LONDON RIOTS DESTROY CD/DVD WAREHOUSE

Hundreds of thousands of CDs and DVDs are believed to have been destroyed when rioters in London set fire to the Pias/Sony distribution center in the London Borough of Enfield, published reports said today (Wednesday). The British Film Institute, which distributes classic films on DVD, said that it lost its entire inventory of 120,000 units. “Most of the people in the independent film world have been hit,” David Wilkinson, CEO of distributor Guerilla Films, which lost 60,000 DVDs in the fire, told Britain’s Guardian newspaper. “Companies larger than mine will have cashflow problems. I have spoken to friends who say they may have to lay off people, because DVDs keep the business going.”