CableReady files for Chapter 11

Independent US distributor CableReady is seeking Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection as it attempts to stave off the threat from rising debts.

President and CEO Gary Lico said he was “saddened” by the move but failure to find a buyer for the company despite a prolonged search had made protection necessary.

Industry veteran Lico added that the ability of larger competitors to pay higher advances for programming, and US networks looking to retain all the rights to their programmes, had put the squeeze on independent distributors. Mergers of production companies and the uncertain global financial situation had also had an effect, he added.

Lico said: “We are convinced that through the Chapter 11 process, like so many companies before us, CableReady can be restored to financial health. We’ve never ever been quitters, as our friends and clients know.”

Meanwhile, the Conneticut-based company will continue its operations as usual while attempting to reorganise its debts and restructure the business.

The move comes despite recent expansion of the company. It opened a New York office to deal with East Coast-based producers and networks in October last year, hiring Maurizio Tavares from Rede TV in Brazil to lead the venture.

That was the first new bureau for the company since its launch in 1992, and the sales team there was still expanding as recently as February.

The company has specialised in deals with and for the US cable industry since its launch and counts long-running TruTV series Forensic Files and international hit Inside the Actors’ Studio among its slate.