(Bloomberg) -- Chicken Soup for the Soul Entertainment Inc., the purveyor of self-help books and owner of DVD rental firm Redbox Entertainment Inc., is considering issuing new preferred equity among a range of options to stave off a cash crunch, according to people with knowledge of the matter. 

The media company has held discussions with potential investors over the potential equity raise said the people, who asked not to be identified because discussions are private. It’s also considered raising new debt as well as asset sales, regulatory filings show.

A representative for Chicken Soup for the Soul declined to comment. Representatives for HPS Investment Partners, its largest lender, did not respond to requests for comment.

The Connecticut-based company was founded in 1993 and is known for its namesake feel-good books. It later expanded into film and television programming and video streaming, as well as pet food. In 2022, it acquired Redbox, which operates DVD rental kiosks and offers online streaming rentals.

The company had around $4.1 million of cash as of Sept. 30, and has struggled to service $360 million of debt it took on as part of its combination with Redbox, it said in a filing. It had predicated its ability to service the debt on movie releases returning closer to pre-pandemic levels as well as cost savings.

After failing to close a new loan last year, Chicken Soup for the Soul wasn’t able to purchase all the movies it was offered, further hampering its performance, according to the filing. The company worked to cut costs, but lost contracts with some of its content providers amid its woes. It hired advisers to help with asset sales, received term sheets for new loans and has held discussions to modify its existing loan agreement.

The company’s shares have lost more than 95% of their value in the last year, and now trade for less than 19 cents.

--With assistance from John Sage.

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