Static delays stock market float

Digital media specialist Static 2358 has postponed its proposed £186m stock market floatation. A company spokesman says the signing up of French television company Canal Plus as an additional strategic investor has delayed the process.

The company denies rumours that uncertainty in the e-commerce market has caused the change of plan, maintaining that there was “not the time to repackage to include the Canal Plus deal”.

Static executive chairman Paul Bustin says, “We and our advisor HSBC didn’t feel the full value of the strategic deals that we are doing would be reflected in the float, so we have deferred it until the third or fourth quarter of this year.”

The French company’s involvement will enable Static to take its services into several countries where it is not currently represented including Poland, Italy and Spain.

US group Turner Networks may also take a share in the group. Static originally planned to use the float to raise funds and expand internationally, using its interactive TV games channel PlayJam as the spearhead. The London-based group hopes to put its floatation back on track in September or October.