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Musical instrument company Roli files for administration, will relaunch as Luminary
Roli, the modular musical instrument business co-owned by Pharrell Williams and Grimes, has entered administration in the UK and will relaunch as Luminary.
Mars One could live again thanks to a mystery investor
Bankrupt Martian colony startup Mars One says it's holding talks with an undisclosed investor to revive its for-profit arm. In a press release, the German company claims to have found a potential savior that could help pay off the one million Euros ($1.1 million) it owes creditors.
One of the UK's largest electronics retailers is broke
Many years ago, Maplin was the place to go if you needed a VGA to Scart cable, a weird battery or a new charger for your Samsung flip phone before there were industry standards for that kind of thing. It's the UK equivalent of RadioShack, and the only well-known highstreet chain still selling obscure electronics. Next to aisles of every cable and converter you could imagine, you'll often find random delights such as a smoke machines and soldering stations. In more recent years, Maplin started stocking products with a broader appeal, like Nest thermostats, Amazon Fire TV sticks and Google Home speakers. It even launched a smart home consultation service late last year, but the change in tack hasn't rescued the retailer from going broke.
UK Android upstart Wileyfox goes into administration
When UK phone maker Wileyfox burst onto the smartphone scene in August 2015, the company positioned itself as a small company that operated on small margins, with a plan to sell powerful but low-cost Android handsets. Its first two phones -- the Swift and the Storm -- delivered on that promise, earning favourable reviews for their premium design and impressive spec sheet. The company's next releases, however, didn't fare as well. It was forced to ditch the Cyanogen operating system and build its own Android platform, which ultimately led to it offering reduced prices if you didn't mind putting up with lockscreen ads.
White House temporarily shuts down 'We the People' petition site
The "We the People" site was launched back in 2011 as a way for the rank and file citizens to get a response from the Obama administration if they were able to get 100,000 signatures on any given petition. The site will now be unavailable until late January, and the Associated Press reports that all existing petitions and responses will be restored next year.
The death of Phones4u is still playing out
It's been nearly two and a half years since Phones4u folded, but the aftermath of the company's abrupt closure is still being felt. Thanks to a recent employment tribunal, 400 former staff have been awarded 12 weeks redundancy pay on the basis there was no consultation period ahead of the layoffs -- not unusual when a firm suddenly implodes. The government's Redundancy Payments Service is forking out £3,712 per person, equivalent to 8 weeks of statutory pay, while the invoice for the remaining 5 weeks is now on the desk of administrator PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), which did not dispute the claim.
Phones4u's old inventory is being auctioned off on the cheap
When Phones4u collapsed, it didn't take long for its administrators to sell off a large number of its high street stores. But what happened to the products stocked within those shops? Well, they also need to be shifted, and it just so happens that you might be able to grab yourself a nice pre-Christmas bargain. In a bid to find more cash to pay off the costs associated with Phones4u's insolvency, its administrator, PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), has drafted in an auction house to put up all of the retailer's stock for sale.
Phones4u comes clean about iPhone 6 preorder refunds: there won't be any
Phones4u couldn't have folded at a worse time. The upcoming expiration of reseller contracts forced the company into administration earlier this month, three days after it opened up preorders for the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus. While hard-up employees are finding new homes and empty stores new owners, customers who were eager for Apple's newest aren't so lucky. Today, in an email to iPhone 6 preorderers (that's definitely a word) that laid down an upfront payment, Phones4u came clean about the refund process, or more accurately, the lack of one. You see, Phones4u previously stated it would refund any iPhone preorder payments it'd taken, which it probably wasn't in a position to say since, you know, it'd gone into administration by that point.
EE scoops up 58 Phones4u stores
When Phones4u entered administration, it immediately shut all of its doors and put thousands of employees on notice. It didn't take long for Dixons Carphone to secure 800 positions, with Vodafone sweeping in shortly after to buy 140 Phones4u stores and save another 900 jobs. Now, it's EE's turn. The UK's biggest carrier has just announced that it's reached a deal with administrators to buy 58 outlets and bring 359 employees onto its books. It's moving quick too, confirming that it'll open the majority of stores within the next week. Over a year ago, EE began reducing its retail presence after its stores began saturating high streets, but now that it's joined Vodafone in pulling out of deals with Phones4u, the company will need to move quickly to fill the gaps left by its former partner.
