Following on from last week's news that 160 Blockbuster stores in the UK are to be closed by administrators Deloitte, comes a report regarding the struggling retailer's recent tax payments.
In a situation reminiscent of recent examples set by Starbucks and Amazon, it appears that the retailer has paid less than £250,000 in corporation tax to HMRC, despite profits of more than £37m and sales of over £3.5bn over a 15 year period (between 1996 and 2010).
The investigation, conducted by The Guardian, revealed the startling figures, as well as the revelation that despite making over £3.5bn over the last 15 years, the company has struggled to break even. It was also revealed that the UK arm of the franchise has been charged around £78m to use the Blockbuster brand (by the parent company based in the US).
Given the severity of Blockbuster's current predicament, it remains to be seen how this latest report will impact proceedings, but given the recent furore surrounding companies exploiting tax loopholes, it's certainly a issue that administrators Deloitte could have done without as they aim to stabilise the company in the coming weeks.