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The Fall of 38 Studios 172

Posted by Soulskill from the high-stakes-gambling dept.
An anonymous reader writes "Boston magazine provides the first reasonably satisfying account of the final year of Curt Schilling's video game company 38 Studios, which was heavily subsidized by a huge loan guaranteed by the state of Rhode Island. During his career as a baseball pitcher, Schilling helped lead three different teams to four World Series, resulting in three championships. He has so far been much less successful as a video game CEO; although he has some of the stereotypical qualities of a successful entrepreneur (passion, energy level, optimism, selling ability), his company seemed utterly lacking in controls, while facing a very tough industry and economy. Schilling apparently regrets the decision to bet the company on an MMO game, but otherwise seems to accept little blame for the demise. His company burned more than $133 million over six years, mostly for headcount, according to an analysis of public documents by Providence TV station WPRI."
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The Fall of 38 Studios More

The Fall of 38 Studios

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  • So what's the purpose of this story again? (Score:3, Insightful)

    by Anonymous Coward on Sunday July 29, 2012 @05:24AM (#40806607)

    Is it so we feel sorry for some rich dumb fuck who's greatest achievement in life is throwing a ball around, and who only got the chance to cause hundreds of hard working people to lose their jobs because America seems to reward the former attributes above all else?

    • Re: (Score:1)

      by Anonymous Coward

      lose jobs that he gave them?

      • Re: (Score:1, Insightful)

        by Anonymous Coward

        This is the shit Republicans actually believe. The guy got a $75,000,000 loan from the government, blew it on terrible business decisions, and yet we're supposed to bow down and worship him for "giving" the employees -- employees that he fucked over (by cancelling health insurance without telling them, for instance) -- their jobs.

        • Re: (Score:1)

          by Anonymous Coward

          You must be joking. Since when do Republicans believe that government loans to business are a good idea? In a cronyism sense both parties do this stuff, but as a philosophy? You're completely wrong; it's Democrats who want to have the goverment pick winners and losers in business. See Solyndra.

          • Re:So what's the purpose of this story again? (Score:5, Insightful)

            by Raenex ( 947668 ) on Sunday July 29, 2012 @09:45AM (#40807427)

            Since when do Republicans believe that government loans to business are a good idea?

            When they're the ones giving them out.

          • Re: (Score:2)

            by pepty ( 1976012 )

            You must be joking. Since when do Republicans believe that government loans to business are a good idea?

            Since always. 38 Steps got its loan courtesy of Carcieri, the Republican governor of RI. The DOE loan program was started by Republican president George Bush in 2005, and it was his DOE that advanced Solyndra as a company worthy of a loan. By the time Obama signed off on it the process had been in the works for years. The only times Republicans don't believe loans to business are a good idea are when a, Democrats might get credit for doing something useful (See GM), b, they see an opportunity to blame De

      • He didn't create much of it: he bought existing companies and then ran them into the ground. Big Huge Games had jobs and products before 38 Studios bought it, and would, in retrospect, have been better off if Schilling hadn't bought 'em.

      • Out of the goodness of his heart? Or did he employ those people for their specific skills? Employment is a trade of skills for money, not a benevolent gift by a kindly rich man. Why do so many righties forget that?

    • Re: (Score:3)

      by stms ( 1132653 )

      What's the point of your comment again? Do you not like this story because it threatens your political views? That not all rich people are old fat evil guys sitting in their office lighting cigars with hundred dollar bills. When some people get money they want to make something other people will enjoy. It doesn't always turn out right for the people trying to do the nice thing. The world and the people in it are not black or white they are a wonderful and confusing shade of grey.

      • Re: (Score:1)

        by Anonymous Coward

        When some people get money they want to make something other people will enjoy.

        The problem is that he "got money", as you say, by borrowing $75M from the state government. If he had made a spectacular failure of a company with his own money or money from private investors, it would still be unfortunate but not nearly so infuriating and hypocritical as this. Of course, the way he treated his employees towards the end was unacceptable regardless of where the money came from.

      • Re: (Score:1)

        by Anonymous Coward

        The "nice thing" in this case, was trying to get as rich as Bill Gates with the first thing he tried.

      • Re: (Score:1)

        by Anonymous Coward

        The world and the people in it are not black or white

        Except for Republicans where 'you are either with us or against us'.

