Veoh Lives On–Behind the Acquisition of the Video Site
It wasn’t technically Veoh Networks Inc.’s final hour, rather its final two hours, when a relatively unknown start-up with no revenue stepped in to acquire the heavily capitalized online video company.
With the proper papers prepared, Veoh planned to file for Chapter 7 bankruptcy by 5 p.m. on March 19. At 3 p.m., 2Peer Ltd. Chief Executive Jon Goldman made an offer.
Goldman had learned about Veoh’s plans to file for bankruptcy two days earlier through a friend who was close to one of Veoh’s investors. His company runs Qlipso, which lets people share Flash-based content like video while simultaneously interacting with others viewing the content.
Access to Veoh’s vast library of more than a million videos would give Qlipso a much stronger platform for its video-sharing technology. So Goldman acted quickly, rallying his company’s investor, Jerusalem Venture Partners, to put up the money to fund the acquisition.
