From the Perception website:
PROPOSED ACQUISITION
The board of directors of Digital & Voice Media Limited (DVM) is pleased to announce that it has entered into a heads of agreement with the shareholders in Perception Pty Ltd (Perception) pursuant to which DVM has agreed to acquire 100% of the shares in the capital of Perception.
Perception is a media entertainment company spanning video games, movies, TV, books and music. Perception typically partners with companies experienced in various entertainment fields to handle production, but will retain intellectual property ownership within the Perception group.
The board of DVM believes that there are strong synergies between the business of Perception and DVM?s media advertising and marketing activities.
Further, the extensive experience of the directors and employees of Perception in media industry should assist with the development of DVM?s core business.
Further updates will be provided to the market in due course.
I wonder if this includes the Stargate license?
More details are in a PDF on the ASX website (search for DVM)
This is a crazy move on DVM's part, it is absolute lunacy to buy a dead company that will have a lot of trouble finding employees again given the extremely bad reputation it has built for itself over the last two years of mismanagement by Ben Lenzo. The company history in the above PDF conveniently doesn't mention the Stargate fiasco but does trumpet every other minor activity Perception has been involved with as if they were major achievements when in reality they were commercial failures. No mention of the legal actions currently being bought against Perception both in Australia and overseas of course.
What a complete joke. I smell another scam by Ben.
If that's true then they have failed in thier duty of disclosure as a public company. Send someone at the ASX/ASIC a little email and that will be the end of that deal. There are at least 500 shareholders that could get burnt by that deal.
If it goes through the Directors of DVM and probably Ben Lenzo could be in serious trouble.
DVM is a public company but Perception is not. I feel sorry for those shareholders, but at least the worst that can happen is that the DVM share price will drop a few cents - it's currently trading at $0.07 a share :)
Anonymous Coward #2
I smell a disgruntled ex-employee who need to sort themselves out pronto.
I smell ex-employees who are owed months of salary hoping they get paid for all the work they did for free, especially when the PDF on the ASX web site says that Perception will turn a profit this year.
Why does he need to sort himself out JS? believe me, if you'd been though what the Perception employees had to go through you be disgruntled too. Try not being paid for two months over Christmas and see how you feel.
I have to agree with AC#2's points though. I read the PDF and found it to be highly deceptive. If I was a shareholder being asked to approve the deal (or someone looking at buying stock in DVM based on this acquisition) and based my opinion of Perception on the material in the PDF, I would get the impression that DVM were acquiring a global media giant with 10 years of commercial success behind them and all these employees with expertise in modern media technology, when in reality any expertise is long gone, and any "success" is highly questionable. The PDF only focuses on events that occurred over 5 years ago with no mention of more recent company history, namely, any mention of what was touted by Perception as the biggest development deal ever made in the history of the Australian video game industry. Although, given the subsequent collapse of the project I guess it's understandable, but is it ethical?
The PDF also states that Perception is expected to make a profit for this financial year. I would love to see the creative accounting that shows how a company that was recently unable to pay employee's wages for several months and unable to pay employee's superannuation benefits for the last 9 months, and currently has no employees and no products or services with which to generate income is expected to make a profit.
An application was made as recently as March this year for Perception to be wound up as a company and Liquidators appointed. Again, you can understand why they wouldn't highlight this fact ,but if you were a shareholder being asked to approve a deal or a potential investor shouldn't you be made aware of the whole picture not just selected information.
Given that I'm an ex-employee at Perception, I know all too well what it was like while working on the Stargate project. The only difference is, I'm not cursing my former employers at every turn. I'm getting on with my life instead.
As for being owed back pay, they had a simple choice; hang around to see if Perception's ass gets pulled out of the fire, or leave. Nobody forced them to stay for the time they weren't being paid; they did that by thier own volition. Should I say it again, just to make things clear? It was thier choice to say.
So really guys....take responsibility for your own choices in life.
As for the rest of it, with the pdf etc. It's maybe worth pointing out that it doesn't matter if it's ethical, only that it's legal. Apart from that, I coouldn't care less about who buys out whom. Maybe when you sink your own money into a project, you can start bitching about what's ethical in business and what is not.
JS you're inferring a lot from very few statements , you can't tell if they are getting on with their lives or not from a few sentences on a forum, and how does one post equate to "cursing at every turn" they just could have been having a bad day, and I don't see how questioning or discussing ethics equates to "bitching". Sounds like you have a few issues of your own to resolve.
It's not as simple as you think JS. You weren't there when Ben kept telling us week after week that the pay would be forthcoming. Not everyone was single, some of us had other people in our lives to consider, we couldn't just up and move to another city. Not everyone had enough suitable experience to obtain work overseas or had family circumstances that required them to stay in Sydney. And in case you didn't notice there's not a lot of options in Sydney.