    • Re:So what's the purpose of this story again? (Score:5, Interesting)

      by docmordin ( 2654319 ) on Sunday July 29, 2012 @06:15AM (#40806757)

      Although the story doesn't mention it, unlike others, I'm guessing it's one more subtle jab to the fact that he [Curt Schilling] is vehemently opposed to government financial bailouts and stimulus funds, yet didn't bother to eschew a tax-payer backed state loan, let alone managed his company, from afar, in the same impetuous manner as those that required government aid in the first place.

      Had Schilling really wanted to make Copernicus a reality, there were plenty of other alternative steps he and the management at 38 Studios could have taken. One option would have been to scrap the development of an MMO, something that, as the article noted, resulted in a number of years without revenue, and instead focused on an excellent single-player game from the get-go, so as to build up brand recognition before branching out. (While they, in a half-hearted attempt, did this with Kingdoms of Amalur, it really wasn't a good enough effort, which is evident in just about every facet of the game.)

      • [Curt Schilling] is vehemently opposed to government financial bailouts and stimulus funds, yet didn't bother to eschew a tax-payer backed state loan, let alone managed his company, from afar, in the same impetuous manner as those that required government aid in the first place.

        Furthermore:

        Schilling apparently regrets the decision to bet the company on an MMO game, but otherwise seems to accept little blame for the demise.

        So, it seems, like many executives, Schilling is acutely aware that success of a business depends on the whole team's effort. Blame is distributed and diluted. While the company operated, Schilling (and all the employees) drew salaries off the government teat under a program specifically designed to foster entrepreneurship by reducing individual risk. Schilling's successes, though, are down to his personal leadership, ability to inspire his team members, and his own personal skills.

        It's a ver

      • Re:So what's the purpose of this story again? (Score:5, Insightful)

        by DarkOx ( 621550 ) on Sunday July 29, 2012 @08:32AM (#40807069) Journal

        [Curt Schilling] is vehemently opposed to government financial bailouts and stimulus funds, yet didn't bother to eschew a tax-payer backed state loan

        Which is why I don't blame Curt. Liberals love to jump on people like Schilling for being opposed subsidies and then taking advantage of the ones that exist. They are the first to say "we're all in this together" and suddenly forget that sentiment as soon as it applies to anyone who disagrees. Tough, we live in a society. That means people like Schilling, if they had their way would not get subsidies and neither would anyone else. They don't make the rules though and neither do I. I vote all the time to end this crap but It does not happen, in the mean time people like Schilling and I pay the same taxes to support it as everyone else; just be cause we don't think its a good idea does not mean we are any less entitled when society collectively decides to create an entitlement.

        So what we really have here is a case where Government was gambling with public monies making loans. That is not the governments job, or it should not be. Capital risk belongs in the private market. There are two really important reasons for that. The first is that when things don't work out bankruptcy can destroy private debts, sovereign debts on the other hang around and drag on the economy forever. The second is that private financing means the people making the call and taking the risk have their own skin in the game. That tends to put the breaks on ideas where the risk is outsized compared to the potential reward; money gets allocated better.

        People keep saying 38 Studios should have take a less aggressive path. They probably could not have raised 75M in the private markets and would have been forced to do just that. That would have put them on the path to grow by doing some number of less ambitious but likely more successful in ROI terms projects first. Who knows if government had not dumped a bunch of overly cheap money on them they might exist today.

        • So you're saying it's the government's fault for making the money available, and the person who took the money has no responsibility?

          Isn't that akin to blaming the person who left his car unlocked when it gets stolen?

          • Re:So what's the purpose of this story again? (Score:5, Insightful)

            by DarkOx ( 621550 ) on Sunday July 29, 2012 @10:30AM (#40807663) Journal

            So you're saying it's the government's fault for making the money available, and the person who took the money has no responsibility?

            -Yes and No-
            He has responsibility for the business failing yes. He has no responsibility to public for the loss of the 75 million, that is what a loan grantee does after all. I also really do think that when government intercedes in the market place and makes money overly cheap, either via loan grantees or direct lending, it does lead otherwise savvy business people to make poorer decisions. It also enables unproven decision makers like these folks access to capital that nobody would give them otherwise. The outcome seems to be often calamity.

            This is an example of someone who had they been forced by nature to swim in a smaller pond for a time, might have learned, grown, and installed a team around him of proven people. What that 75Million loan did is effective let him skip from the high school team and jump directly to majors. Things might have gone better with some time in AAA

            • I'm not sure how any of this vindicates Curt Schilling's ethics, which is the matter in question here. Nobody forced him to do anything, of course he was desperate to keep his company going, but a lot of people have been desperate in the last 4 years to keep themselves fed, let alone their software companies in the black. Being ethical requires more than simply doing the cheapest and most effective thing for you at this moment.

