I can only say is yes, I am shocked. Planet Out has acquired many great publications and web sights that seem to start to decline the minute they get purchased by them. The advertising rates are only for the big boys I'm sure that's no secret.

The sad part is almost all the business they purchased were 3 or 4 man or woman shops. I for one can tell you the days of picking up the phone and calling the owner were a hell of a lot better than being confronted by a mass of pretend advertising executives.

DonPato
Pato Enterprises

PlanetOut has experienced its share of disappointment and no doubt the company has many challenges ahead. That said, the stock is very cheap. Karen Magee, a talented executive, was only appointed CEO in July 2006. Previously, she had served on the board of directors. Other members of the senior management team are also new to their positions.

I say give this team a chance. If they perform on plan, an investment today, will yield huge returns.

peter - what plan exactly? at the end of 05 the stock was close to 15. in july 2006 their stock was at 8+. in january 2007 it was around 5. today's close 3.20. if their plan is to ensure that stockholders lose 1/2 their value every year, then yeah, stick with the plan. they have a gay sex hookup site that makes a little money, two magazines with plunging revenues (see the leaked bob cohen memo of earlier this year) and a tweakers on a tub gay cruise business that bleeds like a hemophiliac. an investment today will yield huge returns? how?

I feel your pain, Dan. Ms. Magee articulated her plan in shareholder meeting in September 2006. You might be able to get the audio copy on the web. Frankly, I don't think she has had much time to execute. The jury is out. And my basis is under $3, so I'm feeling inclined to give her and the team a chance.

But Peter... What is the plan? If it can't be summarized...and can only be explained via an audiotape....I'm scared. Plus, no doubt some very talented people work for this company. But a lot of talented people worked at Enron. So talent has little to do with the crazines of running a non-business business. From porn to cruises to magazines to book publishing it's like a Monopoly game where you bought property all over the map but never cornered a "corner".

I am fascinated but the possibilites of failure on such a large scale. "The Gays" are not so homogoneous anymore. Can any one company really marget to "them" when "they" are so disparate?

The revulotion may be painful, but the results might be increased diversity of product and services.

From what I've heard, the company is a political nightmare of in-fighting and back stabbing. They have driven away some of their better managers over the past few years and fired a bunch of others. We'll see if Ms. Magee can turn it around. She spent all of her formative years at Time Warner, which isn't exaclty known for its ability to turn on a dime. That said, she's a smartie, so I wish her the best of luck. One thing the company needs to do is hire fewer MBA-types and more people who actually understand the web... and the gay community! That would be an excellent start to a turnaround.

and the drop continues...all the way to 2.60 a share today. thats a lifetime low for the company, and represents a 72% drop in value in one year. that doesn't seem survivable.

PNO could have been something if it weren't for the politics and the egos of upper management that made decisions based solely on what would look good to others, or add to their resume. The worst part is that while all of this was going on, there were/are some truly talented and committed people who worked long hours and made sacrifices in salary and career to be a part of something that 'could have been'.

I really hope it turns around and gets some real business people in charge who can make decisions based on what makes sensse for the company and the community, and show that an LGBT company can be more than what it is today.

Ego's galore. I've never seen so many egos in my life. Management doesn't work for the customer or shareholder..they work for themselves. Karen has a huge problem. She needs to dump most management, which is by the way is the "Peter Principle" at it's finest. (People are promoted to their level or incompetence) but she can't dump them with the state the company is in. My prediction....break it up and sell it off.