Apparently something exciting has been going on down at PointCast Inc, exciting enough that the company has, as was rumored, withdrawn its proposed initial public offering of common stock (CI No 3,411). PointCast’s Jaleh Bisharat explains that between filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission and taking PointCast’s prospectus on a national roadshow, a couple of things happened to change the company’s mind about the float. One was the entry of old-media companies like NBC and Disney into the internet portal space. The other was the next generation of PointCast technology, which Bisharat says has been an unqualified hit in the few private showings held so far. With all this happening, PointCast executives and, apparently, others, started thinking about the unique combination of assets the company brings to portal space. It’s hard to differentiate the other portals except by brand, says Bisharat. While its IPO was still pending, Pointcast was precluded from engaging in discussions with potential buyers. Now the documents have been withdrawn, the talks are on. Bisharat can’t say who PointCast is talking to, although she says it is not necessarily with one of the aforesaid old media outfits. Either way, kudos to Business Week and the Meta Group (CI Nos 3,436 and 3,450), whose scuttlebutt was right on the money.
