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Kodak Reports Continuing Progress in Digital Strategy; Company Well-Positioned for Sustained, Profitable Growth.


Graphic Communications Group Integration Activities Ahead of Schedule; New Products and New Market Segments Drive Growth

Consumer Digital Group Launches New Consumer Inkjet See inkjet printer.  Business; Image Sensor An image sensor is a device that converts a visual image to an electric signal. It is used chiefly in digital cameras and other imaging devices. It is usually an array of charge-coupled devices (CCD) or CMOS sensors such as active-pixel sensors.  Sales to Accelerate

Strengthened Financial Position and Positive Cash Flow Continues for 2007

Company Details Plans to Implement SG&A Reductions and Complete Major Restructuring restructuring - The transformation from one representation form to another at the same relative abstraction level, while preserving the subject system's external behaviour (functionality and semantics).  by End of 2007

NEW YORK New York, state, United States
New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of
 -- Eastman Kodak (company) Kodak - The photographic company responsible for Photo CD.

http://kodak.com/.
 Company (NYSE NYSE

See: New York Stock Exchange
:EK) today reported significant progress in the implementation of its digital business strategy, led by new product introductions across its consumer and commercial portfolio, the continued integration and growth of its Graphic Communications Group, and accelerated cost reductions that will follow the divestiture The breakup of AT&T. By federal court order, AT&T divested itself on January 1, 1984 of its 23 operating companies, which became known as the Regional Bell Operating Companies (RBOCs).  of its Health Group.

At a meeting today with investors, Kodak will detail the plan that the company is following to generate profitable digital growth in 2007 and to position itself for further success in 2008 and beyond. The presentation also will cover Kodak's plan to complete its major business restructuring by the end of 2007, as the company progresses toward its target business model. The company expects that target business model to yield gross profit margins Gross profit margin

Gross profit divided by sales, which is equal to each sales dollar left over after paying for the cost of goods sold.


gross profit margin

A measure calculated by dividing gross profit by net sales.
 of 28% to 29% with earnings from operations equal to 8% to 9% of revenue in 2009.

"During the past three years we have made visible and significant progress in creating the new Kodak," said Antonio M. Perez Antonio M. Perez is the current CEO of The Eastman Kodak Company, based in Rochester, NY. Perez has been part of Kodak since 2001. In February 2007, he led a launch event at Studio 8H in New York City to support the launch of the new Kodak EasyShare all-in-one printers supported by the , Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Eastman Kodak Company. "We have built the industry's leading provider of products and services for commercial printers, and this week we launched a long-awaited breakthrough value proposition for consumers in the inkjet market. In 2007, we are continuing to move aggressively to complete the transformation of our business operations Business operations are those activities involved in the running of a business for the purpose of producing value for the stakeholders. Compare business processes. The outcome of business operations is the harvesting of value from assets  and fully implement a business model which will power our future success in digital markets."

Business Units Poised for Profitable Growth

During 2006, the company's Consumer Digital Group made significant progress in achieving its digital operating model Operating Model is a term that is used in many contexts. In essence an operating model describes how an organization operates across both business and technology domains. The Operating Model describes what is important for the organization. , delivering a $132 million improvement in earnings and positive cash contribution for the year. For 2007, the company expects Consumer Digital Group revenues to be steady on a year-over-year basis, driven by new product introductions in consumer inkjet and image sensors and growth in the KODAK GALLERY and KODAK Picture Kiosks, partially offset by declines in consumer paper.

The company forecasted improved earnings for CDG (CDMA Development Group, Costa Mesa, CA, www.cdg.org) A membership organization founded in 1995 that promotes CDMA wireless systems worldwide. It is involved with developing new features and services and promoting standards that provide global compatibility and interoperability. , driven by image sensors, home printing, the KODAK GALLERY, KODAK Picture Kiosks and consumer paper, plus the benefit from the company's ongoing intellectual property licensing program.

"As an early investor in digital technology, Kodak has amassed a sizeable amount of extremely valuable intellectual property," said Perez. "We are committed to generating value from that asset by using it to drive business partnerships, provide the company with access to new markets and additional technology, and to generate earnings and cash."

For 2007, the company expects revenue and earnings from intellectual property licensing of at least $250 million.

