Eastman Kodak

Performance indicators

2025: Recognition of failure to pay debts

Camera and medical equipment manufacturer Kodak, in a difficult financial situation, expresses doubts about its ability to continue operations. This is due to accumulated debts and a drop in revenue. Relevant information is provided in the financial statement published on August 11, 2025.

In the second quarter of 2025, Kodak's net loss amounted to $26 million. For comparison, a year earlier, the company recorded a net profit of $26 million. Year-on-year revenue decreased from $267 million to $263 million. The cash balance at the end of June 2025 was estimated at $155 million compared to $201 million as of December 31, 2024, which corresponds to a reduction of $46 million. The decrease is primarily due to capital expenditures, changes in working capital and a deterioration in the profitability of operations.

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Фото: Bloomberg

Kodak has debt obligations due within 12 months, the report noted. However, there is no liquid funds necessary to make these payments.

The current conditions raise significant doubts about the company's ability to continue its operations, the financial filing says.

Kodak also emphasizes that it will focus on cutting costs and supporting investment initiatives aimed at long-term growth until the end of 2025. In order to reduce costs, the company announced its intention to abolish the corporate pension program. By August 15, 2025, Kodak intends to form a clear plan for fulfilling obligations to all participants in this program. The company expects to completely curtail it by the end of 2025. As a result, Kodak plans to ensure adequate financing of its preferred shares and debt obligations when they are due.^[1]

History

2020

Ex-Kodak executives made millions selling shares they never owned

On November 11, 2020, Kodak announced that a series of internal errors allowed five former executives to sell several months earlier - in July - shares worth more than $5 million. At that moment, there was a message about a loan of $765 million for Kodak, which provoked an increase in the value of shares by more than 2100%.

Kodak CFO David Bullwinkle said the company had learned of a lack of controls used to protect assets. He added that a lack of proper control led to an "unauthorized issue" of common stock when previously seized stock options were exercised by former executives in July.

Former Kodak executives made millions selling stock they never owned

The former executives exercised about 300,000 stock options, Kodak said. The company incurred compensation costs of $5.1 million in connection with the incident. According to Bullwinkle, the control error did not lead to a distortion in financial performance. Kodak plans to resolve the issues before the end of 2020.

The company is going to recover from ex-executives about $3.9 million, given the value of the shares at the time of their sale. According to Kodak, another $3 million can be returned by withholding taxes.

The unusual stock release comes after a hectic few months for Kodak, accompanied by regulatory oversight of the company. Kodak shares rose 2,100% in July 2020 after the Trump administration said it gave the company a $765 million loan to produce ingredients for drugs. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced an investigation into how the company disclosed the loan just days after allegations that insiders took advantage of news and a subsequent stock price rally.^[2]

Kodak corruption: how top managers earned tens of millions on news of the company's entry into the pharmaceutical market

In mid-August 2020, Kodak shares fell nearly 45% after the companies refused a promised loan pending an investigation. Apparently, the top managers of the company decided to make money on the news about the opening of the pharmaceutical division of Kodak Pharmaceuticals and violated the laws on insider trading, which is why they came to the attention of law enforcement agencies. Read more here.

Contract with U.S. Government to Create Kodak Pharmaceuticals Drug Component Manufacturing

In July 2020, the US authorities signed a contract with Kodak for $765 million to create a pharmaceutical production of Kodak Pharmaceuticals, which will produce about a quarter of the components of analogues of branded drugs, US President Donald Trump said at a press conference at the White House.

"My administration has reached a historic agreement with a great American company, you remember it since the days of the good old cameras, Kodak, for the production of pharmaceutical components. And it's going to happen right here in America, "Trump said.

2017:7% staff cut

Eastman Kodak is cutting 425 people to offset losses of $46 million recorded in the third quarter of 2017. The Kodak financial report for a three-month period was published on November 8, 2017, after which the company announced the dismissal of about 7% of its staff in order to achieve the planned annual indicators, Digital Trends reports.^[3]

Kodak announced the dismissal of about 7% of its staff in order to achieve the planned annual indicators

Among the sources of financial difficulties, the company named the licensing direction, in which Kodak grants the right to release products under its brand name to third-party manufacturers, as well as a drop in demand and growing costs in the largest division of Print Systems Division. Difficulties were also observed in other directions - Consumer and Film (production of film and consumer printing equipment) and 3D Printing (3D printers and three-dimensional printing).

