Mindhouse, the London based interactive television technology company, has been placed in administration after failing to find further finance from its investors.
Mindhouse Limited was in the process of rolling out its Mindset multi-platform service management system with Turner for CNN and other properties.
The company was also close to securing an important deal with another international broadcaster which had been delayed.
This led to a cashflow crisis when the current backers were unwilling to fund ongoing operations and development and a resolution was passed by the board to place the company into administration.
“We ran out of road,” Steve Scott, one of the founding directors of the company told informitv. “The real shame is we’d just started to turn the corner.” He is now working with the appointed administrator to talk to interested parties about either buying the business as a going concern or securing its software assets.
Founded at the end of 2001, Mindhouse secured funding of £450,000 in May 2004, but it was clearly undercapitalised from the outset to transition from an interactive application development house to an infrastructure software engineering company.
The team behind Mindset is committed to the continuation of the core product and supporting its deployment and ongoing development.
“The team have been incredible,” said Steve. “They have come in of their own volition. It is a great testament to their belief in the product.”
They are now looking for another way to take Mindset forward, possibly within another company.
Mindhouse has been a victim of a general lack of investment in core infrastructure by broadcasters that have failed to engage in the importance of building robust and reliable operating platforms for delivery to multiple devices.
Turner seems to have been an exception in this case and by all accounts there is still considerable industry goodwill towards Mindhouse. The hope is that new investors will realise the potential value of their software platform, not only for interactive television, but in emerging markets such as broadband television.