$20 Million Writedown for Playboy

CHICAGO: Playboy Enterprises says its third-quarter results will include a write-down charge of more than $20 million on its TV programming inventory.

The quarter will also include a bad debt expense of approximately $1 million and domestic TV contra revenues of approximately $3 million that it says it is owned by DIRECTV. The satellite platform is withholding payments over with a lawsuit filed in California Superior Court alleging that Playboy was in breach of its contract. Playboy says that the platform is wrongfully withholding payment and that its allegations are "unfounded and premature."

The third-quarter earnings will be announced November 9.