Kodak will lay off approximately 100 people at its facility in Rochester, New York, USA, and the remaining 325 elsewhere. In total, Eastman Kodak has about 6 thousand employees. What types of products may be affected by personnel cleaning, the company did not specify.

Despite quarterly losses, Kodak expects to reach revenue targeted for 2017 in the range from $1.5 to $1.6 billion.

We plan to improve the cash situation by reducing working capital and cost reduction measures, including prioritizing investments in technologies that can bring profit in the short term, said David Bullwinkle, CFO of the company[4]

2013

Brother Industries Buys Eastman Kodak's Document Management Products Units

In April 2013, Brother Industries announced the start of a deal to acquire the assets of the Kodak Document Imaging ("DI") Division of Eastman Kodak Company. The agreement is a preliminary application under Section 363 of the United States Bankruptcy Code1, followed by an auction in accordance with the procedures established in the agreement. In accordance with the latter, Brother may acquire these assets for $210 million in cash equivalent, taking into account the price adjustment and the adoption of individual obligations of the company. Brother assumes the designated DI assets and liabilities, which include approximately $67 million. US deferred revenue received as prepayment from the company's customers.

If Brother is chosen as the winner of the bidding and no other equal bids are received, with the permission of the court and other regulators, then the transaction will be finally completed by the third quarter of 2013.

Division into Eastman Kodak and Kodak Alaris. Way out of bankruptcy

In 2013, the company emerged from bankruptcy, dividing into two structures - Eastman Kodak and Kodak Alaris. The former specializes in commercial printing systems and inkjet printers, develops 3D printing software and sells licenses for the right to use the Kodak brand, and also produces film. As for Kodak Alaris, it is busy producing film and photo paper.

2012

Apple and Google want to buy 1,100 Kodak patents together

Apple and Google offered Eastman Kodak more than $500 million in December 2012 for its digital image patents, which are up for sale as a result of its bankruptcy.

Apple and Google have made a joint offer to buy 1,100 Kodak patents related to digital image recording and processing, Bloomberg reported. Kodak itself values its patents at between $2.21 billion and $2.57 billion.

Such a union between Apple and Google looks unusual, given that the companies are irreconcilable competitors in the global smartphone market. Their operating systems, iOS and Android, respectively, together hold 86.3% of the global market, with Android accounting for 72.4%.

However, such partnerships are not uncommon when selling patents, as they remove the risk of possible patent violations, says Richard Erlikman, former vice president of intellectual property at IBM and now president of IP Offers, an intermediary and consulting firm. Such alliances also help save on purchases.

"They decided to enter this process together in order to reduce the cost of buying Kodak patents and still meet the needs of their business," Erlikman explained.

A Google spokesman refrained from commenting, saying the company was not responding to the rumors. Apple also did not respond to a request.

Apple and Google first applied for Kodak patents separately, Bloomberg writes, with Apple enlisting the support of Microsoft and Intellectual Ventures Management, and Google supporting RPX Corp. (which buys patents) and a number of Asian Android smartphone manufacturers. Each of the two groups offered less than $500 million, and now they decided to join forces.

Kodak, a former industry leader in cameras and digital image processing, is selling off its patent portfolio as a result of financial difficulties. In January, the company applied for protection from creditors under the US Bankruptcy Code (Chapter 11) and in November gained the right to receive $830 million to finance the costs of getting out of protection, Bloomberg said.

Bankruptcy lawsuit

On January 18, 2012, the company filed for bankruptcy in court, asking authorities to protect the corporation from creditors. Kodak has accumulated $6.8 billion in debt with a total assets of $5.1 billion.

The key figures in the company's management at this time are:

The Chairman and CEO is Antonio M. Perez. The president of the company is Filip Farachi (English Philip J. Faraci).

The company produces:

• Photo and film. For amateurs and professionals.

• Lenses. Until 1914, Eastman Kodak installed the simplest meniscus lenses, or third-party lenses, such as Bausch & Lomb's Rapid Rectilinear, on its cameras. Eastman Kodak produced lenses not only for cameras, but also for projectors, enlargers, slide projectors, etc.

• Digital photo frames have been produced since the end of 2000.

• Cameras for instant photography. Kodak was the sole manufacturer of Polaroid photographic film from 1963 to 1969. The patent dispute between Polaroid and Kodak concluded on January 9, 1986.

• Matrices for digital cameras.
• Film and TV shows.
• Desktop inkjet printers and printer cartridges. In 1999, a joint venture was established with Lexmark.
• Industrial inkjet and electrographic printing systems
• CTP devices and consumables for them
• Scanners

2011: List of the company's largest shareholders

All shares of the company are in free float.

