28 Jul, 2010
Dutch publisher Playlogic have announced that they have filled for ‘Surseance van betaling’ under Dutch law, which is similar to filling for Chapter 11 under US law. Surseance van betaling (translates to moratorium) is where a company is given room to sort out its own financial situation, whilst under court supervision. When a company declares surseance van betaling, the companies creditors have to back away from the company and stop asking for repayments while the company sorts its situation. The company will then propose to pay its creditors back; this can take the form of making repayments in instalments each month, or agreeing with a creditor to only pay back a one time payment of a certain amount of the debt. However, achieving surseance van betaling is dependant on creditors agreeing to the situation. If the creditors do not agree, then the company is likely to file for bankruptcy.
While this may sound bad for Playlogic, creditors will normally agree to surseance van betaling arrangements as it means they will get back at least some of their money. Playlogic claims their financial situation is due to “Tough market conditions, late payments by large customers and the delays in projects…” They are also currently in a lawsuit with distribution partner Koch Media for unpaid bills totalling €1.7 million.
Playlogic have published a variety of titles, including Obscure II, Fairytale Fights, Infernal, and Aliens in the Attic. Certain Playlogic titles including Obscure II are licensed to UTV Ignition for US distribution.
While I hope that Playlogic are able to sort out their finances, if they return to publishing I hope they focus on higher quality titles. Recent releases like Fairytale Fights have only recieved average reviews, so a strong set of new release titles would help them to re-establish themselves in the global market.
Source: gamesindustry.biz (Special thanks to Alessandra van Otterlo in the comments for explaining Surseance van betaling)
Recent Comments