/raid1/www/Hosts/bankrupt/TCREUR_Public/010517.mbx          T R O U B L E D   C O M P A N Y   R E P O R T E R

                                        E U R O P E

                    Thursday, May 17, 2001, Vol. 2, No. 97


                                         Headlines

* B E L G I U M *

LERNOUT & HAUSPIE:  Announces Resignation of Two Board Members
LERNOUT & HAUSPIE: Reschedules Shareholders Meeting
SABENA SA:  Appoints Johan Vanneste as President & CEO
SABENA SA:  Sabena Technics Staff Goes Back to Work

* F R A N C E *

MOULINEX SA:  Delays Restructuring Plan

* G E R M A N Y *

BIODATA INFORMATION:  First Quarter Net Loss Widens

* H U N G A R Y *

MALEV AIRLINES:  Reaches Agreement With British Airways

* P O L A N D *

PHU ROBERT:  Fights to Survive
ZYWIEC GROUP:  Posts Net Loss of 32.1 Million Zlotys

* S W I T Z E R L A N D *

SWISSAIR GROUP:  Swissair Signs Marketing Agreement

* U N I T E D   K I N G D O M *

BALTIMORE TECHNOLOGIES:  Baltimore Announces Job Cuts
BRITISH TELECOM:  BT Sells Open to Bskyb
GAMEPLAY PLC:  German Subsidiary Asks for Court Protection
GAMEPLAY PLC:  May Not Reach Profitability
NTL INCORPORATED:  Closes Sale of NCC's Convertible Snr Notes


=============
B E L G I U M
=============


LERNOUT & HAUSPIE:  Announces Resignation of Two Board Members
--------------------------------------------------------------
Business Wire  May 15, 2001

Lernout & Hauspie Speech Products N.V. (EASDAQ: LHSP, OTC: LHSPQ)
(`L&H' or `the Company'), a world leader in speech and language
technology, products, and services, today announced that the
Board of Directors has accepted the resignations of directors
Hubert Detremmerie and Francis Vanderhoydonck.

Following these resignations, the board appointed as directors
Messrs. Philippe Bodson, the Company's president and chief
executive officer, and Etienne Davignon, vice chairman of Societe
Generale de Belgique (SGB), Belgium's leading financial services
holding company. In addition, the three members of the board's
audit committee, Messrs. Dirk Cauwelier, Marc De Pauw and Erwin
Vandendriessche, all of whom are independent directors under the
Company's Articles of Association, have been asked and have
agreed to remain on the Company's board. The current board
composition is subject to confirmation of each individual board
member by the Annual General Shareholders' Meeting in June.

In addition to his position at SGB, board appointee and Belgian
national Etienne Davignon serves as vice chairman of Belgian-
based Fortis and Tractebel. He is also a director on the boards
of Anglo American, BASF, ICL, the Royal Sporting Club of
Anderlecht, Sofina, Solvay, Suez Lyonnaise des Eaux, as well as
several SGB group companies. Before joining SGB in 1985, Mr.
Davignon held numerous high-level posts within the Belgian
government and the administration of the European Economic
Community (EEC). During his tenure at the EEC, Mr. Davignon was
active in the restructuring of various sectors of the European
economy, including the steel, textile and synthetic fiber
industries. Currently, he is also the chairman of the Advisory
Board of the Business Network for Corporate Responsibility (CSR)
as well as chairman of the Association for the Monetary Union of
Europe, a position he has held since 1991. Mr. Davignon's
complete professional biography can be found on L&H's Web site at
www.lhsl.com/company/bios.

Commenting on Mr. Davignon's appointment to L&H's Board of
Directors, Philippe Bodson said: "Etienne is a welcome addition
to our board. As a board member of several prominent Belgian and
European companies, he brings to L&H extensive corporate
governance experience. His vast leadership experience in both the
private and public sectors over the last four decades also make
him a strong complement to our board, and will serve us well as
we guide L&H through its reorganization."


