New York, NY--Penton Media, the parent company of Live Design and LDI, announced that it has emerged from Chapter 11 after receiving confirmation of its “pre-packaged” plan of reorganization from the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York. Penton completed this capital restructuring in less than thirty days.
The Court’s ruling allows Penton to implement the capital restructuring the Company announced last month, which will result in the elimination of more than $270 million of long-term debt and an extension of the maturity on the Company’s senior secured credit facility through 2014. In addition, certain of Penton’s existing shareholders will make a significant new investment in the Company, which will provide additional working capital to fund operations and improve Penton’s overall liquidity.
For the LD/LDI franchise, the change means, for the most part, business as usual. “Our company’s quick emergence from Chapter 11 is excellent news for all of us,” says David Johnson, Associate Publisher and Editorial Director, “but the initial announcement had in fact no effect on our ability to pay our vendors, sell ad or booth space to our clients, or publish a magazine, or prepare for our big upcoming events, the Broadway Master Classes and LDI2010 in Las Vegas. Those have all continued to move forward, despite rumors to the contrary.”
Adds LDI Group Show Director Zari Stahl, “Indeed, the big difference now that we’re out of Chapter 11 is that the company has additional capital to fund any worthwhile opportunities we come across in the marketplace. And that’s good news for all of our customers.”
Penton obtained confirmation of the Plan less than a month after its Chapter 11 filing. “We accomplished our goal of getting through this process quickly and with minimal impact on our employees, customers and suppliers,” says Penton Chief Executive Officer Sharon Rowlands. “These results are a testament to the outstanding effort put forth by the senior management team, Penton’s employees, our Board of Directors, our lenders and our outside professionals. I would also like to thank our customers and suppliers for their support and understanding during our capital restructuring.”
With its emergence, Penton has the same ownership structure, and its senior management team and Board of Directors will remain intact. Rowlands says, “Penton’s equity owners, Board of Directors, management team, and the entire staff are determined to build Penton into a stronger, more successful company.”
The Live Design Broadway Master Classes will be held in New York May 21-17 and LDI2010 will take place in Las Vegas October 18-24.