Trustee sees path to paying judgment given growth in revenues, new business lines

VidAngel, which provides edited versions--no nudity, "unwanted" language, violence--of video content streamed on Netflix and Amazon Prime, said its trustee in bankruptcy has filed a reorganization plan.

VidAngel said growth in revenues and the success of new lines of business, like original show The Chosen, have led trustee George Hoffman to conclude the company has a path to paying off the court judgment against it over the next 14 years.

VidAngel’s appeal of the California court judgment it currently has to pay off will continue, investors in the company can keep their shares and VidAngel management and board get to stay.

“Bankruptcy law was established by Congress to give companies a chance to rehabilitate, get back on their feet, pay their creditors, and continue to move forward," said Hoffman, according to a statement supplied by the company. "VidAngel has a reorganization plan that does just that. After entry of an adverse judgment in an amount that, initially, seemed insurmountable, the company’s business and revenues are growing, and the company is expanding into new lines of business. According to third party financial experts hired to advise me in the reorganization process, VidAngel’s robust growth makes paying the judgment in full feasible. I look forward to the court confirming a plan so that VidAngel can emerge from bankruptcy, pay its debts and focus on growing a great business.”

VidAngel formerly edited DVDs to create what they argued were family friendlier versions of Hollywood fare, but a court injunction caused it to seek bankruptcy protection and at the same time shift to filtering language and content for streamed versions on Netflix, Amazon Prime and HBO via iOS, Android and Roku.

Ultimately, the court awarded the studios $64.2 million.

“We would not be in this position today were it not for the support and loyalty of our customers, investors, and the resilient VidAngel team," said VidAngel CEO Neal Harmon. "We’ve gone from avoiding threats of a shutdown to being able to say, ‘just send us the bill’."