Roaster Technologies suddenly decides to end it all
CEO to sell existing Roaster technology
December 11, 1997 — the Roaster Technologies’ Board of Directors decided that due to overwhelming financial concerns (read: not enough operating capital), they would be closing Cambridge, MA-based Roaster Technologies. And looking for buyers for Roaster software.
According to president and CEO John Dhabolt, the financing needed to keep Roaster alive didn’t seem to be forthcoming, so day-to-day business activities have halted. The business will continue to tie up loose ends through the end of the year. And Dhabolt will be looking for companies to purchase existing Roaster technology.
The assets up for sale include:
- Java-based Roaster 4 (announced in November 1997)
- The Macintosh Java VM source code
- The PowerPC Just-In-Time compiler technology
- The currently available Mac-based Roaster 3.0 and 3.1
Although Roasted Java News will continue to publish daily, support for Roaster products has essentially ended. Dhabolt was sorry for the inconvenience this might cause current Roaster users: “We’re hoping an acquisition will provide support, but unfortunately there’s no guarantee at this point.”
As for the future, Dhabolt said, “We are all reviewing our options at this point. Personally, I haven’t had time to give it much thought at this point, but as we begin winding down over the next few weeks, I’ll start to give it some serious consideration. Certainly something very Java.”
Dhabolt summed up the Roaster Technologies experience: “It’s been a fun two years. We knew that we came into Roaster Technologies in start-up mode. We knew that sales weren’t even close to covering our expenses. We weren’t counting on actually being profitable, which means making that up in venture capital. At this stage of our development, however, sales alone cannot generate the investment required to continue producing the first-class products our users rightfully demand.”
He added, “We have an exceptional product — witness the great press and industry accolades received over the last two years. I will continue to work hard toward our current goal of finding a company to acquire our technology whose ideals for Java development reflect those of Roaster Technologies.”
Contact John Dhabolt directly at [email protected] for more information on the technology purchase.
