If you want to capture a Kodak moment, you may need to be in bankruptcy court to do it these days — the iconic photography company filed for Chapter 11 protection on Wednesday.

Since 2003, Kodak has closed 13 manufacturing plants and 130 processing labs, and cut 47,000 workers from its workforce — all in an effort to offload its unprofitable divisions. During the restructuring, which should be completed by 2013, the company has obtained $950 million debtor-in-possession financing to provide the necessary liquidity to continue operations.

In a press release, Chairman and CEO Antonio Perez says Kodak hopes to leverage its existing “digital capture” patents to eventually “emerge a lean, world-class, digital imaging and materials science company.”

He adds, “Our goal is to maximize value for stakeholders, including our employees, retirees, creditors, and pension trustees. We are also committed to working with our valued customers.”

The company isn’t the only one with financial woes lately — bread and snack-cake maker Hostess filed for bankruptcy last week. And after a lackluster holiday shopping season, many believe retail giant Sears Holdings, which owns discount chain Kmart, could be headed in that direction as well.

[Engadget]

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