video rental shop fate liquidation founded 1983 defunct 2009 headquarters langhorne pennsylvania united states area served united states canada peru products retailing and renting of dvd and video games parent independent website westcoastvideo.com archived version west coast video was a chain of video rental stores founded in 1983 . the company became defunct in 2009 but existing stores could continue to use the west coast video banner and run independently . many locations have since closed but a few remain open today . contents 1 history 1.1 1980s inception acquisitions and expansion 1.2 1990s bankruptcy restructuring online presence and lawsuit 1.3 2000s present new formats chain demise and independence of remaining stores 2 legacy 3 internationalization 3.1 canada 3.2 peru 4 references 5 external links history edit 1980s inception acquisitions and expansion edit in 1983 elliot stone opened the first west coast video store in northeast philadelphia . during the next three months stone established the chain by launching three more stores . west coast video acquired all 455 national video stores in september 1988 . the chain now had 660 stores in total making it the world s largest video rental chain at that time . 1 1990s bankruptcy restructuring online presence and lawsuit edit main article brookfield communications inc. v. west coast entertainment corp. west coast video has been sued for using the moviebuff trademark on its website s html metatags . west coast video had a revenue of 250 million in 1990 . the chain opened its first canadian store in 1991 . it was located in the orleans neighborhood of ottawa ontario . however west coast faced financial difficulties due to increased competition in the video rental industry . the company reported a 120 million revenue in 1991 less than half of what it made the previous year . 2 the company filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy in march 1992 and had a positive cash flow six months later . in 1993 the west coast video company changed its name to west coast entertainment corporation . it would eventually create additional brands . during that same year a second store in canada was opened in ottawa south now old ottawa south neighborhood of ottawa . the gamepower headquarters video game stores franchise was launched in 1994 . online websites for west coast video were launched in may 1999 . this included an online shopping store that sold movies . 1 in march 1999 west coast video was sued for using the moviebuff trademark on its website s html metatags . 2000s present new formats chain demise and independence of remaining stores edit both blu ray and hd dvd movies were offered at west coast video in the mid to late 2000s due to the high definition optical disc format war happening at the time . 3 games for the three most popular seventh generation consoles the playstation 3 wii and xbox 360 were also added to the stores inventory . 4 both of these major additions to inventory placed a financial burden on the chain . in january 2007 the west coast video chain was down to only 20 locations in the united states . five of these would close before the end of the year another three prior to may 2008 and yet another three by the end of 2008 . the chain finished 2008 with only nine locations in the united states . in 2009 the chain ceased to exist and although remaining stores could keep the west coast video brand name they were now independent video rental stores . legacy edit as one of the earliest brand names for a video rental chain some west coast video customers have become attached to their independently owned local store . this is especially true of the ottawa south location which was described as a legend and a stalwart in the neighbourhood for decades . the arson crime which destroyed the building devastated loyal clients . 5 the few west coast locations remaining tend to remain innovative in the way they run business . some feature a hobby store and a pizzeria inside or adjacent to the building 6 while others operate solely on a dvd by mail basis . 7 internationalization edit west coast video store in ottawa . it was forced to close due to an arson and has no plans to reopen . the west coast video chain expanded beyond its northeast and mid west united states locations . rental stores were previously found in canada and curaco and the brand remains present in peru . 1 canada edit two west coast video stores were located in ottawa and closed by the end of the 2000s . there was also a west coast video store located in mississauga which was bought out by blockbuster in the mid 1990s . citation needed the iconic ottawa south location near the glebe neighborhood was launched in 1993 . it eventually offered free delivery with a minimum order . a fire burned the building on 5 february 2009 8 and although the store was declared temporarily closed in 2010 9 it has yet to reopen due to a dispute with the landlord . 10 another lesser known location in the orleans ontario region opened its doors in 1991 near the fortune and orleans intersection . the owner held monthly drawing contests and was known for decorating festively throughout the year . this location was well known for holding less popular titles and games and for having a pornography section tucked away in the back of the store . competitors included two rogers plus stores and one jumbo video store all which were located near orleans road . this increased competition prompted west coast video to lower its rates until it was eventually forced to close by the late 2000s . the owner renovated the empty building to create a fortune professional centre dividing the video store s large space into two smaller spaces for two tenants . the space was available for lease on july 1 2010 during canada day . 11 since october 4 2010 the convent glen dental centre occupied one of the two spaces . 12 peru edit in peru west coast video offers a dvd by mail service nationwide . 7 references edit a b c company history . funding universe . retrieved 2012 04 27 . wickstrom andy . boom scales back as rentals sales rise a mere 9.5 percent . chicago tribune . retrieved 2012 10 03 . west coast video 2008 . west coast video games 2008 . gough drew . former west coast video building sits in limbo . openfile . retrieved 2012 04 28 . leskin thomas . west coast video business still strong . republican herald . retrieved 2012 04 29 . a b official site . west coast video peru . retrieved 2012 04 27 . west coast video fire . oldottawasouth . 5 february 2009 . retrieved 11 july 2015 . ottawa s best independent video store . west coast video canada . archived from the original on 2010 01 17 . retrieved 2012 04 27 . nash michelle . vacant store on bank street remains an eyesore . your ottawa region . retrieved 2012 04 27 . gauzas mitch . fortune professional centre pdf . retrieved 2012 04 28 . map and location . convent glen dental centre . retrieved 2012 04 28 . external links edit west coast video usa archive west coast video peru v t e video rental shops brick and mortar chain stores civic video culture convenience club family video jumbo video le superclub vid otron video ezy dvd by mail gameaccess.ca netflix redbox kiosks xtra vision xtra vision xpress best buy redbox streaming media blackberry world cinemanow google play movies itunes store movies & tv netflix defunct video rental chains xtra vision avenue video blockbuster still open as a franchise name movie gallery hollywood video ritz video rogers plus video city video library west coast video former video rental chains playdium movie magic videoflicks retrieved from https en.wikipedia.org w index.php title west coast video & oldid 743897382 categories video rental serviceshome video companies of the united statescompanies based in bucks county pennsylvaniaentertainment companies established in 1983companies disestablished in 20091983 establishments in pennsylvania2009 disestablishments in pennsylvaniaamerican companies 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