Magnús Scheving, the founder of LazyTown, has lost a controlling stake in the company after all creditors agreed to forced agreements. The company’s general meeting was held yesterday. The emergency contracts ensure the continued operation of the company. Before the changes, Magnús’ share was 50%, but now after the changes it is around 40%. All share capital has been reduced, and creditors’ debts were converted into new share capital. LazyTown’s biggest creditor is Landsbankinn.
Lose the copyright
Magnús’s share of the property after forced contracts is caused by unpaid copyright fees on the part of LazyTown. The fees will be converted into share capital, which will be around 40% of the total share capital, and in addition Magnús gives away the copyright to LazyTown. The business newspaper reported last February that there was a plan to reduce the entire share capital of LazyTown and convert bondholders’ claims into share capital. At that time, not all creditors had accepted the route.
Guðmundur Magnason, the managing director of LazyTown, did not want to comment to the business newspaper Viðskiptablað yesterday before the general meeting took place. The business newspaper contacted two creditors who have entered into forced agreements. One of them told the newspaper that this was the best result in light of the situation, even though he was not at all satisfied with the company’s operations recently. Most of the creditors would have considered their interests best served by accepting the forced agreements. One creditor had pulled out at the last minute but accepted the deal in the end.
June 24, 2010
Viðskiptablað – vb.is
Due to the dispute between Magnús Scheving, the founder of LazyTown, and Arion bank, it was not possible to conclude a forced agreement at LazyTown’s follow-up general meeting on Monday.
The general meeting was originally supposed to take place on Tuesday last week. However, it was not finished then and a follow-up general meeting was called on Monday. When that meeting failed, another meeting had to be held yesterday.
The business newspaper Viðskiptablað did not receive information whether they were able to complete the forced contracts before the paper went to press. Magnús’ dispute with Arion is not directly related to the operation of LazyTown, but to the settlement of a company owned by him and his wife, Ragnheiðar Melsted.
The company is called Fimur ehf. and owes according to the annual accounts for 2009 almost 200 million ISK. According to the sources of the Business Newspaper, Magnús incurred that debt when LazyTown was in financial trouble and there was a lack of money for the business.
It is believed that the settlement between Magnús and Arion bank is related to this company (Fimur ehf.), according to the information of the Business Journal. Magnús was not ready to complete the reorganization of LazyTown on Monday until his and Arion’s affairs were settled.
July 23, 2010
Viðskiptablað – vb.is
In recent months, the company has gone through a reorganization that is now complete. As Viðskiptablað has reported, the restructuring of the company has been somewhat difficult in the beginning and took time. It includes, among other things, that the property of the previous shareholder is written down and claims against the company are converted into share capital.
The new board consists of Finnur Reyr Stefánsson, Ragnheiður Pétursdóttir Melsteð, Guðjón Már Guðjónsson, Arnar Róbertsson and Tómas Þorvaldsson, who is the chairman of the board. Ragnheiður is the wife of Magnús Scheving, the founder of LazyTownjar. The ownership share of the company’s new shareholders was not disclosed.
Posted By
LazyTown stands stronger than ever. The company's relatives are big-hearted and seem to have every reason to be optimistic about the business in the coming years. "We have just become part of the Turner group, which in turn is part of Time Warner. Those agreements were finalized late 2011, and the purpose, among other things, to bring on board an owner who has the right distribution channels," say...
LazyTown is shown in 170 countries and reaches children in 500 million homes. The company has around 300 active contracts at any given time, both with television stations and a variety of producers who have signed an agreement to use the brand. Now LazyTown plans t...
Work is being done to update Sportacus's costume, and for that reason, Thi Theu Hanyaka came to the country to get the job done. "It's been great and I love everyone here at LazyTown. Icelanders are very nice people, even the taxi drivers are normal, unlike what I'...
Hallgrímur Kristinsson has been appointed head of business development at LazyTown. It is stated in the employment notice that Hallgrímur has worked closely with Magnús Scheving, CEO and founder of LazyTown, and its board. Hallgrímur has more than 15 years o...