Emblaze Ltd. (LSE: BLZ) is virtually eliminating its mobile business, Else Ltd. (formerly Emblaze Mobile), several months after announcing the launch of its first product, the First Else. Emblaze said that its board had decided to stop further investment in manufacturing the First Else mobile device, after the company failed to reach agreements with mobile carriers around the world.
Sources inform ''Globes'' that Emblaze plans to lay off most of Else's 15 employees.
In a notice to the London Stock Exchange, Emblaze said, "Due to critical delays in deliveries and the current status of the project, the board has now decided to cease any further investment towards manufacturing of the First Else mobile device and to concentrate efforts only on licensing the Else Intuition platform and technology in order to realize its potential upside."
The First Else was presented at the 2010 Mobile World Congress in Barcelona in February. The device has a 3.5-inch screen, 5-megapixel camera, GPS, and 3.5G connectivity. The idea was that the user could hold the device in their right hand and use their right thumb to execute most operations, which would make the device more intuitive.
Emblaze's share price fell 4.5% in London today to ₤0.315, giving a market cap of ₤35 million.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on June 30, 2010
© Copyright of Globes Publisher Itonut (1983) Ltd. 2010