Kodak files for chapter 11 bankruptcy protection

There was chatter earlier this month, primarily from The Wall Street Journal, that Kodak was getting its paperwork in order to file for chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.

As it turns out, all of the talk was true–Kodak sent out a press release just after midnight announcing that the company has filed for chapter 11 business restructuring. According to the press release, the company has secured $950 million debtor-in-possession financing, which it believes will help keep the company going during the restructuring.

“Kodak is taking a significant step toward enabling our enterprise to complete its transformation,” said Antonio M. Perez, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. “At the same time as we have created our digital business, we have also already effectively exited certain traditional operations, closing 13 manufacturing plants and 130 processing labs, and reducing our workforce by 47,000 since 2003.”

Perez continued: “After considering the advantages of chapter 11 at this time, the Board of Directors and the entire senior management team unanimously believe that this is a necessary step and the right thing to do for the future of Kodak. Our goal is to maximize value for stakeholders, including our employees, retirees, creditors, and pension trustees. We are also committed to working with our valued customers.”

The news of Kodak filing for bankruptcy comes just several hours after the company announced it was suing Samsung for allegedly infringing on five of its digital imaging patents in “certain” unnamed Samsung tablets.

[Image credit: Reuters]