              I also really do think that when government intercedes in the market place and

        • Utterly neglecting the FACT that Curt is a LOUSY businessman

          Curt ACTIVELY SOUGHT OUT THE MONEY. It was NOT handed to him on a platter.

          Can you BE MORE OBTUSE IF YOU TRY???

        • Oh please. Someone is vehemently opposed to subsidies, yet takes full advantage of them only because they're currently legal. That's like someone being vehemently opposed to abortion, but having one every six months because they're legal. Last time I looked, part of opposing something meant you didn't partake in it yourself because you are *opposed* to it.

        • Re: (Score:2)

          by gmhowell ( 26755 )

          Which is why I don't blame Curt. Liberals love to jump on people like Schilling for being opposed subsidies and then taking advantage of the ones that exist.

          Nah, we love to jump on Cunt Schilling because he's a racist douchebag.

        • Which is why I don't blame Curt. Liberals love to jump on people like Schilling for being opposed subsidies and then taking advantage of the ones that exist.

          Most people consider hypocrisy unacceptable.

      • I'm guessing it's one more subtle jab to the fact that he [Curt Schilling] is vehemently opposed to government financial bailouts and stimulus funds, yet didn't bother to eschew a tax-payer backed state loan,

        Well then it sounds like he more than proved the point.

        I don't see anything wrong with telling people something doesn't work and then taking advantage of them when they do not believe you. Otherwise how will people learn?

        • I'm guessing it's one more subtle jab to the fact that he [Curt Schilling] is vehemently opposed to government financial bailouts and stimulus funds, yet didn't bother to eschew a tax-payer backed state loan,

          Well then it sounds like he more than proved the point.

          I don't see anything wrong with telling people something doesn't work and then taking advantage of them when they do not believe you. Otherwise how will people learn?

          Yes, of course he did it as a selfless act of political theatre. Of course he did.

          • Didn't say it was selfless. Just said the end results were not really bad.

            Something does not have to be selfless to be good. That's why the phrase "win-win" exists.

    • 1) You're obviously jealous since you have no athletic ability
      2) He created a business venture that hired people in technical, well-paying jobs. Yea, they went under, but about half of new companies fail within 5 years. Without risk-takers and visionaries, we'd all be sitting around the stone circle talking about how Thag caught that scary squirrel with his bare hands

      • - He put hundreds of people onto Rhode Island's unemployment rolls

        - Certainly he hired those people but several of them are holding the bag on mortgages after 38 relocated them and then failed to sell their house

        - "risk takers and visionaries" THIS IS VIDEO GAMES!!! WHAT SORT OF BENEFIT IS HE PROVIDING THAT EXCUSES THE LOSSES???

        All you are showing is that you are unable to use the things that matter when you draw conclusions about what is going on. When those involved in the situation see misery and bankr

      • Wanting to become rich doesn't qualify you as a "visionary". And this twat risked other people's money, not his own. (Which is admittedly the definition of capitalism).
        • He was already rich, and he risked a significant amount of his own personal fortune. And I didn't call him a visionary.

  • Congratulation (Score:3, Insightful)

    by mwvdlee ( 775178 ) on Sunday July 29, 2012 @05:43AM (#40806661) Homepage

    After reading the article, I can only say one thing.

    Congratulations mr. Shilling, for winning the "most arrogant douchebag of the century" award.
    We've still got 82 years to go, but we're pretty sure nobody will even come close.

    He wanted to outdo with half the money in half the time and no experience, what few experts dare to do.

    My whole life was spent doing things that people didn’t believe were possible, because God blessed me with the ability to throw a baseball. And I carried that same mentality into everything I did here.