The Graphic Communications Group continues to remain ahead of its integration plan and, in 2007, the company expects the business to grow digital revenue between 6% and 9% with expanding earnings. Key areas of profitable growth and market leadership for GCG GCG Genetics Computer Group
GCG Glucagon
GCG Good Corporate Governance
GCG Global Consumer Group
GCG Global Church of God
GCG Generalized Conjugate Gradient
GCG Global Change Game
GCG Geological Curators' Group
GCG Giant-Cell Granuloma
 include digital plates, inkjet printing solutions, document imaging, electrophotographic digital printing, and workflow The automatic routing of documents to the users responsible for working on them. Workflow is concerned with providing the information required to support each step of the business cycle.  software.

Financial Priorities

Kodak remains focused on three priorities as it continues to transform its business: net cash generation, digital earnings from operations and digital revenue growth.

For 2007, on a continuing operations continuing operations

Parts of a business that are expected to be maintained as an ongoing segment of an overall business operation. Income and losses from continuing operations are reported separately if any segments have been discontinued during the
 basis, Kodak expects net cash generation (formerly investable cash flow) of $100 million to $200 million after restructuring disbursements of approximately $600 million and an aggressive introduction plan for inkjet products. The company also expects to generate digital earnings from operations of $200 million to $300 million on digital revenue growth of 3% to 5%.

"As we enter the final year of our transformation, we are focused on completing the restructuring of our traditional operations, reducing debt, and refining refining, any of various processes for separating impurities from crude or semifinished materials. It includes the finer processes of metallurgy, the fractional distillation of petroleum into its commercial products, and the purifying of cane, beet, and maple sugar  our cost model in order to create a foundation for sustainable and profitable growth," said Frank S. Sklarsky, Chief Financial Officer, Eastman Kodak Company. "We continue to generate sufficient cash in order to fund these efforts, and also to support the launch of key new products that will drive our future growth in revenue and earnings."

Achieving the Targeted Cost Model

The company has set a goal of building a business model to achieve sustained success in digital markets, supported by achieving an SG&A level equal to 14% to 15% of revenue by 2009. For 2006, the company's SG&A level was approximately 18% of revenue.

"Our manufacturing cost reductions are in the final stages of implementation," said Sklarsky. "We defined what had to be done and the team has moved aggressively to do it. We are now bringing the same focus and intensity to driving reductions in our SG&A expenses in order to achieve our target business model."

As part of achieving these cost reductions, the company expects to make restructuring payments of $575 million to $625 million in 2007, with a focus on addressing the anticipated cost overhang Overhang

Calculated as stock options granted, plus the remaining options to still be granted, and then divided by the total shares outstanding.

Notes:
A high percentage for the overhang is usually a bad thing.
 following the completion of its Health Group divestiture. By the end of 2007, the company expects to have made substantial progress in establishing a business model that will support sustained profitable growth in the digital markets in which it operates.

Kodak's restructuring program was first announced in January 2004 and updated in July 2005 and August 2006. As of August 2006, the program anticipated the elimination of 25,000 to 27,000 positions and charges totaling $3.0 billion to $3.4 billion.

During the fourth quarter of 2006, the company eliminated approximately 1,200 positions, bringing the program's total to-date to approximately 23,400 positions along with cumulative charges of $2.7 billion.

Based on the restructuring and SG&A reduction actions to-date, and an understanding of the remaining actions to conclude these activities by the end of 2007, influenced by the divestiture of the Health Group, the company now expects that the total employment reductions will be in the range of 28,000 to 30,000 positions and total charges will be in the range of $3.6 billion to $3.8 billion. The company expects that these actions will allow it to conclude its major restructuring program by the end of 2007.

"Kodak is now a company comprised of numerous leading digital businesses with diverse sources of sales and earnings, coupled with strong intellectual property positions," said Perez. "Our dramatic operational improvements during the past three years have created a solid foundation from which Kodak will become a growing digital company with innovative new products and services, attractive margins and strong cash generation."

For those unable to attend in person, today's meeting will be available via a live webcast. To access the webcast please go to: http://www.kodak.com/go/invest

The meeting will also be teleconferenced in listen-only mode. To listen please call 913-981-5542 access code 1685146 or ask for the Kodak Investor Meeting.

An audio replay of the meeting will be available beginning Friday, February 9th at 9:00 a.m. and will run until 5:00 p.m. on Friday, February 16th ET. The replay phone number is 719-457-0820 and the reference number is 1685146.

Reconciliation of non-GAAP measures

Within this press release Kodak references certain non-GAAP financial measures, such as: Consumer Digital Group (CDG) digital revenue growth, Graphic Communications Group (GCG) digital revenue growth, net cash generation (formerly investable cash flow), digital earnings from operations, and digital revenue growth.

