PhilWeb unloads stake in German tech company
PHILWEB CORP. has unloaded its stake in a German digital entertainment firm to help keep the company afloat while it seeks a new license to operate again the e- Games network of the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (PAGCOR).
The gaming technology provider said in a disclosure to the stock exchange on Tuesday it sold its investment in Acentic GmbH to Niantic Holding GmbH for $750,000.
Asked if the company divested all its shares in the European firm, PhilWeb President Dennis O. Valdes said in a mobile phone message: “Yes, we did.”
PhilWeb acquired 32.5% of Acentic — a provider of in-room entertainment including digital television and high-speed internet access for several top hotel groups — for P658 million in 2010, according to a regulatory filing.
Likewise, PhilWeb received € 1.97 million from Acentic in full settlement of its loan receivables.
“Thus, in total, the company will have cash proceeds of approximately P140 million. This amount will be utilized by the company to cover its overhead ( costs) while it awaits the reissuance of its license from PAGCOR,” PhilWeb said.
The state- run agency has decided to bid out PhilWeb’s intellectual property licensing and management agreement ( IPLMA) as provider of the eGames network instead of automatically awarding this again to the company. PhilWeb’s contract expired on Aug. 10.
PAGCOR cited Republic Act 9184, or the Government Procurement Reform Act, which mandates state agencies and government-owned corporations to hold a public bidding in procuring products and services.
PhilWeb filed an application for an omnibus IPLMA for the eGames network on Oct. 12, a week after Gregorio Araneta, Inc. (GAI) agreed to take over the gaming technology provider from businessman Roberto V. Ongpin.
Mr. Ongpin divested all his 53.76% interest in the company for P2 billion after President Rodrigo R. Duterte singled out the former trade minister to the late dictator Ferdinand E. Marcos among the “oligarchs” he wanted to “destroy.”
Mr. Ongpin first resigned as chairman and director of PhilWeb on Aug. 4 to supposedly spare the listed company from the President’s threat.
The suspension of the eGames operation has taken its toll on PhilWeb’s financial performance. In the nine months to September, its net income fell by an annual 63% to P229.1 million from P615.7 million after revenues dropped 16% to P1.03 billion from P1.24 billion.
The company registered about P5.4 million in net loss in the third quarter, when its contract with PAGCOR lapsed. In comparison, it posted a net income of P206.0 million in the comparable three months of 2015.
Mr. Duterte has failed to maintain a consistent stance since directing PAGCOR to revoke the licenses of online gaming operators during the first Cabinet meeting in June 30.
Shares in PhilWeb slid 44 centavos or 4.15% to close at P10.16 each on Tuesday.