    You weren't doing anything anybody thought impossible. Any league has a finite number of teams, one of which will win; this is not an impossibility.
    Apart from being CEO at Microsoft, the ability to throw objects has no value outside the baseball field.
    The mentality to do short bouts of activity for a few hours every week isn't necessarily the right mentality for anything else in live.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by gl4ss ( 559668 )

      well.. the real lesson is that you shouldn't have headcount for headcounts sake(headcount was necessary to qualify for the loan though but it seems they had headcount for headcounts sake even before that - this is why they hired people while they couldn't pay their bills).

      also they didn't apparently have an idea about how to make the game fun(and/or perhaps an idea about how to make it properly scale to amazing mmo). it doesn't really seem that what it lacked was just money, but the right team from the day

    • No kidding (Score:5, Insightful)

      by Sycraft-fu ( 314770 ) on Sunday July 29, 2012 @06:34AM (#40806797)

      Same shit with the "Make an MMO first because it makes you the most money!" thing. What a retarded, arrogant, idea. When you are new in business, best not to try and shoot straight for the most financially risky stuff because good chance you fail. Had he really wanted to make games and been smart about it he would have started small, maybe with something he could self-fund, and then as he learned moved on up.

      Just as you don't start pitching for the majors, you don't want to start on an MMO. It is a shit ton of work, a lot of money, and easy to fuck up. Even for the big players it can happen. Look at The Old Republic. Bioware was doing the design and story on it, and they have a history of very solid single player MMOs, EA was publishing and controlling it, and they have a few MMOs to their name (Ultima Online, DAoC, and Warhammer Online) and yet they still screwed it up fairly badly and it is questionable if they'll manage to break even.

      He just thought he was such an amazingly smart motherfucker that he'd go straight to the top, fuck all that noise of learning the business or anything. Instead, it was straight to the bottom.

  • Idea: use tax money to make a retired baseball pitcher into a software CEO.
    • Comment removed based on user account deletion

      • Re: (Score:3)

        by Trepidity ( 597 )

        It would also give basically free publicity, of an actually good kind. "Curt Schilling making a baseball MMO" gets you into both the tech press and the sports pages, and probably would build interest and anticipation even without having a product yet. "Curt Schilling is making a WoW clone" also produces some press, but more of the puzzled/curious kind.

  • Does not predict success as a tech CEO, particularly when you are a right wing ultra-religious asshat.

    • Don't know where the summary or you got that idea from. Brett Close was the CEO. You are write about nepotism though. From the article:

      It lacked MMO development experience at the top. “Curt was not the CEO,” Dagres says, “but you could see he was quite involved and had a lot of control. I was a little nervous.” He also took note that the COO was Schilling’s relative.

      I wrote out what I think should be done in my journal [slashdot.org] but of course the formatting looks like crap with italics. I think Rhode Island should get what they paid for and do what they want with most of the assets (including the source).

      • Re: (Score:1)

        by Anonymous Coward

        FYI, Brett Close was the original CEO, staying for about half of the company's lifetime, Jen MacLean was then CEO until about a month before the end, when she left for maternity leave (which officially was unrelated to the company's financial issues).

        Curt was indeed very involved, but involved does not equal control -- he showed up and gave motivational speeches frequently, but that's not the same as setting deadlines or making decisions.

  • The companyâ(TM)s death was grisly: Before going under, it defaulted on the $75 million guaranteed loan that the state of Rhode Island had used in 2010 to lure it to Providence. As the money ran out, the company encouraged its 379 employees to continue coming into work, even though it knew it could not pay them. Staffers realized theyâ(TM)d been stiffed only when they noticed the money missing from their bank accounts. A pregnant woman had to find out from her doctor that her healthcare benefits had been cut off.

    - like all the other government loan guarantees, and all other types of moral hazards created by the government, this business was failing with a much bigger bang because of them.

    Without gov't loan guarantees, the guy couldn't spend that much money on a losing business, the tax payers wouldn't be footing the bill, the taxes didn't have to be collected, the money could have stayed in the private hands, banks or VC firms, the risk would have been managed better.

    Companies must go bankrupt, they must blow up,

    • Re: (Score:1)

      by Anonymous Coward

      If only the American economy actually worked that way. Instead we have socialism for the rich and socialism for the poor all funded off the backs of the middle class. The problem with socialism is eventually you run out of others people's money. The middle class can't carry both the rich AND the poor.

      • Re: (Score:3, Insightful)

        by Hognoxious ( 631665 )

        The middle class can't carry both the rich AND the poor.

        Probably true. I just wonder which will get thrown overboard first.

    • There are some areas where government is right to interfere. Just think about things people can't do without. Like food or power.

      If the government just let market forces take over, then most food and power would be produced in neighboring countries. Which wouldn't be that bad if nothing changed.

