It might sound hard to fathom, but Playboy Enterprises could find itself under the control of someone other than Hugh Hefner.
Last week, Hefner announced that he wants to buy all of Playboy’s shares and take the company private.
But Marc Bell, CEO of FriendFinder Networks, the parent company of Penthouse magazine, has said he will be announcing an alternative offer possibly as early as this week.
Hefner made his announcement in a letter to the Playboy board of directors, saying he wants to take the company private in a deal worth an estimated $185 million.
“Hefner has offered to buy all shares he doesn’t currently own for $5.50 per share in cash, a premium of about 40 percent to its closing price of $3.94 on July 9,” Reuters reported.
Hefner has reportedly partnered with private-equity company Rizvi Traverse Management LLC in his bid to regain control of Playboy Enterprises, whose profits now come mostly from licensing deals.
“Hefner said in a statement he is concerned about the Playboy brand and the namesake magazine’s editorial direction,” according to the Wall Street Journal.
Not surprisingly, Hefner is said to be staunchly opposed to either an outright sale of Playboy or a partnership with other bidders.
In his letter to Playboy’s board of directors, Hefner said he has no plans to sell his shares or the company, rejecting any suggestion that there should be a merger between Playboy and other potential bidders.
“Playboy’s board described Hefner’s offer letter as a proposal and said there was no guarantee it would get any formal bid from him. But if it does, the board of directors will form a special committee to consider the bid.”
