Charles Rivkin, chief executive of the Jim Henson Company, creator of the Muppets, is planning a management buy-out from German media group, EM.TV, according to a report this week in the UK's Financial Times.

The paper said that Rivkin and other Jim Henson managers were canvassing US private equity houses to meet the almost $200 m (£141 m) price tag for the company. An EM.TV spokesperson confirmed that a management buy-out was one of the options being considered by the media group, which was rescued by rival, the Kirch Group, earlier this year after suffering mounting debts.

EM.TV is also looking at the possibility of seeking a strategic partner to exploit the US side of the Jim Henson Company.