In the continuing implosion of all things wireless, Inphonic just bit the dust. On October 12th I reported their default on their debt. Yesterday the Washington Business Journal reported their filing for Bankruptcy. This ends the house of cards known as Inphonic. They were an online aggregator for sub prime wireless customers for the big carriers. The article states that Inphonic filed "a voluntary Chapter 11 reorganization petition Thursday, a move it says will facilitate its asset sale to Versa Capital Management, a private equity firm in Philadelphia." The article went on to state that, "InPhonic says it will consider higher or better offers, but Versa has agreed to fund its operations until its acquisition of InPhonic closes."
Many of those who I knew who worked there at one time stated it was like one large ponzie scheme. Many stated that the company passed on customers to the big carriers that were sub-prime by paying their deposit for them. That means the big carriers were taking on much riskier customers than they really understood - because many would not have signed up if they had to fork over an additional $200 to activate their account. Who knows what is true and what is rumor. But, what I do know is that they have been in trouble for quite some time. Interestingly enough, they also ran an MVNO operation for some time with their acquisition of Liberty Wireless - of which they eventually sold of at a later date.
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