Print Ad Firm Declares Bankruptcy

MANHATTAN (CN) – Print-focused ad company Metro Newspaper Advertising Services filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in Manhattan federal court, and documents show the company indebted to more than 2,000 publications.

The Yonkers, N.Y.-based advertising company listed less than $10 million in assets and between $10 million and $50 million in estimated liabilities as of Monday, when it filed the bankruptcy papers.

The company was founded in 1932 and services more than 80 advertising agencies and over 200 major national advertisers.

Its annual revenue has reportedly fallen by almost $100 million over the last decade since the financial crisis in 2008, with the majority of the company's business continuing to focus on print advertising and free-standing inserts in an increasingly digital era.

According to the court papers, Metro Newspaper Advertising’s largest debt is the $1.3 million owed to ad placement company MJS Communications, which specializes in target marketing to college students, military personnel, and Hispanic and African-African niche demographics.

Metro also owes nearly $1 million to the Chicago Tribune and $740,000 to the San Francisco Chronicle/Hearst Corporation, court records show.

The company owes smaller amounts to the Los Angeles Times, Dow Jones/Wall Street Journal, Boston Globe and the San Diego Union Tribune.

In all, more than 2,000 creditors are listed in the bankruptcy filing.

A meeting of creditors, which is required by section 341 of the Bankruptcy Code, is scheduled for April 26 at the White Plains Courthouse.

Metro is being represented by attorney Jonathan Pasternak of DelBello Donnellan in White Plains, N.Y.

The 250-page bankruptcy paperwork includes a 237-page list of newspaper and publishing creditors, verified by Metro Chairman and CEO Phyllis Cavaliere.

The United States Trustee Program is represented in the case by Serene Nakano of the Department of Justice.

The case has been assigned to U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Robert Drain.

Representatives for Metro did not immediately respond to requests for comment Wednesday afternoon.

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