• by December 3, 2004

On the day after the Viewpoint/Unicast deal, the Minute remains confused over an arrangement that, from a value standpoint alone, seems slightly ridiculous.

Unicast does about $7 million in revenue; Viewpoint acquired Unicast for $7.4 million in a mostly stock deal. Viewpoint does about $12 million in business on an annual basis. How does this make sense? The Minute was not privy to the details, but senses a whiff of desperation.

Unicast is a good brand and a trailblazer in the interactive video space. Its superstitial video ad formats are a strong compliment to media plans. Honda, the U.S. Army, and a slew of other big advertisers have used Unicast video.

Commenting on yesterday's deal, Chris Young, CEO of Klipmart Corp. says, "Time will tell. We'll have to see how the companies position themselves and what the product offerings are going to be," adding, "It was a fantastic deal for Viewpoint and a strategic deal, potentially, for Unicast, but I'm somewhat unclear."

The Minute seconds that and further speculates that such a depressed valuation for an industry pioneer suggests the existence of internal pressure within Unicast and its board.

"The price tag on this deal, although full details haven't been disclosed... It seems to me that it was a very depressed sale from the perspective of value," Klipmart's Young says.

The deal is expected to close in early January. Time, indeed, will tell.