Amazon.com to buy back debt
Internet giant to exchange $399 million in debt for stock
By Danny King -- Video Business, 8/19/2008
AUG. 18 | Amazon.com next month will buy back $399 million in debt, letting debt holders exchange their notes for stock and effectively eliminating its long-term debt.
The notes, which paid an interest rate of 4.75%, were due next year, the world’s largest Internet retailer said in a statement today.
Amazon last month said it had $433 million in long-term debt as of June 30, down from $1.28 billion at the end of last year.
The company, which doesn’t break out digital sales, said its second-quarter earnings doubled as it boosted sales of electronics goods while experiencing continued growth overseas.
In July, Amazon added video-on-demand streaming to its existing Unbox download offerings.
