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Media Play was a chain of retail stores founded in 1992 by Musicland that sold movies on video , DVDs , music , Electronics , video games , books , and games in the United States . Each store essentially contained a book store , a movie store , a music store , and a video game store under one roof . At their height , they operated 72 stores in 19 states with 2 , 000 employees . The first store opened in Rockford , Illinois , in 1992 . Hundreds of stores were slated to be opened , but only 89 ever were . Their Replay program was a loyalty program that allowed members to earn points for purchases which can earn members gift certificates . The same Replay card also worked at Sam Goody and Suncoast Motion Picture Company stores . In 2001 , Musicland was purchased by Best Buy Co . Inc . for $696 million as part of its initiative to diversify its retail holdings to reach a larger demographic with its consumer electronics and entertainment products . By then , Musicland numbered over 1300 stores . Their intention was to transform Sam Goody into a destination for young people looking for hip electronics . They launched a major remerchandising campaign and converted Musiclands On Cue concept of rural stores to the Sam Goody brand , reducing its position in books and moving more into video games and DVD . Media Play had been unprofitable for a number of years . In late 2005 , it increased its advertising and sales promotions , but to no avail . It is thought that the unprofitability , caused by competition from Wal Mart , Best Buy , and online retailers such as Amazon . com , was the major factor in the decision to close the retail chain . ? |
