In Business This Week

SOME NEW BLOCKS FOR BLOCKBUSTER

There's another linkup in the entertainment business. Philips Electronics has agreed to invest $66 million in Blockbuster Entertainment, either through a joint venture or simply by purchasing Blockbuster stock.

The affiliation is Blockbuster's first venture outside its video rental business. Blockbuster will promote Philips' recently introduced Compact Disc Interactive systems in its 1,934 stores. CDI combines video, audio, text, and graphics for games and educational programs and eventually movies. Such multimedia products should give Blockbuster a shot at new sources of revenue as its core video-rental business matures.EDITED BY HARRIS COLLINGWOOD