Redstone sells stake in Midway Games: filing

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Sumner Redstone has sold his stake in video game company Midway Games Inc MWY.N, according to a filing on Monday, as the media mogul tries to bolster the finances of his theater chain company, National Amusements Inc.

Redstone, National Amusements and another related company, Sumco Inc, collectively sold a stake of around 87.2 percent they held in Midway Games, according to the filing.

National Amusements has about $1.6 billion in debt outstanding. Half of that, some $800 million, will need to be repaid by year's end.

The company had already sold about $230 million in its shares of CBS Corp (CBS.N) and Viacom (VIAb.N) to help meet debt payments, and has been in talks with banks in hopes of avoiding a debt crunch.

The Wall Street Journal earlier reported that the Midway stake was sold to investor Mark Thomas.

The report said the sale amounts to a significant loss on Redstone's investment, but secures a hefty tax benefit as he negotiates other asset sales.

(Reporting by Ritsuko Ando in New York and Sakthi Prasad in Bangalore; Editing by Maureen Bavdek)