CanWest files for bankruptcy protection

Troubled CanWest Global Communications, which owns the National Post, most of Canada's major urban newspapers and Global Television, is filing for creditor protection, according to a story from the Canadian Press. The move will give it additional 4-6 months to restructure its huge debt and, likely, sell off many of its assets.

Canwest Global Communications Corp. (TSX:CGS) has been struggling for months to deal with the debt load, which the Winnipeg-based broadcaster took on when it bought the former Southam newspapers and the National Post earlier this decade.

Business units of the media company that will be filing for creditor protection include the Canwest Television Limited Partnership, which holds Global Television, MovieTime, DejaView and Fox Sports World, and The National Post Company.

After the restructuring, Canwest creditors would receive shares of the restructured media company. Canwest's current shareholders would own just 2.3 per cent of the shares of the new Canwest.

Although the Asper family will invest up to an additional $15 million under the restructuring Canwest didn't say how much voting control that would give them.

Canwest has been selling pieces of its business in recent weeks to show lenders that it's making progress on reworking its operations.

Most recently it sold off its majority stake in Australian broadcaster Ten Network Holdings, in addition to past sales of its E!-branded TV stations and U.S. political magazine The New Republic.