      But what happens if the neighbors notice that your country is missing such critical items? They can raise prices to whatever they want, and there is not much you can do about it until you rebuild your own power plant

    • Curt Schilling ACTIVELY SOUGHT OUT THE MONEY after EXHAUSTING OTHER REVENUE SOURCES.

      Tell us more lies about how the state pushed money into his hands

  • I note that recently the Court of Justice of the European Union rejected an attempt by Oracle to stop the sale of secondhand licences on software downloaded over the internet. [theregister.co.uk] It seems to me that reselling of games software should also be allowed under the same ruling.

  • Look we don't go trying to play sports or get laid so hopefully this jock has learned his lesson and will stay out of the computer business.

    • Re:Jocks & Nerds (Score:5, Interesting)

      by Anonymous Coward on Sunday July 29, 2012 @09:16AM (#40807291)

      This "jock" is probably a bigger gaming nerd than you ever were -- he was leading a major guild in everquest one back when playing professional baseball (as pitcher, he had plenty of off days when he could lead raids!), and he's still got active max level characters in several MMOs.

      He's a hard-core player of tabletop boardgames, and rescued the company that publishes the advanced squad leader franchise when it was having financial problems; he sometimes wore t-shirts from boardgame conventions around the office, and occasionally stayed late to play boardgames with employees.

      I'm hoping he hasn't learned his lesson, because 38 studios was a great place to work, and I'd be happy to work for him again if he starts another company.

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by gmhowell ( 26755 )

        I'm hoping he hasn't learned his lesson, because 38 studios was a great place to work, and I'd be happy to work for him again if he starts another company.

        Of course it was a great place to 'work': you got paid and didn't have to do shit.

        • Re: (Score:2)

          by gl4ss ( 559668 )

          I'm hoping he hasn't learned his lesson, because 38 studios was a great place to work, and I'd be happy to work for him again if he starts another company.

          Of course it was a great place to 'work': you got paid and didn't have to do shit.

          _this_. everyone liked him since he was spewing money everywhere, hiring too much at the wrong stage of development for funs sake and so forth, too bad he didn't in the end actually have that money. 38 studios was probably a great place to hang out.. work..? not so much.

          • Re: (Score:2)

            by gmhowell ( 26755 )

            I'm sure there might be many things the guy can do. Hit a ball. Throw a ball. Level up an Orc hunter. Sure. Running a multimillion dollar software studio? Not so much.

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by Bobtree ( 105901 )

        In other news: making games is much harder than playing them.

  • This loss reminds me of an old Disney cartoon as saw as a kid. Casey at The Bat.

    http://youtu.be/erfSed2MUsA [youtu.be]

  • Great Power points though (Score:3)

    by EmperorOfCanada ( 1332175 ) on Sunday July 29, 2012 @09:56AM (#40807485)
    Not a flippant comment. I suspect that this guy gave a presentation like no 100 geeks could give. Because of his sports fame and no doubt an ability to have access to the corridors of power he was able to convince the government that they could "pick a winner". I have watched and dealt with people like this my whole career. They see money being made and they insist on getting a "taste" Then they use their one schmoozing skill, round up an obscene amount of money put on a great show which usually is designed to impress and round up even more money. Then since their single driving focus wasn't putting out a great product they fail.

    In fact I have long suspected that these guys don't usually want a product out as then the product would potentially drive the success well beyond their simple abilities.

    The real drag in these situations is that not only do they waste taxpayer's money but they drive legitimate start-ups out of business; this is through their eating much of the available investment money, eating up the local talent, overpaying for rent, and then leaving a sour taste in everyone's mouths in the area for tech start-ups with the whole once bitten twice shy thing. In my area there was a famous flameout of an educational business. Same deal these guys literally had top government education people working for them "on secondment". Then boom it all blew up over a decade ago. The lawsuits and criminal charges are still working through the system.

    Any good tech business need some business savvy people near the top; but It all boils down to whether there are tech people making the decisions. The showmen should be the head of marketing, not the head of the company.

  • Partisan Politics (Score:4, Insightful)

    by RudyHartmann ( 1032120 ) on Sunday July 29, 2012 @10:02AM (#40807521)

    The comments venturing over into partisan politics are getting lame and mean spirited. This is a story about a tech failure and an unqualified CEO. Comments about that are interesting. All the "Republican this" or "Democrat that" replies are irrelevant and pointless.

    • Politics are already involved. People like you who desire to remove the political implications from arguments are the real problem here.

  • He may have all the superficial characteristics of an entrepreneur, but the difference ends up being what you mean by the word "lead". TL;DR: enthusiasm may win a game. It doesn't build a business.

