Net Perceptions has been delisted from the Nasdaq stock exchange.
The Nasdaq authorities said that the reason for the decision was their belief that the Company is not currently engaged in active business operations and is therefore a public shell. The decision will be a further blow to Net Perceptions’ attempts to redeploy its assets to its shareholders as part of its liquidation strategy.
The company, which no longer markets or sells software, put an insolvency plan together in October 2003 when it was clear that it did not have a viable future. The intention was to distribute its assets among its shareholders, but having failed to convince investors, it sought an alternative exit strategy from the market.
Holding company Obsidian Enterprises put in an offer to acquire the company in April 2004, but the board and the shareholders rejected this because the value was little more than the originally suggested liquidation value. There was also uncertainty about what it would be able to do with the company given its widely diverse range of investments.
Even though Obsidian raised its offer, the option was cut off when Net Perceptions sold its patent portfolio to Thalveg Data Flow, and the license to some of its source code and technology to an unnamed software company in March 2004. Three ex-Net Perceptions employees established a support company called Tornado and bought the rights to provide support and maintenance to existing customers.
Minnesota-based Net Perceptions is considering an appeal against the Nasdaq delisting but is also taking steps to enable its shares to be traded on the OTC Bulletin Board. Although its stated position is that it is still looking for merger and acquisition opportunities, with virtually no software or patent assets and no expert staff who could provide value, the prospects are not good.
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