Vodafone buys 140 Phones4u stores, saving 900 jobs in the process
A lot can happen in a week: just five days after Phones4u announced it was entering administration, leaving 5,596 employees facing a very uncertain future, retailers and carriers alike have stepped in to strip the company of its most important parts. Dixons Carphone has already picked up 800 employees from its rival, and now Vodafone, one of the two operators that unceremoniously ended their relationship with Phones4u in recent weeks, has announced a deal to buy 140 former stores, saving a potential 900 jobs as a result. Vodafone says it was approached by the company's administrator and "decided to make an offer to buy 140 of its stores as a way to accelerate our retail expansion programme and save hundreds of jobs." While some people will swap their Phones4u role for a Vodafone position, today's restructuring efforts also came at cost. The administrator announced 628 employees at Phones4u's head office in Newcastle-under-Lyme and telesales staff in Staffordshire were today made redundant in an attempt to reduce expenses. There's currently no word on which stores the Vodafone intends to rebrand, but we've asked the company for more details.
Game to complete a remarkable two-year turnaround by going public (again)
Two years after it went into administration, UK video game retailer Game could complete a stunning comeback by floating on the London Stock Exchange for a second time. The company, which was forced to close 300 stores, abandon its European expansion and kill the Gamestation brand in 2012, has surged following last year's console launches and is looking to put the worst behind it by selling a 35 percent stake to investors. Led by investment firm OpCapita, the group will rename itself to Game Digital and is expected to hit London's financial markets within the next four weeks. With 560 stores, a 33 percent share of the new game and hardware market in the UK and over 16 million combined Reward Card members, Game is expected to earn a £400 million valuation -- not bad for a company that was all but dead 26 months ago.
UK retailer GAME forced to pay £3M in back rent fees
British video games retailer GAME has lost a legal case filed by its landlords, and has been ordered to pay £3 million in rent fees accrued during its administration (bankruptcy equivalent) period in 2012, Retail Week reports. GAME's landlords banded together last year in an attempt to recoup the retailer's missed rent payments, and the ruling sets a significant legal precedent. Under British law, administration often allows companies to avoid paying back rent fees incurred during insolvency. "GAME's exposure following this decision is limited to a one-off liability of £3 million which has already been accounted for," a company spokesperson said in a follow-up statement, via MCV. "The real ramification of this decision is, however, that it will have a significant financial impact on all landlords, tenants and insolvency practitioners involved in current and future business insolvencies in this country." GAME's administration in 2012 resulted in widespread employee job losses and the closure of its Australian division. A private investment firm purchased GAME afterward, ending its administration and saving 3,200 jobs across the retail sector. The decision follows GAME's recent retail expansion, during which the company unveiled a new store chain focused exclusively on used game trade-ins. GAME plans to rejoin the stock market this year. [Image: GAME]
The end draws near for Blockbuster UK, 62 more stores closed
Blockbuster UK is likely to follow in the footsteps of the recently defunct US arm, after administrators announced 62 further store closures, with 427 employees laid off as a result. The DVD and game rental chain entered administration (a.k.a. bankruptcy) again earlier this year, and insolvency specialist Moorfields Corporate Recovery is struggling to find a buyer for what's left of the once major presence on the UK high street. "Unfortunately we have still not received any acceptable offers," reads Moorfields' statement. "So as a result we may be forced to close the remaining 91 stores affecting 808 employees." Blockbuster UK's tumultuous year, which has seen the company go into administration twice, over 400 stores close, and thousands of employees lose their jobs, will likely end with it finally being laid to rest. The store's demise leaves the country's high street games retail in a perilous state, with major players GAME and HMV still recovering from their own financial struggles from the year before.
Storyboard: Pacing and numbers in roleplaying
I attend a lot of roleplaying events. This is not a surprise to anyone, I'm sure. What also probably isn't a surprise is how many of them turn out to be slow, meandering, and generally not all that great. It's like wading through any bunch of player-generated content; you've got a lot of people who have a great idea in their heads to the point that they'll ignore signs about how badly that idea will shake out in reality. A lot of it comes down to two major issues: pacing and numbers. In some ways, this is an extension of the problem of people not playing to the medium, but it's also a problem of pacing and overall event flow. If you're not thinking about how you're pacing an event, you haven't fully thought things out, and if you aren't thinking about what that means for the people attending, you're going to wind up with a lot of bored people complaining via whispers.
Blockbuster UK cuts 72 stores as search for buyer continues
Blockbuster UK faces 452 layoffs and 72 store closures, after company administrators announced "necessary" measures for the once-again bankrupt retail chain. Moorfield Corporate Recovery, the company tasked with finding another buyer for the struggling outlet, said it wasn't an easy decision to make ahead of the Christmas season. "We must reiterate that, as part of our attempts to turnaround the business, today's decision is necessary if parts of Blockbuster are to be saved and a buyer found," Moorfield said in a statement provided to Sky News. The cuts represent around a quarter of Blockbuster's employees and stores, removing another chunk of gaming's presence on the UK high street. Between them, GAME and HMV closed hundreds of stores and laid off thousands of employees after their own forays into administration last year. The news follows the announcement that Blockbuster's US arm will close all 300 stores and end its retail and mail DVD operations in the country by January 2014.
