Penthouse International Inc.'s flagship publication Penthouse reportedly paid employees only 25 percent of their usual salaries this week, just the latest sign that the adult magazine may be close to shutting their doors.
In a story published by Newsweek.com, employees revealed that they had been told the monthly magazine had been unable to pay their printing costs, thus the lack of a new issue from late April until early July.
Lainie Speiser, a spokeswoman for Penthouse, insisted the magazine had no cash-flow problems. She explained the lack of new issue by saying the magazine had changed its publication schedule. There is a new issue currently on newsstands – though Speiser would not confirm or deny that it could be the last.
Further complicating Penthouse’s financial matters, Kennedy Funding may foreclose on the Penthouse Mansion in New York on Tuesday because of a $15 million dollar debt.
Penthouse's circulation has fallen from a peak of about 5 million during the 1970s to about 500,000. Unlike Hustler or Playboy, Penthouse failed to diversify their assets beyond their print empire to a significant extent. Last year nearly 85 percent of the adult publishing company’s assets were from their print publications.
The Penthouse Boutique that opens in Milford, Connecticut later this week will not be affected by Penthouse International Inc.'s financial woes. Horizon Media owns the store and their licensing deal to use the Penthouse brand remains unchanged.
