Blockbuster reinventing itself

DALLAS, Nov. 15 (UPI) -- For Blockbuster Inc.executives it's a matter of busting out with new ideas so the Dallas video-rental giant doesn't go bust.

Blockbuster Chairman Jim Keyes says the company will be rolling out several new concepts in coming months, including a beverage bar with books and magazines, a tech center for downloading movies and other forms of entertainment, and a children's section with toys and games, the Fort Worth, Texas, Star-Telegram reported Wednesday. In a promotion with Sony, about 2,000 stores will soon be peddling PlayStation 3 consoles.

The overriding idea is to draw people to Blockbuster stores instead of getting their movies online.

"We need to make it a fun place to be -- a place to go and see what's new," Keyes said, acknowledging the stores "have lost a bit of their zip."

Not all of Blockbusters ideas have been financially successful, even if popular with customers. For example, ending late feels and allowing in-store exchanges of mail-order DVDs drew attention but cost Blockbuster in excess of $600 million a year in revenue, the newspaper said.

"We can't just raise prices or people will go somewhere else," Keyes said. "So we have to add some new value."