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/ 11.30.2009 3:00PM
Thomson Prepares for Restructuring
PARIS: Grass Valley parent corporation Thomson SA
said it would announce its debt restructuring plan some time today. Shares of
the company were suspended from trading on the Paris stock market pending the
announcement, according to Dow Jones. The wire service said the company was expected to seek court protection from
creditors.
Suffering from the effects of the collapsed global economy, Thomson put the
Grass Valley business up for sale in February. The company estimated its debt
to be around $2.8 billion at the time. Grass Valley, along with Thomson’s
digital signage division, Premier Retail Networks, generated $1.3 billion last
year, or around 20 percent of Thomson’s revenues. PRN was also offered for sale
in February.
Thomson’s chief financial officer, Stephane Rougeot, told The
Wall Street Journal in October that the sale of Grass Valley was taking
longer than expected “due to tough market conditions.” Thompson was said to be
talking to “several interested parties” about divesting Grass Valley.
More on Thomson:
April
29, 2009: “Thomson Scores on
Breach Waiver”
Thomson said its creditors have granted it a waiver, giving the company
until June 16 to restructure its 2.9 billion euro ($3.8 billion) debt due April
30.
March 10, 2009: “Thomson
Drops on Loss”
Thomson today posted a net loss of 1.9 billion euros ($2.4 billion U.S.)
for 2008, compared to a loss of 23 million euros for the previous year ($33.8
million).
February 25, 2009: “Grass Valley Exec:
We’ll Be Around”
Grass Valley will take care of customers through its divestiture from Thomson,
a company executive said this week.
February 2, 2009: “Thomson Cuts Grass”
Thomson (NYSE:TMS) is putting Grass Valley up for sale. The Parisian tech giant
today said the board approved divesting the division, along with its Premier
Retail Networks digital signage business.
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