The People's Smooth Operator

thekohser · Unread post by **thekohser** » Tue Sep 26, 2017 6:42 pm

An interesting comment on the LSE message board:

I rang the number on the results announcement and spoke to some double-barrelled chinless type who said he was in charge of IR. He says that the Rosenfeld children are no longer connected with TPO in any way. James Rosenfeld was replaced on the board by Juliet Rosenfeld, who is apparently his stepmother and not his mother, which I didn't know. My guess is they don't get on too well. Anyway, the IR guy's view is that it's up to them if they sell down here but they have no special knowledge of what is going on.

Poetlister · Unread post by **Poetlister** » Tue Sep 26, 2017 7:31 pm

Randy from Boise wrote:Nooooooo. Noooooooo. I can't come this close to winning the bet and then lose in November...

RfB

Become a customer and get all your friends to, too. That should tide them over for a few more weeks.

thekohser · Unread post by **thekohser** » Wed Sep 27, 2017 10:36 am

thekohser wrote:
thekohser wrote:
thekohser wrote:
thekohser wrote:
thekohser wrote:Another new low in trade price set today, at 1.75 pence. (A lot of 49,500 shares)
We have a new low again this morning, at 1.60 pence.
Wow, what a Friday. Just two days later, we have new lows being sunk to...

1.25 pence... a million shares.
And this Monday morning, a lot of over 147,000 shares sold at 1.15 pence.

Spoke too soon. A later trade this morning took place at 1.10 pence.
There was a trade just completed for 1.051.

Another 550,000 shares just sold for 1.00 pence.

thekohser · Unread post by **thekohser** » Wed Sep 27, 2017 2:58 pm

thekohser wrote:Looks like The People's Operator's salaried principals were able to con the wealthy widow into coughing up enough money (at 5 pence a share) to keep the company running for another 2 or 3 months. I'm going to guess that her son James begged her not to do this (given that he abandoned ship a few weeks ago).

You'll note that Jimbo -- the Executive Chairman of the firm -- was willing to reinvest only about 5 weeks' salary in this last-ditch effort to save the company.

Considering the agonizing and painful death of Mr. Rosenfeld and how that devastated his now widow, it makes it all the more embarrassing for TPO Mobile's leadership, that they actually asked her for money at 5 pence a share, which they've now devalued down to just north of 1 pence per share. Talk about adding insult to injury.

I hereby apologize to the Rosenfeld family -- blood or otherwise -- for any of my comments that may have personally hurt your feelings. My intention was largely to warn investors to stay away from any Jimbo Wales operation, because historically they never end pretty.

Randy from Boise · Unread post by **Randy from Boise** » Wed Sep 27, 2017 3:29 pm

thekohser wrote:
thekohser wrote:
thekohser wrote:
thekohser wrote:
thekohser wrote:
thekohser wrote:Another new low in trade price set today, at 1.75 pence. (A lot of 49,500 shares)
We have a new low again this morning, at 1.60 pence.
Wow, what a Friday. Just two days later, we have new lows being sunk to...

1.25 pence... a million shares.
And this Monday morning, a lot of over 147,000 shares sold at 1.15 pence.

Spoke too soon. A later trade this morning took place at 1.10 pence.
There was a trade just completed for 1.051.
Another 550,000 shares just sold for 1.00 pence.

I feel like my QB has just thrown a Pick-6 in the last 45 seconds of the game and I get to hear Kohs call the play-by-play of the runback...

RfB

Poetlister · Unread post by **Poetlister** » Wed Sep 27, 2017 9:12 pm

Just to clarify, Mr Rosenfeld's widow is his second wife, so James is her stepson, not her son. Not that this excuses anything that the people running TPOP have or have not done.

thekohser · Unread post by **thekohser** » Mon Oct 09, 2017 5:40 pm

Talk about frustration... somebody sold 67 shares this morning for a grand total value of 74 pence. I mean... that had to have been less than the broker commission, right?

thekohser · Unread post by **thekohser** » Wed Oct 11, 2017 2:39 pm

If you had to guess what percentage of TPO Mobile's customers actually bother to designate a charity to receive the 10% of their monthly bill as a donation, what would you estimate?