Blockbuster UK bankrupt again, can't honor next-gen pre-orders
Blockbuster UK is entering administration again, this time under investment company Gordon Brothers Europe. This means Xbox One and PS4 pre-orders through Blockbuster UK will not be fulfilled, the company says in a tweet. Blockbuster UK advises those who pre-ordered a next-gen system in-store to visit that location for help, and those who ordered online to write (a real-life letter) to BLOCKBUSTER, Harefield Place, The Drive Uxbridge UB10 8AQ. Blockbuster UK entered administration in January and was purchased by Gordon Brothers Europe in March, saving a reported 2,000 jobs and keeping open 264 stores. Gordon Brothers Europe attempted to restructure Blockbuster UK and develop a digital platform, but Blockbuster's US parent company wouldn't allow it, the company told BBC in a statement. The remaining 264 stores will remain in business while Gordon Brothers Europe seeks a buyer, though this move gets rid of 32 jobs at Blockbuster UK headquarters, the site says.
Blockbuster UK finds buyer
Restructuring and investment firm Gordon Brothers Europe bought Blockbuster UK over the weekend. The multimedia rental and sales chain entered administration in January, a month which also saw Blockbuster's US arm close a further 300 stores. Gordon Brothers Europe acquired the retailer's 264 UK stores, with the BBC reporting 2000 jobs may be saved as a result. How much the sale cost remains undisclosed.With GAME's troubles of last year, the demises of Blockbuster and HMV left UK high street games retail with worryingly threadbare prospects. The administration process leaves Blockbuster with just over half of the 500 stores it had before, while HMV's high street presence is facing a similar level of cutback. However, both the Telegraph and the Financial Times are reporting restructuring specialist Hilco is close to securing a deal to buy HMV, having taken control of the retail chain's debt.
Blockbuster UK finds a rescuing buyer, keeps staff and stores afloat
When Blockbuster's UK brand entered administration at the start of the year, there were concerns that it would ultimately prove just another casualty of the inexorable move toward online video. Not quite: Gordon Brothers Europe, a private equity firm known for rescuing troubled companies, has bought Blockbuster's British assets. The acquirer isn't disclosing the cash involved, but it plans to keep 2,000 workers and 264 stores in full swing while it plots a turnaround. That recovery is only described in vague terms at this stage, however -- Gordon Brothers plans to bring "new products" and "new technologies" to the bruised retail chain. While we're glad to see a one-time cornerstone of video rentals get a second chance, we hope that its bounce-back strategy involves a more futureproof selection than aisles full of plastic discs. [Thanks, Steven]
White House announces support for unlocking cell phones
A petition on the White House's website to work for a new law universally allowing the unlocking of cell phones recently raised more than 100,000 signatures from the public, and the White House has now officially responded to the idea, stating its support. The petition refers to Section 1201 of the Library of Congress' rules, which disallows users from unlocking their cell phones (including iPhones) for any reason, even when any contracts associated with the phones has expired. The phone industry says the rule is needed in order to keep illegal phone trafficking down, but obviously lots of consumers disagree, saying that the rule is prohibitive and often leads to lots of expensive fees. The White House's statement of support isn't exactly legally powerful, as it doesn't have any direct control over the rule or the Library of Congress. But the president's office can push for a new law to overturn the rule, and of course an official statement of support from the White House can do a lot to push the issue forward. The Library of Congress sent TUAW a statement saying that "we also agree with the administration that the question of locked cell phones has implications for telecommunications policy and that it would benefit from review and resolution in that context." So there's more "review" to be done on this issue. But for now, it sounds like there's both public and administration support for a change to the rule, which means there may come a time in the future when you're guaranteed to the right to unlock your phone whenever you want.
Report: HMV to be saved as restructurer Hilco acquires debt
Business restructuring company Hilco is set to acquire HMV after reportedly taking control of the struggling British retailer's debt . According to the Financial Times, people familiar with the situation report Hilco took on the debt today, estimated three months ago to be around $279 million. If the reports are accurate, Hilco, already appointed yesterday as advisors to administrators Deloitte, have effective control of the ailing company.HMV went into administration last week after failing to secure $483 million in additional financing against debt, leaving the company in need of a buyer, with around 4350 jobs in the balance. HMV's troubles headline a sorry month for British game retail after Play.com announced the closure of its retail arm, and Blockbuster UK also went bust, with 160 of its stores being closed as it too seeks a buyer.