As of January 2011, the largest shareholders were:

•  Legg Mason Capital Management (21,6 %).
•  Vanguard Group (5,5 %).
•  BlackRock Institutional Trust Company (5,1 %).

2009: LG sale of OLED assets

December 7, 2009 - The upcoming sale of all Eastman Kodak assets related to the OLED business, a group of companies, is announced. LG However, in the future, Kodak will have access to this technology and will use it in its products.

On June 22, 2009, the company ceased production of its famous Kodachrome film.

2008: Company among environmental pollution leaders

Eastman Kodak is considered one of the largest environmental pollutants in the United States. In 2008, Kodak in New York State ranked first among corporations in terms of emissions into the atmosphere and water. The Political Economy Research Institute of the University of Massachusetts in 2002 ranked the company fifth in the United States on the Toxic 100 list.

2007: Continued film release

Since 2007, a license for the production of film cameras has not been issued. The company continues to release films of various rare formats.

2006

Stopping camera production

Many early digital cameras for Kodak were developed and manufactured by the Japanese company Chinon Industries.

In 2006, the company ceased independent production of digital cameras - production was transferred to Flextronics (Singapore).

In 2005-2006, the license for the production of film cameras was transferred to Vivitar.

Logo change

• Early 1900s. Kodak for the first time in the world combined the name and logo into one symbol.
• 1930s. The focus is on the Kodak name and the red and yellow "signature style."
• 1960s. A wrapped corner is represented.
• 1970s. The brand remains the red and yellow style and Kodak name, to which the frame and the "K" element are added.
• 1980s. The font style of the Kodak name in the existing logo changes to a more modern one.
• 2006. The frame is removed, the logo becomes simpler. The rounded font and the peculiar spelling of the letter "a" gives the name a more modern look.

2005: Ceasing production of black and white photographic paper and APS cameras

In 2005, the company announced the cessation of production of black and white photo paper.

At the end of 2005, the production of APS cameras was discontinued.

2004: Deletes stocks from Dow Jones Industrial Average

On April 8, 2004, Eastman Kodak shares were excluded from the Dow Jones Industrial Average.

In 2004, the company stopped marketing film cameras in the United States, Canada and Western Europe.

1985: Eastman Kodak absorbs Verbatim

Financial needs to build additional production facilities led to Verbatim being sold to Eastman Kodak, a photography and film company, in 1985.

However, after five years of cooperation, the firms broke up.

1900-70'e

In 1976, company engineer Steven Sasson developed the first digital camera with a matrix size of 0.1 megapixels. Eastman Kodak delayed the production of digital cameras, as a result of which it lost a significant market share.

The most popular product of Eastman Kodak was cameras for film type 126 (frame size 26x26 mm). Their production began in 1963. By 1976, 60 million Instamatic cameras had been sold.

Kodak broke its own record with 10 million Brownie series cameras sold from 1957 to 1962. In 1972, the production of miniature cameras for film type 110 began. The company produced everything related to photography: cameras, lenses (Kodak lenses), film, chemicals, and other products related to image processing, such as printers. In 1966, the company had 100,000 employees.

In 1936, the company created the first color film type 135.

On July 18, 1930, Eastman Kodak shares were included in the Dow Jones Industrial Average.

At the beginning of the 20th century, Eastman Kodak produced a large number of camera models for a variety of film types. In many countries of the world, Eastman Kodak had its branches. Some of these foreign branches produced their own camera models. For example, the German Kodak AG produced the Retina camera. Eastman Kodak had its branches and factories in Canada, Mexico, Great Britain, France, Germany, Australia, Argentina, Brazil, Spain.

In Russia at the beginning of the XX century. with the spread of Kodak products, the word "code" in the meaning of "photograph" came into use.

1900: $1 Camera Issue

Kodak Brownie is one of Kodak's best-known products (1900)

In 1900, Eastman achieved his goal - a new Brownie camera with 6 personnel film was sold for $1. The film sold for 15 cents. The Brownie camera series was produced until 1970.

1892: Renaming the company Eastman Kodak Co.

After a long advertising campaign for the Kodak brand, in 1892 the name of the company changed to Eastman Kodak Co.

1890: Launch of 48- personnel film camera sales

George Eastman on the deck of the steamer. Picture taken by Kodak camera No. 1, 1890

In 1890, sales of a 48- personnel film camera began.

