Donnelley Takes Its Ball and Goes Home

R.R. Donnelley announced late today that it is giving up, for now anyway, on its efforts to buy rival printer Quebecor World.

RRD's third offer in less than a month to buy QW expired, RRD announced today, even though the proposal was "undoubtedly" better for creditors than QW's plan to emerge from bankruptcy next month, a company-issued statement said. RRD made the third offer on Monday; QW's board rejected it the same day.

"This would have been an excellent fit for RR Donnelley and the best opportunity for the Quebecor World creditors. However, given our view of the Quebecor World operations, a transaction ascribing a higher value to Quebecor World than we offered in our last proposal is simply not in the interests of RR Donnelley,” RRD's president and CEO, Thomas J. Quinlan III, said in the statement.

And here is Quinlan's kicker: “We look forward to continuing to pursue other strategic initiatives."

What other "strategic initiatives" does he have in mind? Since part of Donnelley's stated interest in QW was entry into the Canadian market, will it go after the other big Canada-based printer, Transcontinental Inc.? Or how about a sizable U.S. rival, such as Cenveo or Vertis? Or what about a post-bankruptcy Quebecor World?

Or maybe "strategic initiatives" just means "ways to remain profitable while round-heeled competitors keep dropping prices to get their idle presses running again."