    A pitcher LEADS a team through his performance. Perhaps even through his attitude. He doesn't manage the team, he doesn't recruit talent, he doesn't set salaries, he doesn't run practices.

    To have a successful business, you CANNOT lead simply through your own performance - you have to do all those other things

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by mvdwege ( 243851 )

      Erm, hate to burst your bubble, but Curt already has experience running a business, he's the founder of Multi Man Publishing, who produce boardgames and started out as a hobby project of his when he bought a license for some Avalon Hill properties after the Hill was bought up by Hasbro.

      Mart

      • Yeah that hobby project experience comes in real handy when the head count passes the 100 point.

      • Actually, no, you're entirely mistaken. From Brian Youse, one of the ACTUAL founders of MMP: (http://www.boardgamegeek.com/article/9253202#9253202)

        "...MMP began in 1994 when we released Backblast, an ASL fanzine, and was comprised of four AH ASL playtesters and a guy who had some layout skills. Avalon Hill had made the decision that ASL was "dead" and we wanted to keep seeing some new scenarios, etc.

        Curt didn't become involved until sometime around the end of 1995 when he was also attempting to buy the rig

        • Re: (Score:2)

          by mvdwege ( 243851 )

          Eh, that's close enough to count as a founder to me, even if not the actual founder. I don't remember seeing much MMP activity until 1995 anyway.

          And you're still selling him short. Curt was fairly active in the day-to-day activities of the company, he did not just bring in the cash.

          Note, for the slow among us, I'm not saying he's a good businessman. Just that 38 Studios is not his first venture. And veteran ASLers will not be surprised at the failure mode of 38 Studios, Curt's been enthousiastic about more

  • The summary was missing something important: a list of games from 38 Studios. [wikipedia.org] So here you are. I haven't heard of Kingdoms of Amalur, or Project Copernicus (unreleased). Sorry they went out of business, but it is a tough industry and they clearly weren't delivering.

  • Fascinating psychology (Score:5, Insightful)

    by FranTaylor ( 164577 ) on Sunday July 29, 2012 @10:45AM (#40807771)

    What's fascinating about this is that Curt Schilling (and apparently many Slashdot readers) think that you can IGNORE poor business practices by PRETENDING it's the fault of those who make those poor business practices available.

    To these people it's not Curt's fault he took the loan, it's the fault of the people who offered it to him.

    Equally fascinating is the implication that Curt Schilling is DUMB AS A STUMP if he JUST CAN'T STOP HIMSELF FROM TAKING THAT MONEY.

  • I didn't know if this company had ever shipped a product. I like playing PC games and I had not heard of them, so I thought I would investigate. I discovered they released a game called Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning. So, I decided to look into what it was all about.
    It's another elves and demons knockoff of the Lord of The Rings books or The World of Warcraft game. There are a bunch of games like that. It appears to me a "Me Too" game. I found nothing to make me choose it over World of Warcraft and I read al

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by gl4ss ( 559668 )

      it's a me too game all right.
      but fyi - they bought a different studio to make the reckoning. the original 38 studios never shipped anything, but apparently they had some test versions running at least..

  • When they started telling people via the media that 38 Studios was coming to Providence that it was going to end in disaster. I mean, who the hell thinks a baseball player has any business experience? For example, I've been in the I.T. field for 20 years and I wouldn't even begin to think I could lead a team to create a game like that. But former Governor Carcieri, the Embarrassment got star struck and moved his administration to make the deal.

  • As the money ran out, the company encouraged its 379 employees to continue coming into work, even though it knew it could not pay them.

    Most jurisdictions consider that a criminal offense.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by gl4ss ( 559668 )

      well why do you think one of the bosses bailed out of the firm earlier in the spring?

  • Maybe they will open source their code and the IP won't entirely go to waste. As for the money, well, it is in someone's bank account. It is not lost, just redistributed. Every day we make bets that seem stupid later but such is life. Sometimes stupid bets payoff (I'm looking at you instagram).

  • Time and again, though, Schilling emerged from meetings like this one thinking he’d hit a home run. “There was never a single one that he didn’t walk out of saying he absolutely killed it,” says a former employee who attended a number of investor meetings. But over and over, there was no investment. Still, Schilling remained optimistic.

    You couldn't wish for a more textbook example of narcissism-derived Dunning–Kruger bias [wikipedia.org].

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