2600 Distributor Withholds Money, Magazine's Future In Limbo

First time accepted submitter themusicgod1 (241799) writes According to 2600, their distributor (Previously known as "Source Interlink", now recently renamed to "TEN: The Enthusiast Network") has decided to consolidate its resources and is keeping the money retailers paid for the last two issues of the quarterly magazine. 2600, in the meanwhile, is still busy trying to organize the upcoming HOPE X conference. However, according to the link: "In the worst case scenario, being ripped off at this level would make it almost impossible for us to continue publishing. We would have to make a lot of painful choices and cut back on things for no reason other than some outside company's mismanagement. Our readers have supported both our print and digital publications and we've been doing quite well overall." Note: As it says at the linked explanation, 2600 is not a charity, and they're not seeking donations -- but they would like you to buy the magazine (in print or Kindle form), and to attend the upcoming HOPE X conference. (I wish I could make this year's HOPE but can't; as conferences go, HOPE is a wildly good bargain.)

Comments

Hello, McFly

[cravey]

Has anyone pointed out to the distributor precisely who the target audience for the publication is?

Next week on pastebin: All of their dirty laundry.

2600

[Anonymous Coward]

I am surprised a magazine devoted to the original Atari video game console is still going

Source Interlink Distribution shuts down

[NoNonAlphaCharsHere]

From the letter Source Interlink sent to their publishers here:

As I am sure you are aware, over the course of the last five months, Source Interlink Distribution Company has been vigorously engaged in discussions with publishers and national distributors across our business in an effort to correct the inefficiencies and unnecessary redundant costs that currently plague the wholesale distribution channel.

In conjunction with that effort we:

* Circulated a Summary of Terms to each national distributor in mid-March as a basis to begin that dialogue, and
* Met with each of the national distributors and certain publishers on multiple occasions throughout the last two months in an effort to reach common ground.

While we have made significant progress in finding mutually agreeable solutions with publishers and national distributors alike, one of our largest suppliers has recently decided to cease supply and move in a different direction. As such, it's with a heavy heart that I am writing to advise you that Source Interlink Distribution Company will be discontinuing all operations in the near future.

In other words, they tried to Wal-Mart strongarm their distributors/vendors, and when the biggest one said "fuck you" and went elsewhere, their business imploded. And so an uber-distributer middleman dies. So sad.

Re:Did you bother to read the story?

[gbnewby]

Advertisers: not so much. In fact, the 2600 marketplace section (2 pages at the back of the magazine) is free, and only available to subscribers. There is no paid advertising in 2600 Magazine.

Re:Did you bother to read the story?

[jythie]

Two basic problems.

(1) such lawsuits are expensive to mount, if 2600 is hurting for 100k in the first place, chances are filing a civil suit would hurt them pretty badly too... which brings us to...

(2) while slimy, this is a legal practice. If you do the paperwork right you can even buy a company, transfer your debt to them, then split them off again. Poof your debt is gone and some other company is ruined. So if 2600 DID file a lawsuit, their chances of winning would be slime unless their distributer messed up the paperwork.

Re:Did you bother to read the story?

[Charliemopps]

Well, then perhaps the advertisers in their magazines should be aware that they are stealing from or attempting to steal from 2600 magazine. Sure it is a hacker magazine, but if they will steal from hackers, they will surely rip off the automotive enthusiasts.

2600 should file claims immediately both civil and criminal. Keeping about $100,000 is enough to get big agencies interested and it is certainly not legal to spin off the "bad" parts to a "bankrupt" entity merely to avoid paying the bills.

Should be fun to watch.

You're assuming bankruptcy law has anything to do with common sense. Back in the 90s I went and got a pager and paid for 1yr of service up front. The company literally went out of business the next day. I got to use the pager for about a week before it just died and there was no service, and no-where to call. I got ripped off.

2 or 3 years later I got a notice from a collections company. Another company had bought my pager providers "Assets" and claimed that I had never canceled my service, it auto renewed every year, and I owned them for 3 years of service. I'm the type that will spend $1000 to force you to give me the $100 you owe me, it's the principle in my mind. I immediately requested my money back for the entire service. I'll skip all of the details but after a year and a half I'd wasted a lot of money and the ruling was that this company had bought the "Assets" of the previous one, so they had no obligations to pay me back, but I didn't own on the auto-renewed service because there was no way for me to cancel since the company was out of buisness.

Even if 2600 had standing, and I have no idea, by the time they get this resolved they'll be bankrupt.

"doing quite well"? No cash reserves, credit line?

[SuperBanana]

"we've been doing quite well overall."

Except for the bit where your business had little cash reserves, and apparently no line of credit?

2600 is a business with plenty of history and should have lots of proof they're doing OK, if that is in fact the case. Getting a line of credit to make up for the lost issue or two shouldn't remotely be a problem...which means one of three things: they're not doing "quite well", they're incompetent, or they are, in fact, trying to take advantage of the community.