LERNOUT & HAUSPIE: Reschedules Shareholders Meeting
---------------------------------------------------

L&H also announced the postponement of the Company's Annual
General Shareholders' Meeting, Business Wire said Tuesday. The
meeting has been rescheduled from June 5 to June 29, 2001, due to
a scheduling conflict with the Meeting of Creditors, which has
been scheduled for June 5 by the Ieper Commercial Court in
accordance with Concordat proceedings. Details of the
shareholders' meeting, such as its location, will be announced at
a later date.

The Notarial Deed of the minutes (in Dutch) of L&H's April 27
Extraordinary Shareholders' Meeting will be posted on the
Company's Web site on May 15 and will also be available to the
public at L&H's headquarters in Ieper, Belgium. An English
translation of the minutes is being prepared and will be posted
to the Company's Web site at a soon to be announced date.


SABENA SA:  Appoints Johan Vanneste as President & CEO
------------------------------------------------------

Sabena Group regional subsidiary D.A.T.'s Board of Directors
designated M. Johan VANNESTE as President & CEO, replacing M.
Claude Palmero who left the company end of April. M. Johan
Vanneste was Managing Director of Air Belgium International
between 1996 and 2000, a company press release said Tuesday.

Engineer in Plane Manufacturing from Technical School in Haarlem
and graduated in Management from the V.U.B. (Free University of
Brussels), Johan Vanneste gained a large experience in civil
aviation. He successively worked at Asco Aero Industries, Stiles,
Belgavia and Air Belgium, where he was Managing Director until
2000. He is also President of BATA, Belgian Air Transport
Association, and followed various tuitions in plane maintenance,
air safety and crew management.

Christoph Mller, President of D.A.T.'s Board of Directors and
Sabena Managing Director, warmly welcomed Johan Vanneste's
arrival at one of Sabena Group's main subsidiaries' top : "Johan
Vanneste demonstrated at Air Belgium that he is a very skilled
manager, driven by company's safety and sane financial
performance. He is a team leader keen in developing a good social
dialogue. I wish him success for that new challenging position."

Johan Vanneste starts on May 15, and will be fully operational as
soon as the Belgian Aviation Administration will have agreed on
his nomination.


SABENA SA:  Sabena Technics Staff Goes Back to Work
---------------------------------------------------

The workers of Sabena Technics unit went back to work on May 15,
2001 right after a meeting between union officials on Monday was
revealed that across the board wage increases are not possible
for the next two years. The reason is due to Sabena's financial
situation, AFX News reported Tuesday.

The unions called a strike on Friday after knowing that Sabena
would exclude them from plans to offer a higher wage to attract
new recruits.

Sabena reported a net loss of 325 million euros in 2000 versus a
loss of 14 million in 1999.


===========
F R A N C E
===========

MOULINEX SA:  Delays Restructuring Plan
---------------------------------------

Moulinex SA has postponed starting an employee consulting
procedure over its restructuring until May 28, 2001 at the
request of trade unions, Les Echos reported, citing union
sources.

The broad thrust of the restructuring was unveiled on April 26,
the May 11 edition of AFX News said.

The company presented a rescue plan to unions that includes 4,000
job cuts, including nearly 1,500 in France, 1,700 in Poland and
the rest of Europe.

The restructuring plan would aim to make the company profitable
by 2005.


=============
G E R M A N Y
=============


BIODATA INFORMATION:  First Quarter Net Loss Widens
---------------------------------------------------

Biodata Information Technology AG revealed its first quarter net
loss of 2.85 million euros versus against a loss of 1.7 million
in 2000, according to AFX News on Tuesday.

Operating costs rose 85 percent to 4.76 million euros as a result
of investment in distribution, marketing and technology.
Investment in research and development rose 163 percent to 1.58
million euros, said the company.

Biodata develops and produces electronic security application for
communication and computer networks.


=============
H U N G A R Y
=============


MALEV AIRLINES:  Reaches Agreement With British Airways
-------------------------------------------------------
Malev Hungarian Airlines Press Release on May 11, 2001:

Agreement was reached between Malev Hungarian Airlines and
British Airways late in the evening of May 11, 2001. On this
basis the Aviation Directorate of the Ministry of Transport and
Water Management, through the consistent assertion of Hungarian
interests, has approved the summer 2001 schedules of the
airlines, and thus Malev will continue operating its flights to
London from May 14, 2001.

