entertainment: February 2009 Archives

Virgin Megastore, the large music and media center that anchors large metropolitan areas, is pulling back. Virgin announced the closing of its Union Square stores in both New York and San Francisco this week, not long after deciding to leave Times Square in New York City.

Virgin Entertainment was bought by two real estate companies in 2007, so the moves are not just retail-driven. The rent for incoming Forever 21 in Times Square will be much higher than Virgin has paid since its 1990s opening. Indeed, this was part of the rationale behind the purchase--good for Related and Vornado, the current owners, if not for the Virgin Megastore brand.

The fate of Virgin's three remaining megastores has not been announced.

Trump Entertainment filed for bankruptcy this morning to restructure a billion dollars in debt. This is the third bankruptcy filing for the company, whose bondholders are angry and trying to interfere with the movement. Donald Trump has resigned from the board of his company in frustration.

Sirius XM Radio has been rescued by Liberty Media, which is paying hundreds of millions of dollars to keep the satellite broadcaster from defaulting on its loans. The deal gives Liberty Media a non-controlling minority stake in the company. Despite earlier reports of a bankruptcy filing, this last-minute maneuver--loan payments are due today--keeps the company on safe ground.

Subscription radio company XM Sirius is preparing a bankruptcy filing amid rumors the company may be sold in full to EchoStar, which is responsible for much of XM Sirius' debt. The satellite radio player has been battling its debt load and a low stock value for many months. Analysts have been angling for an EchoStar buyout to preserve the core business.

(Full disclosure: this author is a longtime XM subscriber and fan.)