Further, for the customers who do not nominate or designate a charitable cause, what do you suppose TPO Mobile does with the unassigned 10% of their bill?

I won't leave you in suspense.

Apparently, only about 50% of TPO Mobile customers designate a charitable recipient, and apparently TPO Mobile pockets the 10% of the bills of customers who don't designate.

thekohser · Unread post by **thekohser** » Wed Oct 11, 2017 4:06 pm

thekohser wrote:More abandonment of leadership at The People's Operator today.

...

Sam Tillotson, Chief Operating Officer, has been appointed as Acting Chief Executive Officer, reporting to the Board. Sam joined the Company in May 2012 and previously held positions at Blyk and Alcatel-Lucent, where he worked on the development, launch and management of platforms for mobile operators across Europe, the Middle East and Africa.

...

Company seems to be marking this transition with the official paperwork/announcement today -- adding Tillotson to the board of directors. He is 33 years old, leading TPO Mobile out of the darkness of loss and debt.

Back at Blyk, I found out a little about what purportedly happened at that company...

In late 2015, they received a very hefty tax bill from the UK government. In the UK, Blyk had shared office space, no revenue, and two very new sales people, so the government's tax claim seemed wildly ridiculous claim -- the company had only been set up with a UK presence for 6 months. Apparently, Her Majesty's tax service will send a bill like this in an effort to go fishing for revenue, and unfortunately for Blyk, the way it generally works in the UK is that the business is expected to pay the tax bill as presented, and then the company can proceed to contest it (for a refund). This tax bill, combined with mediocre ad sales for Blackberry, and paltry alternative revenue streams was enough for the investors in Finland to pull the plug on Blyk.

So, we have someone with experience at a company that failed at placing ads on Blackberry devices, now running TPO Mobile. What's not to love for the casual investor in TPOP?

thekohser · Unread post by **thekohser** » Thu Oct 19, 2017 7:25 pm

I'm not a stock market expert, but to me, this looks like a final flight of investors looking to get at least enough to lease a car for a year, before the whole thing implodes.

Randy from Boise · Unread post by **Randy from Boise** » Fri Oct 20, 2017 2:54 am

thekohser wrote:I'm not a stock market expert, but to me, this looks like a final flight of investors looking to get at least enough to lease a car for a year, before the whole thing implodes.

Oh, ye of little faith...

73 days to go to victory!!!

RfB

thekohser · Unread post by **thekohser** » Mon Oct 23, 2017 1:58 pm

Guess which stock just sold for 87-hundredths of a penny?

It's almost as if the invisible hand of the market is trying to draw a dead cat that won't bounce any more...

Poetlister · Unread post by **Poetlister** » Mon Oct 23, 2017 2:12 pm

Looks more like a fox to me. I wonder if Jimbo is selling out or if he will nobly hold his stock to the end.

thekohser · Unread post by **thekohser** » Tue Oct 24, 2017 11:00 pm

Well, breathe a sigh of relief, everyone. The stock rebounded nicely today, moving up 2 hundredths of a penny, to £0.0089.

Poetlister · Unread post by **Poetlister** » Wed Oct 25, 2017 8:11 pm

Keep it up, everyone. This is the 965th post in the thread, and we need to reach 1000 before the company folds.

Randy from Boise · Unread post by **Randy from Boise** » Thu Oct 26, 2017 2:28 am

Poetlister wrote:Keep it up, everyone. This is the 965th post in the thread, and we need to reach 1000 before the company folds on January 2nd.

Fixed it for you.

RfB

thekohser · Unread post by **thekohser** » Thu Oct 26, 2017 10:42 am

550,000 shares sold this morning at 85-hundredths of a penny. Total value of the trade -- less than the resale value of my used 2009 Hyundai Accent. This marks yet another "lowest ever" point in TPOP history.

Graaf Statler · Unread post by **Graaf Statler** » Thu Oct 26, 2017 1:39 pm

thekohser wrote:550,000 shares sold this morning at 85-hundredths of a penny. Total value of the trade -- less than the resale value of my used 2009 Hyundai Accent. This marks yet another "lowest ever" point in TPOP history.

Lets see when it has dropped to the value of my 2000 Ford Van. (500 euro?) Change your wreck for a telephone company! It is a great offer, but I think I will refuse it....

