Pantech Puts Itself Up for Sale, Seeking A Cool $366 Million

Pantech, based in Korea, has staked a For Sale sign in its front lawn. The company, which declared the equivalent of bankruptcy last month, is seeking a buyer to scoop up the entire business. Pantech has been facing trouble all year long. It twice sought delays in debt payments and entered into court receivership in August. The company believes it will fetch a higher price if sold as a single entity (approx. $366 million) rather than broken up and sold in pieces (approx. $181 million). 

Bids for the company are due in early October. Pantech found itself unable to compete with Samsung and LG, which are also based in Korea. It faced financial losses six quarters in a row, which led to its debt problems and eventual bankruptcy.

Source: CNET

LightSquared Preparing For Bankruptcy Protection Filing Tomorrow

Seemingly destined-to-fail LightSquared just might be out of options. After getting a high-five from Sprint and plenty of attention for its initiatives in bringing yet another wireless option to America, those blasted GPS interference issues or "supposed" issues, depending on who you ask eventually became too much to overcome. According to a breaking report out of The Wall Street Journal, Philip Falcone's venture is seriously teetering on the edge of bankruptcy, as "negotiations with lenders to avoid a potential default faltered," according to the ever-present "people familiar with the matter." Purportedly, the two sides have until 5PM tomorrow to strike a deal that'll keep the firm out of bankruptcy court (if you'll recall, it owes over $1.6 billion dollars to various entities), but given just how far apart these sides remain, its fate seems all but sealed. We'll be keeping an ear to the ground for more, but don't go placing bets on yet another debt-term violation waiver.

Falcone Considering Bankruptcy For LightSquared

Hedge fund manager Phil Falcone said he is considering seeking bankruptcy protection for his wireless network company LightSquared Inc., a venture that has consumed billions of dollars from his funds and has become a difficult sticking point with his investors.

A bankruptcy filing is "one of the options I am considering," Mr. Falcone said in an e-mail, saying it's the "best way" for him to maintain control of the company. "Spectrum value does not decrease in bankruptcy,"

Is Clearwire facing bankruptcy

Clearwire may be in a heap of trouble. The wireless carrier is planning to strategically delay paying a $237 million debt payment that is due December 1st says a Wall Street Journal report. The payment would put a significant dent in the company’s cash reserves and hurt future expansion plans. The WiMAX company currently has about $698 million in cash and short-term investments that it needs to invest wisely if its 4G network is going to compete with Verizon and AT&T.

Clearwire has a 30-day grace period to make the payment which gives it some breathing room. Chief Executive Erik Prusch is reportedly going to use that time to secure more funding and sign new service deals. Delaying the payment is a last ditch effort to keep the company afloat and what happens in the next month may decide the company’s future..

To  make matters worse, Clearwire’s future with Sprint is uncertain. Sprint owns 54% of Clearwire and is using WiMAX as its 4G solution. Recently, Sprint said it was considering a switch to LTE, the major competitor to Clearwire’s WiMAX network. Sprint also agreed to carry the iPhone, a handset that is not and probably never will be compatible with WiMAX.

Though Clearwire did not mention it, the Wall Street Journal Report did bring up the “B” word – bankruptcy. If Clearwire fails to come up with this payment, the company may be forced to file for bankruptcy so it can restructure its debts. A person familiar with Sprint said the carrier would not buy out Clearwire just to keep it out of bankruptcy. Without the backing of Sprint, Clearwire’s future looks dim.