Paper auction resumes

Bidding for the Philadelphia Inquirer, Daily News and philly.com has resumed this afternoon in New York after a brief recess.

Bidding for the Philadelphia Inquirer, Daily News and philly.com has resumed this afternoon in New York after a brief recess. The auction is the culmination of a contentious 14-month bankruptcy battle to determine who owns the newspapers.

After hours of legal wrangling stalled the auction, the bidding began at about 5 this morning. Local investors aligned with current management are battling the creditors for ownership. The third bidder, a Canadian Company had not yet placed a bid as of this morning.

Leaders of the Newspaper Guild, which represents the reporters, editors, and photographers met with representatives of the creditors late last night. The unions worried about a stipulation in the creditors bid that would fire all the workers, only to re-hire about half of them.

Bill Ross is Business Manager for the Newspaper Guild. Speaking on a cell phone on his way back into the auction, Ross says the creditors have relented.

“And after some back and forth they agreed to remove that provision, and it is no longer an issue, they will hire all the employees if they are the successful bidder.”

Ross says he’s not sure how long the auction will take. Whatever the outcome, a bankruptcy judge will have to approve the sale.