 
Corvus
Flaming Tards Since 2003
Premium,VIP
join:2003-11-26 | Funny I was sure American justice was like a Gong Show but it seems to be working in this case! 
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Jesus saves, but only Buddha makes incremental backups. | |
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ronpin
Imagine Reality
join:2002-12-06
Nirvana
 ·AT&T Southwest
| Burned Thru $25 Million Who said the 1990's were dead? I'd love to know how much the CEO and his pals at the venture capital firm lavished on themselves -- and whose pension funds were raided to make it happen. Our SEC officials -- or politicians thereof must be getting something out of it too. | |
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 | Beeper
Part Of The Problem
join:2001-09-27
Dayton, OH
clubs:
| Re: Burned Thru $25 Million said by ronpin  :
Who said the 1990's were dead? I'd love to know how much the CEO and his pals at the venture capital firm lavished on themselves -- and whose pension funds were raided to make it happen.
A pension fund in a start up company? Your bleak cynicism has blinded you from reality.
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Guaranteed Fear and Loathing. Abandon all hope. Prepare for the Weirdness. Get familiar with Cannibalism. | |
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ronpin
Imagine Reality
join:2002-12-06
Nirvana
·AT&T Southwest
1 edit | Re: Burned Thru $25 Million Where do you think Venture Capital Funds get their funds??? Do you think it's their money??? No, of course not. They get their money by promoting each of their startup companies to various large funds -- like Fidelity and others -- where your 401K savings are stored. Most large funds set aside a part of "their" assets to invest in "high-risk" ventures -- managed by Venture Capital funds. Trust me -- it's the classic good 'ol boy network. Nobody complains as long as there is a decent overall return to the base fund. That leaves tons of money to skim-off through high salaries and bonuses to the "in-crowd". Did you think investment bankers actually deserve their 7 figure salaries???
Has your rosy optimism blinded you from reality? | |
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Rhobite
Premium
join:2002-02-24
Cambridge, MA
clubs:
| Re: Burned Thru $25 Million If that were true, it would be the fault of the fund's investors for not doing their homework. You should read the prospectus before investing in any mutual fund. Of course some funds invest in VC, but plenty of funds don't.
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Jimmysquid.com - I take pictures. | |
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ronpin
Imagine Reality
join:2002-12-06
Nirvana
·AT&T Southwest
1 edit | Re: Burned Thru $25 Million Trust me -- if you were a large 401K fund manager and your cousin Vinny laid out a plan to fund a game-box startup -- and there are commisions and jobs for your friends and family involved -- you'd do it too. Meanwhile Vinny gets 51% of the startup and you get an ample supply of stock options. Everyone with connections here makes out like bandits -- oh and the 401K fund gets a nice 10% return too -- so everyone is happy. It's just that some people are really happy. Oh, if the startup goes belly-up before an IPO or a sell-out -- who cares??? a lot of people made a lot of money in salaries, bonuses and fees -- and they only need an occassional real success to pay for several blunders.
That's OK its all legal -- and what you don't know won't hurt you will it? People smart enough to pull this off probably deserve the money eh? (people like us -- dumb enough to let 'em do it "deserve-it" too) | |
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Rhobite
Premium
join:2002-02-24
Cambridge, MA
clubs:
1 edit | Re: Burned Thru $25 Million Yes, if you can't be bothered to read a prospectus I can't be bothered to have much sympathy for you. As an investor you have a right to know where your money is. There's no excuse for not finding this out when it comes to your retirement money. Investing in VC is against the strategy of most retirement funds, and they will be called on it. Can you name an example of when this has happened?
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Jimmysquid.com - I take pictures. | |
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ronpin
Imagine Reality
join:2002-12-06
Nirvana
·AT&T Southwest
| Re: Burned Thru $25 Million Heh-heh -- try asking your 401K fund manager what high-risk funds they invested in last year. Try to get the names of the startups that ultimately benefitted. Be sure to ask how much everyone involved made. Heh-heh -- good-luck -- I hope your well connected and you don't have some bad luck afterwards.
You really need to understand that these guys honestly believe that they deserve to make millions on our 401K savings -- after-all they're really all about helping us poor working slobs. | |
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Part Of The Problem
join:2001-09-27
Dayton, OH
clubs:
| Re: Burned Thru $25 Million said by ronpin :
You really need to understand that these guys honestly believe that they deserve to make millions on our 401K savings
For once I agree with you.
That's why I use Vanguard ( with fee's around .17% yearly) and S&P depository reciepts ( about .14% ). These are my retirement dollars. I am not interested in paying for anyone else's.
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Guaranteed Fear and Loathing. Abandon all hope. Prepare for the Weirdness. Get familiar with Cannibalism. | |
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ronpin
Imagine Reality
join:2002-12-06
Nirvana | Re: Burned Thru $25 Million Sure -- whatever you say | |
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Whatever12
@168.143.x.x | Re: Burned Thru $25 Million You have no idea what you're talking about. | |
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Jsouth
join:2000-12-12
Wichita, KS | Why ask him? I can look mine up on the internet on the companies website and I can also do math so I would know about any changes. | |
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| | | Beeper
Part Of The Problem
join:2001-09-27
Dayton, OH
clubs:
| said by ronpin :
Has your rosy optimism blinded you from reality?