Kumioko · Unread post by **Kumioko** » Thu Dec 07, 2017 6:25 pm

According to a new Bloomberg article posted December 7, 2017 The People’s Operator may be at risk of insolvency. I think we all saw this coming given Jimbo's track record with company's.

Troubles Deepen for Mobile Network Backed by Wikipedia Founder
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles ... ia-founder

No Ledge · Unread post by **No Ledge** » Thu Dec 07, 2017 7:33 pm

85-hundredths of a penny to 12-hundredths of a penny in about five weeks. Can it drop below one-hundredth of a penny and trade in thousandths?

Poetlister · Unread post by **Poetlister** » Thu Dec 07, 2017 9:25 pm

The company had a market value of about 112 million pounds at its 2015 peak, before it started to warn of an increasing threat posed by U.K. competitors that were not present at the time of its 2014 initial public offering.

Why is everyone blaming Jimbo? It's not his fault that the firm has competitors.

Unread post by **Zoloft** » Fri Dec 08, 2017 3:37 am

Poetlister · Unread post by **Poetlister** » Sat Dec 09, 2017 9:25 pm

If the total value of the firm drops below £1000 maybe someone here can buy it, if only for the pleasure of sacking Jimbo.

Randy from Boise · Unread post by **Randy from Boise** » Sun Dec 10, 2017 3:04 pm

Poetlister wrote:If the total value of the firm drops below £1000 maybe someone here can buy it, if only for the pleasure of sacking Jimbo.

He's already long gone. The big question now is whether they can string things along with baling wire and duct tape to get to the first of the year so I can win eleven bucks.

RfB

Poetlister · Unread post by **Poetlister** » Sun Dec 10, 2017 5:40 pm

Randy from Boise wrote:
Poetlister wrote:If the total value of the firm drops below £1000 maybe someone here can buy it, if only for the pleasure of sacking Jimbo.
He's already long gone. The big question now is whether they can string things along with baling wire and duct tape to get to the first of the year so I can win eleven bucks.

RfB

He is not gone. He is still a director. The board seems to consist of four directors, all non-executive, which is weird. Shouldn't the CEO and the Finance Director be on the board? Maybe they are, and the page is badly laid out.

Soldado Sin Nombre · Unread post by **Soldado Sin Nombre** » Tue Dec 12, 2017 12:18 pm

Looks like The People's Operator may just live another day to offer phone service that woefully few people want.

http://www.lse.co.uk/share-regulatory-n ... in_Company

A brief Google search reveals that TPOs savior may be something of a corporate slum lord.

https://www.shareprophets.com/views/183 ... bill-today

Randy from Boise · Unread post by **Randy from Boise** » Tue Dec 12, 2017 1:29 pm

Soldado Sin Nombre wrote:Looks like The People's Operator may just live another day to offer phone service that woefully few people want.

http://www.lse.co.uk/share-regulatory-n ... in_Company

I just need it to live 21 another days...

t

Poetlister · Unread post by **Poetlister** » Tue Dec 12, 2017 2:19 pm

Soldado Sin Nombre wrote:A brief Google search reveals that TPOs savior may be something of a corporate slum lord.

https://www.shareprophets.com/views/183 ... bill-today

Does the poor firm merit better any more?

Soldado Sin Nombre · Unread post by **Soldado Sin Nombre** » Mon Dec 18, 2017 11:24 am

Just when it looked like The People's Operator was going out more with whimper than bang, here comes some bang to make things more interesting. Trading of TPOP suspended.

https://www.investegate.co.uk/stock-exc ... 47426094Z/

Unread post by **Zoloft** » Mon Dec 18, 2017 3:56 pm

Earthy Astringent · Unread post by **Earthy Astringent** » Mon Dec 18, 2017 4:08 pm

Where has Greg been?

Poetlister · Unread post by **Poetlister** » Mon Dec 18, 2017 4:50 pm

Earthy Astringent wrote:Where has Greg been?

In London, badgering the Stock Exchange to suspend dealings in TPOP shares?

Randy from Boise · Unread post by **Randy from Boise** » Mon Dec 18, 2017 5:31 pm

Our bet is going to be so, so close!!!

tim

Unread post by **Midsize Jake** » Mon Dec 18, 2017 8:15 pm

Earthy Astringent wrote:Where has Greg been?

