Orange County Register Owner Filing For Bankruptcy

August 31, 2009 · Posted by Uncategorized

Orange County bankruptcy news from the WSJ online:

“Freedom Communications Inc., the owner of the Orange County Register, is expected to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection this week, according to a published report.

The Wall Street Journal reported on its Web site Sunday that the privately held company has reached agreements with its lenders to restructure its debts. The report cited unnamed people familiar with the situation.

Robert Emmers, a spokesman for Freedom, declined to comment Sunday night on the possibility of a bankruptcy filing, but he told The Associated Press that the company is ‘continuing to work with its lenders to resolve (its) balance sheet issues.’

The Journal reported that Freedom’s lenders were expected to take control of the company while it operates under bankruptcy protection. The lenders — including J.P. Morgan Chase & Co., SunTrust Banks and Union Bank of California — hold about $770 million in debt.

Freedom was founded in the 1930s by R.C. Hoiles and is still majority owned by the Hoiles family. Besides its flagship Orange County Register, the company owns 32 daily and 77 weekly newspapers, plus several television stations.

Family members representing about one half of the Hoiles clan sold their stake in the company more than five years ago when private-equity firms Blackstone Group and Providence Equity Partners acquired a 40 percent share for about $460 million. The stake of the remaining family members likely would be wiped out by a bankruptcy filing, the Journal said.

Freedom’s Chapter 11 filing would be the latest in a long line of bankruptcy cases involving media companies that have struggled with a sharp drop in advertising revenue brought on by the growth of the Internet and compounded by a long recession.

‘Freedom has been affected by the same thing that all the media companies have been affected by: the decline of advertising, which has been accelerated by the downturn in the economy,’ Emmers said. ‘Freedom has been working really hard to realign its balance sheet with the reality of the media market today.’

The company announced last month that it would reduce pay across the board by 5 percent, and the Register has announced cost-cutting measures this year including layoffs, unpaid furloughs and salary freezes.”

Tags:

, , , , ,

Bankruptcy Filed by Reader’s Digest

August 25, 2009 · Posted by Uncategorized

Bankruptcy attorneys for Reader’s Digest filed for bankruptcy protection under Chapter 11 of the Bankruptcy Code on Monday.  From the San Francisco Chronicle:

“Reader’s Digest Association Inc., publisher of the iconic general interest magazine that began gracing American homes in 1922 and now reaches a worldwide audience of 130 million, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection Monday as it faces falling print circulation in the Internet age and looming debt payments…

The publisher expects to emerge from bankruptcy protection 45 to 90 days after the filing, which was made at the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in New York.

The company piled on debt following a $1.6 billion leveraged buyout in 2007 by investors led by Ripplewood Holdings LLC, a New York private equity firm, to take Reader’s Digest private. In such a transaction, investors typically borrow heavily to acquire a company, betting that operations would generate enough cash to cover the debt payments.

But signs of trouble have since emerged. In June, Reader’s Digest magazine cut its circulation guarantee to advertisers to 5.5 million from 8 million, and lowered its frequency to 10 issues a year from 12.

In the Chapter 11 filing, the company’s senior secured lenders have committed $150 million in new debtor-in-possession financing that can be converted into exit financing once Reader’s Digest leaves bankruptcy protection.

Reader’s Digest, based in Pleasantville, N.Y., publishes 94 magazines and sells about 40 million books, music and video products each year. Reader’s Digest magazine has 50 editions worldwide, reaching readers in 78 countries.”

Tags:

, , ,

Orange County Chapter 7 Bankruptcy Filings for July 2009

August 5, 2009 · Posted by Uncategorized

Chapter 7 bankruptcy filings are on the rise in Orange County, but some cities are seeing higher numbers of filings than others.

The top ten cities in Orange County with the most Chapter 7 Bankruptcy filings for the month of July are as follows:

Aliso Viejo, Anaheim, Buena Park, Fullerton, Garden Grove, Huntington Beach, Irvine, Mission Viejo, Orange, and Santa Ana.

Tags:

, , , , , , , , , , , , ,