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Blockbuster Essay

Decent Essays

Criticisms of Blockbuster by Seidler
1. The bulk of 1988 per share earnings were due to
a) Very slow goodwill amortization
b) Stretched out life for "hit" tapes
c) Nonrecurring items of initial franchise fees, area development fees and sales to new franchises.
2. Steeper growth curve resulting from acquisitions that were treated as pooling
3. Inflation of sales in the fourth quarter. Revenues are recognized when products are shipped with no indication that the stores purchasing were actually open for business.
4. Running out of cash

Our position -
1. On the EPS related issues
a) Regarding the goodwill amortization issue, we suggest a position that is in between the current BV practice (40 years) and Bear's recommendation (5 …show more content…

We do not agree with BV's practice of recognizing the revenue upon shipping the supplies because without acceptance of supplies by stores, it does not satisfy the requirement of completing all activities that lead to completion of the critical event.

4. We agree that BV ran out of cash. The net working capital was -$10384M and Accounts Payable tripled. We also agree with the double counting and mismatch in financial statements.

A3
Part 1 - Concerns that have been addressed
1-b. The "hit" tapes are now being amortized over a much shorter period – The costs of non-base stock videocassettes (generally greater than four copies per title for each store i.e. "hits") are amortized on an accelerated basis over three months to an estimated $4 salvage value.

2. Acquisitions treated as pooling – All acquisitions were accounted for under the purchase method and accordingly the operating results of the acquired businesses are included in the consolidated results of operations of the company since their respective date of acquisition.

3. Critical event for sale of supplies to stores – BV is using a rental library approach for supplies for the new stores. Revenue-sharing allows BV to purchase videocassettes at a lower product cost than traditional buying arrangements.

Part 2 - Concerns that remain
1-a. The goodwill continues to be amortized over a period of 40 years.
1-c The nonrecurring items mentioned by Seidler

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