Earlier this week it was announced that Dish Network had officially acquired Blockbuster, and plans to improve the movie viewing experience for consumers in the future.

According to sources, the acquisition was actually supposed to take place last week, but was delayed because Dish Network did not know which of Blockbuster's 1,500 leases it wanted to hold on to. However, the company was able to reach a decision, and a U.S. Bankruptcy Court judge approved the $320 million acquisition on Tuesday.

Over the past several years Blockbuster has continued to struggle against competitors, mainly Netflix, which allows consumers to rent movies online and eliminates late fees. These struggles led to the company's eventual reorganizational bankruptcy filing.

Looking at the downward trend in profits, 2009 was a tough year for Blockbuster, as that was the year that Netflix started to increase streaming services allowing people to watch movies instantly from home with just the click of a mouse. That year, Netflix recorded $115 million in profitable revenue, and Blockbuster recorded $517 million in losses of $4 billion in revenue.

In September of 2010, after losing a large portion of the market to Netflix, Blockbuster filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. At that point debt was recorded at $1 billion.

Looking to the future, Tom Cullen, the vice president for Dish Network, said that the company is pleased to have purchased the assets of such a widely known and recognized brand as Blockbuster, and that through this acquisition Dish Network plans on improving the movie and television watching experiences for consumers.

Source: CNET, "Dish Network completes acquisition of Blockbuster", 26 April 2011