Eastman Kodak Company (PINK:EKDKQ), a pioneer in the photography business, announced today its plans to discontinue selling consumer inkjet printers and to further reduce its workforce by 200, as part of its restructuring efforts to emerge as a commercial packaging & functional printing solutions, and enterprise services company, by 2013.
According to Eastman Kodak Company (PINK:EKDKQ), it will continue to sell affordable and high-quality ink to its printer customers and retail partners, and provide the same level of service and support from the company.
Earlier this month, the New-York based company, announced that it will reorganize its top management, and it will cut 1,000 jobs by the end of 2012. Since the beginning of the year, the company already reduced 2,700 employees to increase its cost reduction. Antoinette P. McCorvey, CFO, and Philip J. Faraci, co-president, will be leaving the company. Rebecca Roof, a managing director of AlixPartners, which serves as Eastman Kodak Company (PINK:EKDKQ)’s restructuring adviser, will serve as interim CFO. The workforce reduction would save the company $340 million every year.
In a statement, Antonio M. Perez, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Kodak, said the company is making progress towards recovery from bankruptcy, as the company continues to reorganize its core business, reduce costs, sell assets, and streamline its organizational structure. He said, “Steps such as the sale of Personalized Imaging and Document Imaging, and the Consumer Inkjet decision, will substantially advance the transformation of our business to focus on commercial, packaging & functional printing solutions, and enterprise services. As we complete the other key objectives of our restructuring in the weeks ahead, we will be well positioned to emerge successfully in 2013.”
Kodak said potential buyers have a significant interest in acquiring its personalized imaging and document imaging businesses. The company is selling the businesses, since they will no longer be part of its core business in the future. In addition, Kodak also continues to negotiate an acceptable sales agreement for its intellectual property assets to prospective buyers, including Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) and Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG), and patent aggregates, such as Intellectual Ventures Management LLC and RPX Corp. (NASDAQ:RPXC).
Last September 14, the company decided to suspend the auction of its 1,100 digital imaging patents indefinitely, after failing to negotiate an acceptable deal, and opted to explore other options, such as the establishment of a new licensing company to manage the patents.
Eastman Kodak Company (PINK:EKDKQ) spent $3.4 billion in restructuring efforts before filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in January.