UK-based participation TV specialist, Optimistic Entertainment (note: the latter's co-founders include David Brook, who was previously director of strategy and development at Channel 4, and Jasper Smith, who previously co-founded and was CEO of Static2358, the company which was behind the PlayJam interactive TV games channel, and which was sold to OpenTV in 2001 for $68 million; among other things, the company's international TV and radio production arm, Optimistic Media, is responsible for the "PlayMania" participation TV block on GSN in the US), and its trading subsidiaries, Optimistic Media and the Optimistic Network, have been placed in administration. In a prepared statement, Optimistic said that the boards of the company and its subsidiaries had had discussions over the past few months with "many potential investors or purchasors," but that "none of these was able to support a restructuring" of the company, and that the company's board had decided that it should be put into administration "as this would provide the best possible prospect of providing a restructuring of the company for the benefit of the shareholders and c*reditors."
The company blamed its financial troubles on fallout from the participation TV scandal that erupted in the UK earlier this year: "Over the last three years, Optimistic has broken new ground in terms of programming and participation TV and radio in the UK and internationally," the statement issued by the company read. "However, more recently the adverse media coverage of the sector as a whole, together with regulatory investigations, have significantly impacted on consumer confidence and audience participation for its shows. As a result, OML [i.e. Optimistic Media, Ltd.], which produced an operating profit in the first quarter of the year, has moved back into loss."
Nevertheless, the company claims to have found a solution to its problems that will preserve the jobs of its employees: "The directors of TON [i.e. The Optimistic Network] and OML have taken steps to sell their businesses as a going concern to achieve the best realization for their c*reditors," the statement continued. "However, difficulties were again encountered with prospective purchasers. Ultimately, terms have been agreed with Fluorescent Media Ltd. (Fluorescent), a company in which Jasper Smith, chairman and CEO of the Company, has an interest. The administrators of TON and OML have negotiated and agreed a sale of the assets of each of these businesses with Fluorescent, thus preserving the jobs of the employees within the trading businesses."
Originally Published: July 13, 2007 in [itvt] Issue 7.36 Part 1
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