Geocast Network Systems Inc. said it suspended operations, noting that it
couldn't obtain financing to continue running the datacasting company.
Financial backers that took a bath on their investments in the company
include Liberty Media Group, Hearst-Argyle Television Inc., Electronic Arts
Inc., A.H. Belo Corp. and venture-capital firms Mayfield Fund, Kleiner Perkins
Caufield & Byers and Institutional Venture Partners.
The Menlo Park, Calif.-based company had cut a deal with EchoStar
Communications Corp. last fall to launch the broadband service to PC users
during the third quarter. EchoStar spokesman Marc Lumpkin said Dish Network
subscribers obviously won't be affected since the company hadn't yet launched
the service.
The company also has a deal with StarBand Communications Inc. to offer
subscribers with PCs a two-way Internet service, he noted.
Geocast is in talks to sell its assets, the company said in a statement.
'To reach the final stage of execution, we needed additional funding. The
current market environment was simply not conducive to our efforts in this
regard. We sincerely thank our employees and partners for their commitment and
support over the past 24 months,' CEO Joseph Horowitz said in the
statement.