According to the agreement, British Airways will withdraw its
third flight from June 4 and at the same time it will submit for
licensing a schedule which represents a compromise solution for
Malev although the airline is prepared to accept it in the
interest of ensuring undisturbed passenger flights.


===========
P O L A N D
===========


PHU ROBERT:  Fights to Survive
------------------------------

PHU Robert one of the largest Polish commercial networks was
declared insolvent, Rzeczpospolita and World Reporter reported
Saturday.

The situation was due to strong competition from foreign
commercial companies and costly investments in relation to
opportunities.

The firm has total debts of 40 million zlotys. The company
chairman owns 53 percent of PHU Robert shares. Auchan, the French
company owns 45 shares. The company appealed against the
sentence, hoping to recover from its difficulties.


ZYWIEC GROUP:  Posts Net Loss of 32.1 Million Zlotys
----------------------------------------------------

Zywiec reported a consolidated net loss of 32.1 million zlotys
($8 million) in the first quarter of this year, Reuters said
Tuesday.

The brewer company did not disclose comparable consolidated
figures for the same period of 2000.

Earlier Zywiec said it turned to an unconsolidated net loss of
1.3 million zlotys in the first three months of 2001 versus a net
profit of 5.8 million zlotys in the same period of last year.


=====================
S W I T Z E R L A N D
=====================


SWISSAIR GROUP:  Swissair Signs Marketing Agreement
---------------------------------------------------

The Swissair Group and the International Olympic Committee (IOC)
are entering a comprehensive partnership, according to a company
press release May 15, 2001.

The agreement calls for the Swissair Group to provide services
and support to the IOC and to assist in broad-based promotional
measures as part of the IOC's worldwide campaign. Effective
immediately, Swissair is also the official airline of the IOC and
will serve as the IOC's preferred airline for passenger and cargo
transportation. The cooperation also includes Swissair Group
companies Crossair, The Nuance Group and Swisscargo.

The cooperation takes effect on May 15, 2001 and runs through
2004. The agreement also has a renewal option that may extend the
cooperation through 2008. Swissair receives the right to call
itself the 'Official Airline of the International Olympic
Committee,' to use the five-ring Olympic logo and to distribute
corresponding promotional material on board its aircraft.
Swissair and Swisscargo will be the preferred means of passenger
and cargo transport for the IOC. The Nuance Group will serve as a
strategic partner for the further development of the Olympic
store concept, which was launched very successfully at the Sydney
2000 Olympic Games and will also be prominent at the 2004 Games
in Athens. Corresponding cooperation models are also being
prepared for others business sectors such as Gate Gourmet.

The Swissair Group and its airlines will grant the IOC special
conditions on flight tickets and cargo rates while also
supporting the IOC's worldwide promotional campaign and promoting
the Olympic spirit by distributing information to customers on
board flights and in the Nuance shops. Enhanced promotional
activities will also include various National Olympic Committees.
The agreement also calls for greater joint promotion of the
Olympic Museum, located in Lausanne, Switzerland.

AP Online said Swissair lost $1.7 billion in 2000 and has been in
turmoil since leading management figures and board members were
forced out earlier this year.


===========================
U N I T E D   K I N G D O M
===========================


BALTIMORE TECHNOLOGIES:  Baltimore Announces Job Cuts
-----------------------------------------------------

Nearly 100 million pounds was wiped off the market value of
Baltimore Technologies as deepening first quarter losses forced
it to announced 250 redundancies, The Times reported yesterday.

The Internet security software group will seek to cut costs by 35
million pounds after a first quarter pretax loss rose to 72.8
million pounds against 7.2 million pounds in 2000.

This year Baltimore issued two warnings within three weeks,
claiming that delayed orders had dented its expected revenue
growth of 25 million pounds for the quarter.

