision came as the result of getting help in converting movies to play on a BlackBerry, Keyes says. [full story]