1888: Kodak's first ever camera and trademark registration

George Eastman's goal was to popularize photography. In 1888, he invented the amateur Kodak No. 1 camera, which looked like a small box with a lens that transmitted a circular image with a diameter of 2.25 inches to a film containing 100 personnel and twisted into a round roller cassette. A distinctive feature of the scenes of shot on this camera was their shape - they were round.

A camera with a film cost $25. On September 4, 1888, George Eastman registered the Kodak trademark.

The Kodak camera was a small box (hence the name "detective camera"), just over 6 inches long, 3.5 inches wide and less than 4 inches high.

Anyone who, as it was written in the instructions, was able to work with it: 1. Direct the camera. 2. Press the button. 3. Rotate Key. 4. Pull the cord.

She had a lens that transmitted a circular image with a diameter of 2.25 inches to the film. 100 Personnel was placed on the video. When the entire video was fully exposed, the camera was sent by mail back to Eastman, who returned the camera with a charged new film and sent one hundred prints pasted on cardboard (or as many prints as there were good negatives) received from the first video - and all this cost $10. And with an initial purchase, the charged camera cost $25.

George Eastman's slogan - "You press the button - we do everything else" - explains the emergence of the first publicly available art that has gained worldwide popularity.

George Eastman said that the name of the trademark should be: short, have an unambiguous reading, should not be associated with anything other than Kodak.

Presumably, the word Kodak was proposed by David Houston. Houston was born in North Dakota (abbreviated NoDak). He was a friend of Eastman, an amateur photographer, an inventor. Kodak acquired camera patents from Houston. The letter K was Eastman's favorite letter. He called it "a strong, insightful letter."

1886: Patent for Roller Reel Chamber Box

George Eastman in 1886 designed and patented a box camera for a standard roller coil designed for forty-eight negatives measuring 4 by 5 inches, with focusing optics and, as he called it, an "alligator shutter" that did not work very well.

1881-1885

In 1885, the American Film reel film was presented to the public. Eastman hired the chemist Henry H. Reichenbach to continue his research, and in 1889 the production of film began.

In 1884, Eastman and Strong transformed their company into a corporation.

The company was founded in 1881 by inventor George Eastman and businessman Henry Strong.

1879: George Eastman devises machine to apply photographic emulsion to plates

In 1879, George Eastman, a bank clerk, developed a machine for applying a photo emulsion to plates. A patent for a machine for mass production of photographic plates was issued in England. In 1881, Henry A. Strong, an industrialist from Rochester, founded the Eastman Dry Plate Company.

Acquisitions of other companies

Kodak has acquired the following companies over the years:

• American Camera, Massachusetts. Absorbed by Kodak in 1898 and transferred to Rochester.
• Boston Camera Manufacturing Company. In 1890, the Boston Camera Co was absorbed by the Blair Camera Co. In 1899, Blair Camera was absorbed into Kodak.
• Rochester Optical Co. Since 1899, Rochester Camera and Supply Co. - a manufacturer of lenses and cameras. Absorbed by Kodak in 1903.
• Graflex, USA. From 1907 to 1926, the company was a division of Eastman Kodak.
• Century Camera Co., Rochester, USA. From 1908 to 1920, the company was a division of Eastman Kodak.
• Nagel, Stuttgart, Germany. Absorbed by Kodak in 1931. Based on Nagel, Kodak AG was created.
• Fotografiska AB, Gothenburg, Sweden - Swedish distributor Kodak. In 1966, sold Kodak by Victor Hasselblad.
• ENCAD, Inc., San Diego, USA is a manufacturer of large format inkjet printers. Absorbed by Kodak on November 15, 2001.
• Ofoto, Inc, California, USA - online photo service. Absorbed by Kodak in 2001.
• Laser-Pacific Media Corporation, California, USA is a post-production service for film studios (DVD production, etc.).
• Scitex Digital Printing, USA is a manufacturer of high-speed inkjet printers. Absorbed by Kodak in 2003.
• Applied Science Fiction Technologies, Austin, USA is the developer of Digital ICE film scanning technology. Absorbed by Kodak in 2003.
• Imaging business of National Semiconductor Corp., Santa Clara, USA is a manufacturer of sensors for digital camera matrices. Absorbed by Kodak in 2004.
• Chinon Industries, Japan. In 2004, it was absorbed by Kodak Japan.
• Creo Inc., Canada. Absorbed by Kodak in 2005.

Notes