Kodak has prepared a reconciliation of these non-GAAP measures to the comparable GAAP GAAP

See: Generally Accepted Accounting Principles


GAAP

See generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP).
 measures. This additional information is posted in the Investor Center of Kodak's web site, http://www.kodak.com.

CAUTIONARY STATEMENT PURSUANT TO SAFE HARBOR Safe Harbor

1. A legal provision to reduce or eliminate liability as long as good faith is demonstrated.

2. A form of shark repellent implemented by a target company acquiring a business that is so poorly regulated that the target itself is less attractive.
 PROVISIONS OF THE PRIVATE SECURITIES LITIGATION REFORM ACT The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 (PSLRA) implemented several significant substantive changes affecting certain cases brought under the federal securities laws, including changes related to pleading, discovery, liability, class representation and awards fees and  OF 1995

Certain statements in this press release may be forward-looking in nature, or "forward-looking statements forward-looking statement

A projected financial statement based on management expectations. A forward-looking statement involves risks with regard to the accuracy of assumptions underlying the projections.
" as defined in the United States United States, officially United States of America, republic (2005 est. pop. 295,734,000), 3,539,227 sq mi (9,166,598 sq km), North America. The United States is the world's third largest country in population and the fourth largest country in area.  Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. For example, references to expectations for the Company's and the segments' business model, cost model, gross profit margin, earnings, digital earnings, revenue, digital revenue, new products, growth, declines in consumer paper, net cash generation, debt, cost reductions, reduction in SG&A, restructuring and restructuring charges restructuring charge

The expense of reorganizing a company's operations. A restructuring charge is an infrequent expense that generally results from asset writedowns or facility closings.
, and employment reductions.

Actual results may differ from those expressed or implied in forward-looking statements. In addition, any forward-looking statements represent the Company's estimates only as of the date they are made, and should not be relied upon as representing the Company's estimates as of any subsequent date. While the Company may elect to update forward-looking statements at some point in the future, the Company specifically disclaims any obligation to do so, even if its estimates change. The forward-looking statements contained in this report are subject to a number of factors and uncertainties, including the successful:

* execution of the digital growth and profitability strategies, business model and cash plan;

* implementation of the cost reduction programs;

* transition of certain financial processes and administrative functions to a global shared services shared services,
n.pl the administrative, clinical, or other service functions that are common to two or more hospitals or their health care facilities and used jointly or cooperatively by them.
 model and the outsourcing (1) Contracting with outside consultants, software houses or service bureaus to perform systems analysis, programming and datacenter operations. Contrast with insourcing. See netsourcing, ASP, SSP and facilities management.  of certain functions to third parties;

* implementation of, and performance under, the debt management program, including compliance with the Company's debt covenants;

* development and implementation of product go-to-market and e-commerce e-commerce, commerce conducted over the Internet, most often via the World Wide Web. E-commerce can apply to purchases made through the Web or to business-to-business activities such as inventory transfers.  strategies;

* protection, enforcement and defense of the Company's intellectual property, including defense of our products against the intellectual property challenges of others;

* implementation of intellectual property licensing and other strategies;

* completion of information systems upgrades, including SAP, the Company's enterprise system software;

* completion of various portfolio actions;

* reduction of inventories;

* integration of acquired businesses;

* improvement in manufacturing productivity and techniques;

* improvement in receivables Receivables

An asset designation applicable to all debts, unsettled transactions or other monetary obligations owed to a company by its debtors or customers. Receivables are recorded by a company's accountants and reported on the balance sheet, and they and include all debts owed
 performance;

* improvement in supply chain efficiency; and

* implementation of the strategies designed to address the decline in the Company's traditional businesses.

The forward-looking statements contained in this report are subject to the following additional risk factors:

* inherent unpredictability of currency fluctuations, commodity prices and raw material costs;

* competitive actions, including pricing;

* changes in the Company's debt credit ratings and its ability to access capital markets;

* the nature and pace of technology evolution;

* changes to accounting rules and tax laws, as well as other factors which could impact the Company's reported financial position or effective tax rate;

* general economic, business, geo-political and regulatory conditions;

* market growth predictions;

* continued effectiveness of internal controls; and

* other factors and uncertainties disclosed from time-to-time in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Any forward-looking statements in this report should be evaluated in light of these important factors and uncertainties.
COPYRIGHT 2007 Business Wire
No portion of this article can be reproduced without the express written permission from the copyright holder.
Copyright 2007, Gale Group. All rights reserved. Gale Group is a Thomson Corporation Company.

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Publication:Business Wire
Date:Feb 8, 2007
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