With $750M in Debt Coming Due, ICO Files for Bankruptcy Protection

摘要

Mobile satellite services operator ICO, unable to pay $750 million in debt coming due in August, has filed for protection under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code but expects to continue its business during a court-ordered reorganization.rnIndustry officials said ICO may be only the first of several mobile satellite operators to seek a court-protected reorganization of debt in the coming months as the economic crisis exacerbates already fragile business plans.rnChapter 11 of U.S. bankruptcy law permits a company to continue operations; most companies that begin the process survive it - albeit with new owners and with their stockholders often wiped out in the process - without having to liquidate their assets and close their doors.