The company expects to return to profitability by 2002.


BRITISH TELECOM:  BT Sells Open to Bskyb
----------------------------------------

British Telecom announced on Tuesday that it has exercised its
option to sell its 19.9 per cent holding in BiB(Open) to BSkyB.
The sale and purchase agreement with BSkyB was announced in July
last year and has now been completed following regulatory
clearance, a company press release said on May 15, 2001.

BT will receive payment from BSkyB in tranches over the next two
years. The first tranche, consisting of approximately 19.1
million BSkyB shares, will be delivered 45 days after yesterday's
option exercise. As the second tranche, BT will receive BSkyB
shares or loan notes with a value of around o120 million, which
will be released in 18 months time. A further tranche, in BSkyB
shares or loan notes, also to a value of around o120 million, may
be paid in 2003 depending on the BiB business reaching a
specified valuation.

On receipt of each tranche of BSkyB shares, BT will be free to
sell up to 50% at any time. There are 12 month lock-up provisions
in respect of the remaining 50% of each tranche.

Andy Green, CEO of BTopenworld, BT's mass market Internet Service
Provider which has included Open in its portfolio of businesses,
said: "The sale of our holding in BiB is part of BTopenworld's
strategy to focus financial and operational resources on our core
BTopenworld branded Internet Services and to maximise value for
shareholders."

According to newspaper reports British Telecom is unloading and
spinning off assets in a drive to cut its heavy debt.


GAMEPLAY PLC:  German Subsidiary Asks for Court Protection
----------------------------------------------------------

Gameplay PLC has notified the investors that their subsidiary
Gameplay GmbH has made an application to the German Insolvency
Court for protection and appointment of an administrator for its
German operation, according to a press release in Frankfurt Stock
Exchange May 15, 2001.

The losses resulting from the write-off of the book values in the
Gameplay GmbH shareholding have already been anticipated for the
most part. Computec Media AG is entitled to exchange its
shareholding in Gameplay GmbH into around 2.4 million shares in
Gameplay PLC, Computec Media AG will exercise its right
immediately.


GAMEPLAY PLC:  May Not Reach Profitability
------------------------------------------

Troubled online games retailer Gameplay PLC said lower than
expected proceeds from the sale of assets mean that the firm may
not have enough cash to reach profitability, the May 15 edition
of AFX said.

The company had sold Nordic and UK Boxed Games businesses,
Gameplay Sweden AB and Gameplay Ltd, to their respective
management teams. Gameplay expects that total cash released from
these transactions will exceed 1.8 million sterlings.


NTL INCORPORATED:  Closes Sale of NCC's Convertible Snr Notes
-------------------------------------------------------------
Business Wire  May 15, 2001

NTL Incorporated (NYSE: NLI; Nasdaq Europe: NTLI) announced today
that its wholly-owned subsidiary, NTL Communications Corp., has
closed the sale of $1 billion of 6 3/4 % Convertible Senior Notes
Due 2008 (the "Convertible Notes"). The Company also announced
that an over-allotment option for the sale of an additional $150
million in Convertible Notes had been exercised, which is
expected to close later this week. The Convertible Notes are
convertible into NTL Incorporated common stock and have a
conversion price of $32.728 per share. NTL Incorporated is a co-
obligor under the Convertible Notes on a subordinated basis. A
portion of the proceeds of the offering will be used partially to
fund the businesses' needs during the next three years.

The Convertible Notes and the common stock issuable on the
conversion of the Convertible Notes will not have been registered
under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "Securities
Act"), or any state securities laws, and unless so registered,
may not be offered or sold except pursuant to an exemption from,
or in a transaction not subject to, the registration requirements
of the Securities Act and applicable
state securities laws.

                                  ************

          S U B S C R I P T I O N   I N F O R M A T I O N

Troubled Company Reporter -- Europe is a daily newsletter co-
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USA, and Beard Group, Inc., Washington, DC USA. Kimberly MacAdam,
and Ma. Cristina D. Pernites, Editors.

Copyright 2001.  All rights reserved.  ISSN 1529-2754.

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