Eastman Kodak Company announced on 07 November that it had "completed the sale of its Image Sensor Solutions business to Platinum Equity in a move that will sharpen Kodak's operational focus and strengthen its financial position."

While the financials of the transaction have not been disclosed, Reuters and The Wall Street Journal estimate that the sale brought no more than $200m to Kodak.

As part of the deal, Kodak says that it will continue to have "access to the image sensor technology involved in this transaction for use in its own products."

For the past months, and as Kodak has faced weakening financial results, the Rochester-based company had said that it would be selling some of the assets it deemed "not central to its transformation to a profitable, sustainable digital company." It adds: "This sale is aligned with that strategy to generate cash to complete the transformation."

Platinum Equity, a financial firm specialising in mergers, acquisitions and operations, has also acquired, as part of this transaction, a 263,000 square foot facility in Eastman Business Park in Rochester, New York.

Kodak's sensors have been used in a variety of digital cameras over the past 30 years, including models by Canon, Hasselblad, Nikon and Phase One among many others. Leica, for example, has been using Kodak's sensors in its M8, M9 and S2 models.

In a statement, Pradeep Jotwani, Kodak's consumer digital imaging group president, explains that the sale will maximise shareholder value. "Image Sensor Solutions is a business that is well-positioned in the high-performance imaging markets in which it participates. This sale maximizes shareholder value by obtaining a full and fair valuation for this business, and allows Kodak to increase its financial flexibility."

It remains unclear whether the sale will result in job losses at Kodak's ISS division.

More details soon...