You've ignored the question. What start up has a pension fund?
What funds have been looted? Who has been prosecuted? Has the federal government's pension garuntee board stepped in to take over any bankrupt firm's obligations?
I'd bet the answers are all negative.
This fits the pattern established by CBS. Absent facts, make stuff up.
Your black cynicism is not shared by the population.
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Guaranteed Fear and Loathing. Abandon all hope. Prepare for the Weirdness. Get familiar with Cannibalism. | |
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ronpin
Imagine Reality
join:2002-12-06
Nirvana | Re: Burned Thru $25 Million You just don't get it -- no laws have been broken! Everyone is happy (again some are really happy) Now get back to work -- 'cause they really need your 401K savings -- to invest for you! | |
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Part Of The Problem
join:2001-09-27
Dayton, OH
clubs:
| Re: Burned Thru $25 Million said by ronpin :
You just don't get it -- no laws have been broken! Everyone is happy (again some are really happy) Now get back to work -- 'cause they really need your 401K savings -- to invest for you!
Why aren't you happy then?
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Guaranteed Fear and Loathing. Abandon all hope. Prepare for the Weirdness. Get familiar with Cannibalism. | |
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ronpin
Imagine Reality
join:2002-12-06
Nirvana
·AT&T Southwest
| Re: Burned Thru $25 Million Maybe I should've said fat, dumb and happy. Clearly -- just because something is legal doesn't mean it's ethical (and the opposite is true also)
I could be happy -- with a simple law requiring VC's get money only from high-risk funds that must be specifically opted into. Right now your 401K fund mgr. has too much leeway. Most people have no idea how their 401K savings are invested. As long as the return beats the CD rates -- they're [fat, dumb and] happy. I don't think the good 'ol boy network is fair -- even if it is "natural". | |
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Rhobite
Premium
join:2002-02-24
Cambridge, MA
clubs: | Re: Burned Thru $25 Million Can you name a single mutual fund that deceptively invests in venture capital?
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Jimmysquid.com - I take pictures. | |
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ronpin
Imagine Reality
join:2002-12-06
Nirvana
·AT&T Southwest
| Re: Burned Thru $25 Million Why would they need to deceive? IT'S PERFECTLY LEGAL -- As long as no internal policies or risk fund allocation ratios are exceeded. Again, it's all legal. As long as everybody gets a cut -- they're happy. I just think it's unfair that "skimming" [for millions] is just part of the game. It's just too easy. | |
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Rhobite
Premium
join:2002-02-24
Cambridge, MA
clubs:
| Re: Burned Thru $25 Million said by ronpin :
Why would they need to deceive? IT'S PERFECTLY LEGAL -- As long as no internal policies or risk fund allocation ratios are exceeded. Again, it's all legal. As long as everybody gets a cut -- they're happy. I just think it's unfair that "skimming" [for millions] is just part of the game. It's just too easy.
Fine, it's completely legal, but you still haven't named a single fund that does this.
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Jimmysquid.com - I take pictures. | |
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DrTCP
Yours truly
Premium,ExMod 1999-04
join:1999-11-09
Round Rock, TX
| said by Beeper :
A pension fund in a start up company? Your bleak cynicism has blinded you from reality.
I took it as other pention funds investing in this company (it is/was a publicly traded company - they bough a public company and changed its name, an unusual thing) | |
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one_bored_si
join:2003-03-10
Montebello, CA | Re: ?? It says a "Major win for H over Infinium" in the title of the post. | |
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Karl Bode
News Guy
join:2000-03-02 | Hmmm. HardOCP pulled the reference. Maybe their lawyers didn't like the bragging? | |
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| | Plldwnyrpnts
join:2003-04-19
Chicago, IL | Re: ?? It's not pulled. Whereisphantom.com exceeded their bandwidth. [H] has a mirror of it. | |
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Karl Bode
News Guy
join:2000-03-02 | Re: ?? Yeah I see that now. For a while it was blank though... | |
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mskittykat
Reality Bites...So I'm Back
Premium
join:2002-10-17
Upper Marlboro, MD | Homestly... They should just admit that they were never going to make it, and move on....
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"Smart is knowing your ABC's. Intelligent is knowing how to use them." | |
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Hardcore
The Cow Says
Premium
join:2002-08-23
Albany, GA | Revenge of the Nerds? Good job HardOCP. Good job giving Infinium a legitimate reason to pull the Phantom - period.
We'll never really know if it was vaporware or not, thanks to this lawsuit. | |
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Doctor Olds
I Need A Remedy For What's Ailing Me.
Premium,VIP
join:2001-04-19
1970 442 W30
clubs:
| Re: Revenge of the Nerds? said by Hardcore :
We'll never really know if it was vaporware or not, thanks to this lawsuit.