Simplistic black and white thinking like yours is something most people grow out of with experience and maturity. You could be one of them, give it a go sometime.
It's not so simple? Let me think this through for a minute.
You're listening to Ben telling you that everything is going to work out, you're going to get paid pretty soon. The thing is....you haven't been paid, and incase you had failed to notice; the project was in dire straights for quite a long time.
Do you a) just take Ben at his word, hope that hes not beiong screwed over by somebody and keep on being employed there or b) make an informed choice and call it quits there and then, because experience is the most effective teacher.
So you choose option A and it didn't work out. YOU made that choice, no matter what the reasoning behind it was. So...in this case, it really is black and white. Accepting responsibility for your choices is something most people learn with experience and maturity.
You could learn that, give it a go sometime perhaps?
Read what he said again. You claim that with experience people can make more informed choices. AC pointed out however that there were people there who didn't have experience. Also, there may have been good reason to believe that the project would have succeeded. It may have. The responsibility for failure is obviously shared. The situation is obviously not as simple as your trying to make it out to be.
Choices are made given the information at hand. Your second option b) is flawed because you say 'make an informed choice'. That's dependent on the quality of information available. It's a fantasy.
Yet again JS you've completely missed the point with your simplistic and naive thinking. My point was that you can't judge other people by applying your own personal circumstances to them. It was a simple choice for you and your circumstances but it wasn't so black and white for other people with different circumstances and responsibilities. Some peoples circumstances meant that the choice to just "call it quits" was not a viable option for them.
As for taking responsibility, come back when you have a family and mortgage, only then are you qualified to talk about what it means to take responsibility. Until you are responsible for other peoples lives as well as your own you don't know what you are talking about.
You have a lot of growing up do and a lot to learn, in time you may be lucky enough to learn these lessons, I wish you all the best with that.
I seriously can't believe you people. You won't take responsibility for your own acttions, and yet you tell me that either being naive or I have a lot to learn or have a lot to growing up to do.
In what way am I applying my own circumstances? Have I mentioned where I am, or what I'm doing? Have I mentioned my own personal choices? No. Do us all a favour and stop grabbing shit from thin air....not only have you resorted to personal attacks twice but you've also just made assumptions to cover your (lack of) reasoning.
Am I saying that it's easy for everybody to just pack up and leave on a moments notice? That everybody can just find another job so easily? That any of this is easy? No...I'm saying that you make a choice and not matter what you loigic behind that choice is, you are the person who has sole responsibility for that.
It doesn't matter if it's because of your mortgage, kids, wife or even your dog. The reasoning behind it is immaterial. Another person is NOT to blame because you feel obligated to take a certain path. It's still your choice.
That'd be like blaming your wife and child for being a reason that you didn't leave? How insane would that be?
And oir your information, I did have other people to consider when I moved. Infact, I had to take into account for a lot if things. But that doesn't mean I'm no longer responsible for making the choice. Not that I should ever have to explain myself to you.
@AC12 No.,..what he pointed out, was that people didn't have certain profesional experience to find work else where, which is bull-shit. Plenty of staff who had thier first job at Perception have found work esle where quite easily.
As for the "informmed choices" bit....only a complete moron would have not been able to look at the way things had been progressing at Perception to know that there was a greater risk of things not working out the way Ben wanted.
After all, the contracts for the guys on visa's had already been cancelled at that point in time, because Perception had not paid them. Most had either foiund work elsewhere, or had to go back because of the Visa restrictions. Where was Ben going to get staff of the same equality in the time needed to finish the game?
It occurs to me that I'm not the one with the simplistic and naive thinking.
I forgot to add, I hope all of you ex-perception guys are doing okay though. No matter what I might think about the whole choice thing, I know it was very rough for everybody left at Perception in the last few months from October onwards and I hope none of you are in dire straits,
oh jeez, stop it JS you're just embarrassing yourself now.
making assumptions? grabbing shit from thin air? yes I agree that's exactly what you've been doing. Nowhere have I blamed anyone or said that I shouldn't be held responsible for choices I make, these are entirely assumptions you have made, and as the late philosopher Benny Hill once said "Never assume anything because you make an ass out of u and me". In fact I agree that if you make a choice in life you are responsible for the consequences of that choice. What I am disagreeing with, and have been talking about, are these statements you made:
"As for being owed back pay, they had a simple choice; hang around to see if Perception's ass gets pulled out of the fire, or leave. Nobody forced them to stay for the time they weren't being paid; they did that by their own volition."
What I am saying is that no, it was not a simple choice. It may have been a simple choice for you and your circumstances (whatever they were) but for other people with different circumstances it was more complex and some people didn't have that choice at all. To imply that people had a simple stay or leave choice to make and if they stayed they deserved what they got because it was their choice is at best naive and at worst offensive.
