announcement on bt looksmart

Found this on cnbc. I hope it is good news......

LookSmart Resolves Joint Venture and Related Debt
December 04, 2002 07:00:00 AM ET

Company Now Substantially Debt-Free; Will Continue to Operate in Japan and the U.K.

SAN FRANCISCO, Dec. 4 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- LookSmart (Nasdaq: LOOK; ASX: LOK) today announced that it is restructuring its international operations. As part of the restructuring, LookSmart and BT Group (formerly British Telecommunications, plc) have agreed to close their joint venture, BT LookSmart, which operates in the United Kingdom and Japan. LookSmart will continue to operate independently in both markets and will integrate parts of BT LookSmart into its core operations. This restructuring reflects the natural alignment of BT LookSmart's operations with LookSmart's core business, a view shared by both BT and LookSmart.

LookSmart also announced that it has reached agreement with BT regarding the debt related to the joint venture. Under the terms of the agreement, BT will receive $3.5 million in cash and one million shares of LookSmart common stock in exchange for complete resolution of the joint venture and the related debt. In addition, LookSmart will return to BT $1.5 million in restricted cash that was designated solely for its funding of the joint venture, and LookSmart and BT will share equally any restructuring costs.

"We're pleased to announce this restructuring of LookSmart's international operations," said Jason Kellerman, chief executive officer of LookSmart. "We continue to see valuable opportunities for Internet search in the Japanese and U.K. markets. The progress BT LookSmart has made provides LookSmart with a strong platform for growth and this restructuring will enable us to take advantage of operating efficiencies not previously available. I want to thank BT for being a great partner over the past three years."

"This sensible resolution of the joint venture and related debt significantly strengthens LookSmart's balance sheet," said Dianne Dubois, chief financial officer of LookSmart. "The company is now substantially debt free and continuing to record strong growth driven by LookSmart's listings business. This resolution is an important step in LookSmart's progress towards GAAP profitability. In addition, we expect this change to have a positive impact on earnings in the fourth quarter and a negligible impact on earnings in the first part of 2003."