• by Ray Schultz , August 25, 2022

Gannett Media Corp. has transferred $450 million of its pension liabilities to two unnamed insurers, the firm said in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. 

In addition, it will use a portion of its assets to purchase annuities from the two insurance companies.

Benefits will not be reduced, the company states.

The unnamed insurers will have responsibility for payments, administrative and customer service as of Nov. 1. Gannett will have no financial responsibility for those benefits after that date.  

The employees include “certain U.S. retirees and beneficiaries.” The filing does not state the number of employees. 

The news follows a dismal Q2 financial report showing a 6.9% decline in revenues YoY and a $53.7 million net loss. 

There have been a wave of layoffs following that report, with some putting the figure as high as 50 employees. 

In other Gannett news, the gaming community is buzzing about the company’s reworking of its deal with German sportsbook Tipico. 

Tipico will no longer have an exclusive with Gannett, according to Casino.org. Gannett CEO Mike Reed argued that Tipico has attained limited reach in the U.S.