To my mind your way of thinking is simplistic and immature, and that's not meant as a personal attack that's just the way I see it. That's all, quite simple really. Take the chip off your shoulder and don't take things so personally. Angry young men tend to grow up to be angry old men, and they usually grow up alone.
anyway how is everyone:)
James is still angry
I was wrong to say that it was a "simple" choice though. On reflection, what I perhaps should have said was "the obvious two choices were a or b". You choose the wrong option and that sucks, but bitching about Ben won't make things better.
It''s more pointless than me ranting that you should really get over it and leave the man be.
I'm not angry, I'm just ginger.
"Perception is a media entertainment company spanning video games, movies, TV, books and music."
Perception did stuff for movies, TV, books and music? What is DVM getting exactly from this aquisition? Other than an Unreal license, unusable Stargate assets, some office equipment, and zero staff
The multi-talented Ben Lenzo perhaps... ?
A choice is when you choose between 2 or more different options. If you only have one option, by definition it's not a choice. For some people the option to leave was not there until they found another job to move to. I didn't bitch about Ben (as much as the brainless git deserves to be bitched about - hooray got one in), and I'm way over it. Glad to see you finally see our point though, the situation was not as simple as you were trying to make it out to be.
And back on topic....I assume the shareholders will receive a more detailed report on Perception when they are asked to approve the deal, might be worth the 10c to become a shareholder
Well one this is guaranteed here at sumea - the mere mention of Perception gets people worked up.:)
Regarding the DVM acquisition - this is certainly an interesting development.
I also wonder what DVM are also actually purchasing into here given that afaik nothing of Perception is left barring the name and an incomplete game that without MGM's approval can never see the light of day. Perhaps there's something in Perception's old catalogue of licenses from the days of arcade machines that DVM is interested in (what I have no idea). I wonder if Ben has some sort of stake in DVM?
Anyhow it's an interesting and surprising development. And here I was thinking I'd heard the last of the Perception saga. I'm sorry to hear that for many former employees the saga still continues and that many of you are still waiting (hopefully not in vain) for monies owed. I hope everyone's ok out there in spite of this mess.
Too bad I've moved on...
If I did let it get to me it would effect my health... and thats never gonna happen...
what.. like wasting time commenting on a Peception thread?.. funny how the ppl say theyve moved on.. actually have to post that :) Jung would love that little bit of duality.
well iam at a loose end until i start my new job on the 24th april... just typing out loud :)
Perception is the new Micro Forte. Wheeee!
Here's the problem; every time you bitch about your previous employer anonymously in a public forum, you make it just that little bit harder for the rest of us to find work in the industry.
Any employer who reads these posts can't be sure if the person they're interviewing for a position isn't one who will bitch and moan and not be a team player in suppporting their company. I've already had to dodge one set of questions from an employer about the collapse of the project.
In short, if you want to be bitter, go ahead. If you want to bitch and whinge continually, go ahead, but do it in private where it wont affect anybody else previously employed by Perception. Or at least clearly identify yourself.
Ooh, the anger is making me thirsty. Where are you working Karl? Congrats!
Seriously, what are they buying if there are no employees? The name?
Stuff you #29, we're not going to keep our opinions to ourselves just because you think it inconveniences you. Go to North Korea if you don't like it.
Hypocracy: "Or at least clearly identify yourself." - Anonymous Coward.
Everything makes you thirsty BW. :-)
Hi bw working for telstra bigpond now for the game arena section.. so still in games but have move away from qa a bit now... working in encryption and security:)
I always miss the good bitching.
There's a huge gap between "inconvenience" and "potentially cost me a job opportunity".
You can do the right thing by your fellow ex-employees and curb your public outbursts for their sake, or you can continue to whinge and taint everyone who worked at the company. It's your choice.
But what do you care? You've already got a job, right?
Yeah, thats right, I do have a job. So do most ex-Perception people. Many found work during and after that massive thread when Perception went under, so I'd say your theory is looking a bit shaky there.
But I suppose its more convenient to blame us for your troubles than face up to the reality that it might actually have something to do with you.
Man, this is great. Better than Neighbours even!
It was worth working at Perception just to be entertained by all this...heheh :)
DVM has announced to the stock market on 7 June 2006 that after completing a due diligence of Perception it will not be proceeding with its planned acquisition of Perception.
Eh Oh. Sounds like the vutures will soon be circling!!!!
This is great news. After seeing first hand how the guy operates and how badly he treats people, I can think of no-one who is less deserving of financial ruin than Ben Lenzo. This restores my faith that there can be justice in this world. Fantastic!!