OnLive to continue as newly formed company
Newly formed company will operate under the OnLive name using all of the previous company's assets; services, apps, and current initiatives to continue uninterrupted.
OnLive has clarified recent industry reports regarding the sale of its assets to another company.
In a public statement released today, the company confirmed that after a series of "difficult financial decisions" it had sold all of its assets (including its technology and intellectual property) to a newly formed company that will continue to operate under the OnLive name. An affiliate of Lauder Partners has been confirmed as the first investor in the newly structured company.
The decision was made after OnLive's board of directors decided to pursue a restructuring under an "Assignment for the Benefit of Creditors," which led to the sale of OnLive's assets to the newly formed company.
According to OnLive, the nature of this transaction did not allow the company to transfer its shares or its staff; however, the company says almost half of OnLive's staff were given employment offers by the new company at their current salaries immediately upon transfer. The non-hired staff will also allegedly be given offers of consulting work in return for options in the new company.
"Upon closing additional funding, the company plans to hire more staff, both former OnLive employees as well as new employees," the company said in its statement. Speaking on already-existing reports about OnLive's sale of assets, a company spokesperson noted that only company executives had access to the information regarding the transaction and that "much of what we are seeing is fiction."
OnLive also used the public statement to reassure users, saying all OnLive games, products, services, devices, apps, current partnerships, and current initiatives are expected to continue without interruption, with all customer purchases allegedly remaining intact. The company says it also expects to make "major announcements" regarding the launch of new products and services in the coming weeks and months.
"The asset acquisition, although a heartbreaking transition for everyone involved with OnLive, allows the company's core innovation and ongoing offerings--the product of over a decade of hard work transforming the OnLive vision into reality--to survive and continue to evolve."
Below is a FAQ included by OnLive in its public statement:
Q. Will users see any change in the OnLive Game or Desktop Services? What about their purchases?
A. Users should see no change in the OnLive Game or Desktop Services. All of their purchases remain intact and available. OnLive has been up 24/7 since launch over two years ago and expects to remain so. OnLive has over 2.5 million subscribers, with an active base of over 1.5 million subscribers, connecting from a vast range of devices and networks, with many sessions running for hours. The user base is growing rapidly with OnLive’s addition into recently announced devices and TVs from major manufacturers. We expect this growth to continue under the new company.
Q. Is there any cash or stock in the new company provided for any OnLive, Inc. shares?
A. Unfortunately not. The nature of the transaction is such that only assets, not shares, were purchased. This is true for all shares of OnLive, Inc., whether held by investors, employees or executives.
Q. Did Steve Perlman receive stock or compensation in this transaction?
A. Like all shareholders, neither Steve nor any of his companies received any stock in the new company or compensation in this transaction at all. Steve is receiving no compensation whatsoever and most execs are receiving reduced compensation to allow the company to hire as many employees as possible within the current budget.
Q. Did all OnLive, Inc. assets transfer into the new company? Are any assets held by any other party?
A. All of OnLive, Inc.’s assets (e.g. technology, patents, trademarks, etc.) were transferred to an assignee, which then sold the assets to the new company. There was no transfer to any other party.
Q. Have OnLive, Inc. employees been offered positions in the new company?
A. Almost half of OnLive’s staff were offered employment at their current salaries in the new company immediately upon the transfer, and the non-hired staff will be given offers to do consulting in return for options in the new company. Upon closing additional funding, the company plans to hire more staff, both former OnLive employees as well as new employees.
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