Answer to: Why doesn't Bruce just sell? in What's up
- Jan. 31, 2014, 2:28 p.m.
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- Public
I don't know his personal reasons for not selling, but I can give you a few that may apply.
It is not easy to sell a business even if you have a buyer. There is more to it than just the code, domain and data. There are trademarks to be transferred, contracts with customers, previous or current employees or consultants, vendors and advertisers, accounts receivable and quite possibly debt. All the books must to be up-to-date, accurate and possibly audited.
The web property itself has value, and Bruce may have leveraged that value to obtain financing either for OD, another venture, or personal credit. It may not be possible for him to sell without turning over the proceeds to a creditor.
Another consideration is taxes. If he owes taxes for the business for any income he generated, those would have to be satisfied upon any sale before the assets could be transferred. All those financial and operational issues would be exposed in any sale that would net him what he thinks it is worth, and that would secure a buyer all they need to make a go of it.
The data rights to the content is a small and surmountable problem and could be solved with a change-of-terms notice and an opt-out option.
Also, any lawsuits pending against the company would have to be disclosed. It is possible he has little ownership stake left to sell. In some cases it is more palatable to a business owner looking to divest to simply let it go moribund than to suffer the scrutiny of a sale.
As for why he won't give an firm date for going offline, he probably doesn't know. He likely got an e-mail from his host provider with "your account is subject to suspension" for non-payment. He's ignoring the notice and just waiting it out.
This from your friendly neighborhood business consultant. It is solely my opinion. I have no insight into his thought processes.
softea ⋅ January 31, 2014
This is an interesting read, thank you. I didn't realize how complicated it could be.
Linda ⋅ January 31, 2014
Good information for those agonizing over the issue.
Deleted user ⋅ January 31, 2014
It's nice to see an opinion by someone with an actual knowledge of some of the potential issues, even without specific knowledge of the situation. Everyone may have an opinion, but all opinions are not created equal.
RoseS ⋅ January 31, 2014
Good analysis!
moneypenny ⋅ January 31, 2014
It's so disappointing, even with the low bar I had for my expectations, to see the lights go out with so little notice. It didn't have to go down like this! So many other paths Bruce could have taken over the last several years, to keep the site solvent and thriving.
-b- ⋅ January 31, 2014
This answer helps. Thank you.
Jeanine ⋅ January 31, 2014
It does make more sense that it's not just a matter of "here, give me money for this POS website."
Serin ⋅ February 01, 2014
That's really good coverage of the spectrum of business reasons. I think there are a few personal ones at play as well.
lulu ⋅ February 02, 2014
Thank you for this Kate, for something that made absolutely no sense to me, I'm now somewhat convinced.
Nash ⋅ February 04, 2014
I kind of thought that myself concerning the outage date. The other factors I had not considered.
crystal butterfly ⋅ February 04, 2014
Thank you Kate. We think selling a business is easy but even with my limited experience I know it isn't and I never thought of all the extras a technological business could have. Of if Bruce could have gotten himself into a financial problem and that is happening to a lot of people. Thank you.
Tea and Sympathy ⋅ February 05, 2014
I had no idea how much there could be too selling a business. If these are the case for Bruce I just wish he had acted like an adult and explained it to us. The way he's gone about all of this makes me think he just couldn't care any less about the community that he helped create. Thanks for the insight though. I hadn't looked at it from that perspective.