Thursday March 16, 6:49 pm Eastern Time
Iridium considering bids to buy company-Motorola
NEW YORK, March 16 (Reuters) - Iridium World Communications Ltd. was considering last-minute bids to buy the bankrupt satellite telephone company and stave off the destruction of its network of satellites, Motorola Inc.(NYSE:MOT - news), one of its chief backers, said Thursday.
``Iridium is confirming that there are bidders being considered but I do not believe that they are identifying them,' Motorola spokesman Scott Wyman said in a telephone interview.
Officials at Iridium did not return calls seeking comment.
A court-imposed deadline for Iridium to receive qualified bids passed on Wednesday evening without comment from the company.
The company told the U.S. Bankruptcy Court on March 6 that if it did not find a qualified buyer by the deadline, it would present a plan for taking its network of 66 satellites out of orbit at a hearing scheduled for Friday.
Motorola, the primary backer of Iridium and a stakeholder in the company, has told customers of Iridium that service would end on Friday unless a buyer was found.
Iridium, which once promised to deliver wireless telephone service anywhere in the world, filed for bankruptcy in August 1999. The prospect of final liquidation of Iridium loomed after cellular communications pioneer Craig McCaw and his Eagle River investment group pulled out of a plan to buy the company.
Eagle River said it would spend its money on developing ICO Global Communications, which also filed for bankruptcy protection last year, and Teledisc LLC. Bother are satellite communications companies that focus on high-speed data services rather than voice.
If Iridium fails to find a buyer, its subscribers will be left with useless telephones as of 11:59 p.m. EST Friday, since Iridium's phones will not work with other satellite systems.
Critics said Iridium's phones, which cost as much as $3,000, were too bulky and required a separate antenna for use indoors or in cars. |
