Canwest’s flagship newspaper and TV station among several outlets to file for protection
Canwest announced Tuesday that Global Television, MovieTime, DejaView, Fox Sports World and the National Post will voluntarily file for creditor protection under the Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act. “This is not bankruptcy,” Canwest vice-president John Douglas said. “Bankruptcy is liquidation and that is not at all what this is. This is what they call a strategic filing.” The debt-laden Canwest is currently undergoing a massive restructuring, a process expected to take the next four to six months and during which the company will receive an investment of up to $15 million dollars from CEO Leonard Asper and his family. Canwest’s current shareholders will own only 2.3 percent of the company after the restructuring, as tens of millions of dollars worth of new stock is issued.Canwest’s daily newspapers, such as the Montreal Gazette and Ottawa citizen, are, so far, not planning to file for creditor protection.