The rebirth of a giant (SYQT)
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abcnews.go.com
SyQuest comes back to life,
barely
Michael Kanellos
CNET NEWS.COM
Struggling storage manufacturer SyQuest has reopened its
Web site and is answering customer complaints, but
recovery is still a long way off.
SyQuest, which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on
November 17, reactivated its Web site on December 30
to provide customers with access to "product information,
specifications, software drivers, utilities, downloads, and
[the company] knowledge-base," and that the company
may begin to perform warranty work again within a
month.
The return of the site, which abruptly went dark about a
month ago, and some customer service should alleviate
SyQuest customers to a small degree. SyQuest users have
been flooding the company, computer dealers, and press
organizations with angry e-mails and letters about the
sudden termination of operations in the wake of the
bankruptcy filing.
"I guess I feel dejected and abandoned...I bought the best
based on performance and price, and the drive met all my
expectations," wrote Robert Pace in an email to
News.com in November. "Now without tech support, I
will attempt to find a way to retrieve my data and switch
to another media."
Although SyQuest cannot currently accept drives for
warranty repair, the site claims that it is trying to get
approval from the bankruptcy court to begin performing
warranty work within the next 30 days. The site also
reminds the world that consumers can still purchase
SyQuest products.
"The fact that you are reading this on the SyQuest Web
site is positive evidence that the company is working
toward restoring additional operations, services, and
support as allowed," the SyQuest site says. "For now,
please feel free to send us email at info@syquest.com.
We will respond as quickly as possible, but please
understand that it may take a while, given our current
resource constraints.
SyQuest's troubles started with a credit crunch. One of its
lenders cut the company's credit line to $10 million from
more than $30 million, after the company failed to meet
lending requirements.
And efforts to secure a $13 million loan from its investors
also failed to materialize, because investors had requested
SyQuest secure an additional funding source, according to
Securities and Exchange Commission filings.
Copyright 1999 CNET NEWS.COM.
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