A division of SeaChange International Inc. (Nasdaq: SEAC) has polished off some last-minute business for 2007 by selling off its stake in FilmFlex Movies to two other existing shareholders in a £9 million (US $17.8 million) cash deal.

According to an 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Monday, SeaChange's U.K.-based On Demand Group Limited (ODG) subsidiary sold its shares in FilmFlex to The Walt Disney Company and Columbia Pictures Corp. Ltd. (Sony Corp. (NYSE: SNE).)

FilmFlex is a video-on-demand aggregator that counts Virgin Media Inc. (Nasdaq: VMED) as its primary customer.

In connection with the deal, SeaChange said it will issue £1.6 million (US $3.1 million) in shares of SeaChange to former shareholders of ODG. SeaChange shares closed Monday at $7.23 each, down 20 cents (2.69%) for the day.

Prior to the sale, ODG owned 1,050,000 shares of FilmFlex. SeaChange did not explain its decision to shed its stake in FilmFlex, but noted that the deal prohibits ODG and its affiliates, including SeaChange, from "engaging in certain competitive activities" prior to Dec. 31, 2009, including the provision of any video-on-demand movies or films on any Virgin Media network in the United Kingdom and Ireland.

— Jeff Baumgartner, Site Editor, Cable Digital News