Steps to Take Before Choosing a Business Continuity Partner

PointCast founder and former CEO Chris Hassett looks set to make a bid to buy back the ailing push technology provider. Hassett today confirmed he has engaged a New York investment bank to investigate and possibly action the acquisition of a majority stake in PointCast. "PointCast has tremendous assets that continue to make it a strong Internet media company," he said. "Adding the appropriate capital, management and strategic vision make PointCast an exciting opportunity." The only snag is that that's pretty much the strategy current CEO Phil Koen is following and is broadly the gameplan of Koen's predecssor, David Dorman. In short, pumping in money, from a buyer or a strategic investor, will solve PointCast's problems. Dorman sought that money through a deal with a consortium of local US telcos which would have seen PointCast technology power the front-ends to their Digital Subscriber Line Internet access services. That deal recentle fell through, leaving Koen to focus on making the company as attractive as possible to any other suitor (see earlier story). Hassett quit PointCast in 1997 to form PrizePoint Entertainment with Frank Blot and John Nogrady. PrizePoint offers Net users free access to games and competitions, and makes money through sponsorship and by marketing its database of registered users. ®

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