"The combination of Blockbuster and Circuit City will result in an $18 billion retail enterprise uniquely positioned for the convergence of media content and electronic devices," Keyes wrote. "We would seek to differentiate products in both Blockbuster and Circuit City stores by offering exclusive content and content-enabled devices.

Circuit City was initially unwilling to talk to Blockbuster, but today CNNMoney said that Circuit City has agreed to open its books:

"We are pleased to have reached an agreement with Circuit City to conduct due diligence and further explore a possible merger between our two companies," said Blockbuster's management in statement Friday. "We continue to believe this combination would create significant cost and operating synergies therefore unlocking substantial value for our shareholders."

We have to ask you... are you interested in "exclusive content and content-enabled devices" from Circuit City?

Circuit City opens books to Blockbuster [CNNMoney]
(Photo: northernplateguy )

Gone are the days of the three-year car loan. The length of the average automobile loan hit five years, four months in October, up more than six months from 2002, according to the Federal Reserve. And nearly 45% of loans written today are for longer than six years. Even some staid lenders owned by the carmakers, such as Toyota Financial Services and Ford Credit, are offering seven-year financing. And a few credit unions, particularly in the West, are tinkering with the eight-year note.

At the same time, the amount of money drivers owe on their cars is soaring. In October, the average amount financed hit $30,738, up $3,500 in just a year and nearly 40% in the last decade, according to the Fed. More troubling, today's average car owner owes $4,221 more than the vehicle is worth at the time it's sold — up from $3,529 in 2002, according to industry analyst Edmunds.

The longer loans are directly related to the higher balances. By extending the length of loans, lenders keep monthly payments down. But because these loans take longer to pay off, a much larger piece of the principal remains unpaid at the time the car is traded in.

Cindy Gerhardt has rolled over so much debt on successive vehicle purchases — five in three years — that she now owes almost $43,000 on two trucks worth no more than $29,000 and, she says, perhaps as little as $22,000.

Faced with car payments that exceed her monthly mortgage, she tried to trade in the pair for a single vehicle. But with so much unpaid principal on the vehicle loans, the only offer she got from the dealer was to trade in one truck on yet another new vehicle — and increase her debt by another $25,000.

"It's our own fault that we traded in vehicles so many times, but we never thought it would get to this," said Gerhardt, a secretary who lives with her husband and two children in Clinton, Okla. She recently tried to refinance her mortgage, she said, but was declined because her car payments were too high. "Not one dealer ever said this was a problem. Ever. I never had a dealership say no."

New cars that are fully loaded — with debt [LA Times](Thanks, Arthur!)
(Photo:Ken Hurst/Associated Press)