Kodak shares take a tumble after bankruptcy reports

EASTMAN KODAK has seen its share price slide in response to reports it is preparing a Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing. The one-time photographic giant is said to be in talks with lenders in an attempt to find financing which will see it through bankruptcy proceedings.
 
In November the company warned that it might not survive 2012 if it couldn't sell off patents, said to be worth between $2 billion and $3 billion, or attract a $500m investment.
 
Now, following a report in The Wall Street Journal about the company's uncertain future, Kodak's share price on the New York Stock Exchange has slumped to an all-time low of 47 cents.
 
Many of Kodak's current woes have been caused by a late entrance into the digital camera market, which left it with too much ground to catch up on competitors.
 
The sad irony for the venerable 131-year-old company is that it was responsible for inventing the digital camera in 1975, but never capitalised on the innovation.
 
Since 2005 the company has thrown hundreds of millions of dollars into a series of inkjet printers it was hoped would stop the rot.
 
With this project finally about to turn a profit, a key question for creditors is whether Kodak's tiny market share of the printer industry, 2.6 per cent, is worth investing in or if its value lies in its patent holdings. ·