Revving Up for the Road Ahead
Serotek is undergoing some changes to better meet your needs as a digital consumer. The assistive technology industry has been shifting for a while now, and it would be foolish to believe yesterday’s formula will continue to work in today’s age of wearable technology, smart homes, and interconnected media. Understandably, there may be questions about the longevity of the products and services you have come to rely on. For years Serotek has thought outside the box to deliver the most affordable solutions with the best customer and product support, and there are no plans to reverse this pattern of innovation to meet you where you need us. You may also be wondering about the future of the SeroTalk Podcast Network, arguably one of the leading content providers on all things technology. There is a time to cover headlines, and there is a time to create them. As long as the community remains interested, SPN will evolve alongside its parent company. For now, we have to deal with the reality of blunt, but truthful, comments such as that left by one loyal customer who wondered if we were finally going to stop socializing on the podcasts and finally get back to product development. Given the number of conflicting rumors surrounding the popular platform, the story is this: Ownership of SPN was offered to Joe Steinkamp and Ricky Enger under a highly attractive earn-out formula. Serotek offered to continue financing the website, podcast, and production and platform hosting required to maintain a consistent user experience. Serotek is aware of the value they provided to the community. Unfortunately, they elected not to accept this offer. The Serotek team has no doubt Joe and Ricky will be a valuable asset to the community in other capacities and wish them all the best in their new endeavors. Our goals were not to eliminate people, but rather, to realign the company structure and shift company functions that are hindering growth, steps that were required to keep Serotek from becoming one more casualty of the new landscape. It is unfortunate that three other teammates abruptly opted to follow other directions, but we respect their choices and also wish them the absolute best in whatever they pursue. Change is sometimes a scary prospect. Yet change moved us away from the cell phone to the smart phone, from the TV to the tablet, and from yesterday’s computer to today’s cloud. We’re working hard to keep you in the middle of it, where you belong. Contrary to competing rumors, Serotek is not down for the count. We’re squarely in your corner and ready to meet the next phase with the same fervor we’re well known for. Stay tuned. The best is on its way, and you are going to be a part of it. Understandably, one's business model must change with the evolution of technology. However, dissemination of information and resources through your many podcasts came to be a staple in the lives of many people within the blind community. given the national and international listenership you had, I cannot believe there would not be someone or a group to form a partnership that would've taken ownership of that network in order to keep that resource alive. Not everyone who listened to the podcasts were home, collecting a check. Per your blog, Joe and Ricky were offered ownership of the network. Why was it strictly limited to Joe and Ricky? What you have to realize, is that within those podcasts kept your product name alive among consumers. why keep Iblink radio? The majority of what is on Iblink radio can be found within other services. if it is only going to serve as a vehicle to distribute material I can get elsewhere, it's not worth taking the space on my phone, my Mac, or my iPad. I personally since the inception of the monthly subscription service have wanted to sign up for it, however it is not available for Mac. I refuse to pull out my windows machine for one program. from everything I was told, one cannot participate in Samnet chat via Mac. however, given the way this specific change was handled, even if you made it for Mac I'm afraid to sign up for it. How would I know the rug wouldn't be pulled out from under me without notice? Any reputable corporation gives its customer base notice of its changes. we as participants, listeners, and/or consumers of your product were at least owed a thank you from your podcast team for our support of the network. I personally, do not have to know the backstory of everyone's business. However, if I am a regular contributor/supporter, at least I want to know, if the service ends, I'm appreciated. that is why I see your blog post as nothing more than saving face. Who, in their right mind, is going to be able to trust you developing any future services having had the type of shakeup you had with no notice to the community? If in fact this happened the way you say it did with Joe and Ricky having been offered ownership of the network, turning it down, subsequently the three other team members leaving at the same time shows an extreme amount of commraderey You won't find anywhere else. my guess is, it had more to do with no funds to pay them. However, that is neither here nor there. You were at one time a very promising company. At this point, all I can say is RIP -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "MacVisionaries" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to macvisionaries+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. To post to this group, send email to macvisionaries@googlegroups.com. Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/macvisionaries. 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