Blockbuster delays Q2 release as deadline looms

"Due to the review process and the way the timing came together, the 2Q earnings release and the 10Q will be released together tomorrow," company spokeswoman Rebecca Fannin said in an email. "It's not a sign of anything other than these factors."

Wedbush Morgan analyst Michael Pachter said late on Thursday Blockbuster's core business may have recovered slightly in June and July, giving creditors incentive to extend a forebearance long enough for the company to ponder its options. Currently, the forebearance agreement expires on Friday.

Such an extension would be the second, after a first reprieve announced in July.

Blockbuster is struggling to avoid bankruptcy as it loses customers to Netflix Inc and DVD rental kiosk company Redbox, a division of Coinstar Inc .

In July, the company said it had entered into a forbearance agreement with about 70 percent of its noteholders, and elected not to make a $42.4 million interest payment on bonds that had been due July 1.

Analysts have said that a pre-packaged bankruptcy may be the company's best option.

The DVD rental chain is expected on average to post a second-quarter loss of 24 cents a share on revenue of $840 million, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

Blockbuster, which announced its delisting from the New York Stock Exchange in July, on Wednesday said it would not hold a conference call following the release of its earnings, due to the complex nature of its recapitalization.

(Reporting by Sue Zeidler; editing by Carol Bishopric)

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