2,117 Video Stores Closed In 1998

According to the National Association of Video Distributors (NAVD), 2,117 independent specialty video stores in the U.S. closed in 1998. That information, released here in NAVD's annual convention, is based on data from nine wholesalers. NAVD doesn't have data on how many stores were opened in 1998, and can't compare the findings with previous years because it was the first time such information was collected. Both the independent retailers and distributors placed blame squarely on the movie studios for making it difficult to compete in today's environment, allowing only the major chains to take advantage of revenue sharing and other copy-depth programs.