Huh? They (Infinitum) claimed they had operational prototypes. Yet no one has seen them, so it is vaporware...... Regardless of the reason they never started sales of "the product". | |
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DusterAZ
Silencer
join:2002-03-10
Surprise, AZ
| Umm ... Infinium brought this upon themselves when they initially sued Hardocp simply because of comments made about the POS Phantom.
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"Guess what? I got a fever! And the only prescription... is more cowbell!" - Christopher Walken | |
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b_zen
Premium
join:2002-07-24
Saint Louis, MO
clubs:
·TTNet
| Re: Revenge of the Nerds? True. The best answer would have been to ignore the comments and "answer" them with product/service preview...
I remember going to their "all-flash-please-stick-it-up(xxx)" web site a year or so ago... and right then, that company rose all the red-flags for me.
A company with great finance/product/service will not "invest" in lame flash site(I'm keeping it short) just to appeal to a potential vapor-public. They will use the traditional PR channels, or have enough witt to put a simple/straight-forward site...
I don't know where that investment money went, in their cars, banks or nose, or all of the above...
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UWB over Wire is the future!
3Plink.com |Voice|Video|Data| | |
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PunkGod
join:2003-02-02 | We all new it was never going to come out! Yea, they claim they ran out of money but did they really have it in the first place. Sounds like they were getting ready to scam a bunch of people but backed out. | |
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Doctor Four
My other vehicle is a TARDIS
Premium
join:2000-09-05
Dallas, TX | Re: We all new it was never going to come out! Hey, I know the perfect broadband "product" to go along
with this - Juiceboosted! | |
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Karl Bode
News Guy
join:2000-03-02 | Re: We all new it was never going to come out! God, a Juice Boosted Phantom. Dare to dream!  | |
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furlonium
Computer Over? Virus equals Very Yes?
join:2002-05-08
Bethlehem, PA
| said by Doctor Four :
Hey, I know the perfect broadband "product" to go along
with this - Juiceboosted!
aaahh you beat me to it!
"Infium Labs' Phantom will be using Juice-Boosted technology to download its games..." | |
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kenyg
join:2001-02-09
Hatboro, PA
| here's the court docs - in pdf attached... | |
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SRFireside
join:2001-01-19
Houston, TX | Re: here's the court docs - in pdf So essentially Infinium must now disclose all of the corporate correspondence and meeting minutes to HardOCP? This should get interesting. | |
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ecb12
join:2004-03-11
Columbia, MO
| I've Played the phantom it does exsist The phantom was at E3 this year and had a huge booth. They had about 5 units all playing different things. I watched a demo and played a little Ut2k3. I don't really see the big deal w/ the phantom though, all it is, is a computer w/ a tv out, big deal. Thier subscription service was going to be a joke as well. It was like 20/month for old games and the new games you still had to pay full price for. The Phantom was actually playing online w/ other comps in utk3 which was really weird, i would of thought it would of been more like xbox live and less like a pc but nope, it was a pc in a shiny case. | |
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See 9 replies to this post |
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tim_k
Buttons, Bows, Beamer, Shadow, Kasey
Premium
join:2002-02-02
Stewartstown, PA | No surprise From an old article I read on the CEO, almost all his businesses fail, yet he manages to pocket millions. Having this product fail is no surprise. | |
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the_buz
join:2004-02-15
Yorba Linda, CA | Old news? I thought the phantom console was canned years ago? Or maybe I just read that they were stopping production. Either way it was a waste of effort on their part. Best to leave the console productions to the big boys (Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo). | |
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hailinfantry
Bizarro Quinn
Premium
join:2004-01-18
Brooklyn, NY
| Re: Old news? said by the_buz :
I thought the phantom console was canned years ago? Or maybe I just read that they were stopping production. Either way it was a waste of effort on their part. Best to leave the console productions to the big boys (Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo).
You're right...screw additional competition...just let the "big dogs" take care of it (We can trust them, right?) | |
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hovno2002
join:2002-04-30
Hackensack, NJ
| Phantom - an appropriate name for.... something that does not exist. This guy is an obvious crook. Typical thief who supports a lavish lifestyle with other people's money, then it's "ooops, product didn't take off - sorry, but you knew there was no guarantees" ---
Merriam Webster definition of Phantom -
1 a : something (as a specter) apparent to sense but with no substantial existence | |
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mythology
join:2002-10-16
Seneca, SC | heh This day in age everyone needs a lawyer for everything. Society is on a downward spiral once people cant come to agreement's without a highly paid middle man. What is wrong with these people? Has America as a whole lost all common sense? | |
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AnonymousCoward
@151.143.x.x | Phantom = Chimera I just can't figure out how Kevin Bachus of XBOX fame got involved in this.
He's either a dupe or an active participant.
BTW, [H]ardOCP has an article that examines an actual Phantom console prototype. | |
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xor2
join:2004-06-19
Palmer, AK
| Pre-order the PhantomI pre-ordered my Phantom. Was that wrong? ;)
Ironically, the definition for phantom is:
Something apparently seen, heard,
or sensed, but having no physical
reality; a ghost or an apparition.
Hence, a TRUE phantom. | |
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Phantom Menace
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