SeeSaw may not be shutting after all, with buyers possibly queuing up to stage a last-minute buyout. One of which is Criterion Capital Partners, the new owners of Bebo.
SeeSaw Shutting!
SeeSaw was born from the ashes of Project Kangaroo, with Arqiva paying around $12 million to purchase the infrastructure from the BBC and its partners. SeeSaw was seen as a British version of Hulu, but it never achieved Hulu-like status in the U.K.
At the end of May Arqiva announced that SeeSaw was to shut down in a matter of weeks. The online video destination hadn’t been able to secure enough funding, viewers, or content to make it worth persevering with.
But someone, somewhere thinks there is still a chance to do something with the service.
SeeSaw Selling?
It was reported earlier this week that SeeSaw could be being bought by private equity firm Criterion Capital Partners, the same company that has already snapped up social networking site Bebo at a knockdown price.
This would be an 11th-hour deal which could save the 28 staff currently facing redundancy if SeeSaw shuts completely. Interestingly SeeSaw is still up and running despite June 20 previously having been set as the date when the service will end. Which suggests a deal is being discussed.
The only official word on this possible sale came from a company spokesman saying, “Arqiva is still in discussion with various parties about a possible sale of SeeSaw.”
Short and sweet, I guess, but not all that helpful. It does suggest there is more than just Criterion interested, and that a last-minute deal is still possible. But details are very thin on the ground.
Conclusions
I’m not convinced this deal will come to fruition. It would mean Arqiva likely having to accept a bargain price for SeeSaw. And could SeeSaw then be rejuvenated enough from its current position to make such a deal worthwhile for the buyer? Again, I’m not convinced.