I think he's taking a self-imposed "posting break," which could also be interpreted as "going on strike," except we're not actually paying him. December would be the logical month to do it, of course, what with the holidays and all. It's possible that he just wanted to see how long it would take for us to notice though, in which case, Earthy Astringent wins the prize!

Meanwhile, it might be noted that prior to the suspension of trading in TPO shares, in reference to this post from last year, Spreadex divested about 60% of its holdings in TPO, selling them off at roughly 0.2p from a purchase price of 5.2p. So, on the shares they sold, they lost 96% of their investment in just one year. Not sure how much money that works out to, but it's probably more than most people carry around while Christmas shopping.

Poetlister · Unread post by **Poetlister** » Mon Dec 18, 2017 9:22 pm

Midsize Jake wrote:Spreadex has divested about 60% of its holdings in TPO, selling them off at roughly 0.2p from a purchase price of 5.2p. So, on the shares they sold, they lost 96% of their investment in just one year.

A fool and his money are soon parted.

Unread post by **Zoloft** » Sat Dec 23, 2017 11:10 am

Code: Select all

 c)   Price(s) and                     Michael Butler Price(s)     Volume(s) 
       volume(s)                        -----------  ------------ 
                                         0.1 pence    100,000,000 
                                        -----------  ------------ 
 
                                        Juliet Rosenfeld Price(s)     Volume(s) 
                                        -----------  ------------ 
                                         0.1 pence    150,000,000 
                                        -----------  ------------ 
 
                                        Julia Simpson Price(s)     Volume(s) 
                                        -----------  ----------- 
                                         0.1 pence    20,000,000 
                                        -----------  -----------

A little capital infusion.

Randy from Boise · Unread post by **Randy from Boise** » Sat Dec 23, 2017 4:51 pm

Zoloft wrote:

Code: Select all

 c)   Price(s) and                     Michael Butler Price(s)     Volume(s) 
       volume(s)                        -----------  ------------ 
                                         0.1 pence    100,000,000 
                                        -----------  ------------ 
 
                                        Juliet Rosenfeld Price(s)     Volume(s) 
                                        -----------  ------------ 
                                         0.1 pence    150,000,000 
                                        -----------  ------------ 
 
                                        Julia Simpson Price(s)     Volume(s) 
                                        -----------  ----------- 
                                         0.1 pence    20,000,000 
                                        -----------  -----------

A little capital infusion.

Photo finish ahead!

It's getting close enough now that I think I've got this... Famous last words...

Our double bet actually happens on Dec. 28, before the official close of the main bet.

(1) If TPO survives to Jan. 1, 2018 and Washington State beats Michigan State by 5 points or more in the Holiday Bowl, Safe Haven Humane Society collects $22 Kohs bucks.

(2) If TPO survives to Jan. 1, 2018 and Washington State beats Michigan State by 4 points or fewer in the Holiday Bowl, Safe Haven Humane Society collects $11 Kohs bucks.

(3) If TPO survives to Jan. 1, 2018 and Michigan State beats Washington State in the Holiday Bowl, no money changes hands.

(4) If TPO does not survive to Jan. 1, 2018 and Washington State beats Michigan State by 5 points or more in the Holiday Bowl, no money changes hands.

(5) If TPO does not survive to Jan. 1, 2018 and Washington State beats Michigan State by 4 points or fewer in the Holiday Bowl, Greg or the charity of his choice collects $5 Timbo bucks.

(6) If TPO does not survive to Jan. 1, 2018 and Michigan State beats Washington State in the Holiday Bowl, Greg or the charity of his choice collects $10 Timbo bucks.

Whew!

RfB

Poetlister · Unread post by **Poetlister** » Sat Dec 23, 2017 10:24 pm

Zoloft wrote:A little capital infusion.

Mrs Rosenfeld is in danger of impoverishing herself.

Unread post by **Midsize Jake** » Sat Dec 23, 2017 10:45 pm

Poetlister wrote:Mrs Rosenfeld is in danger of impoverishing herself.

She'll be fine. It's only 150,000 quid, and she still has her own income as a psychotherapist to fall back on if she loses it all.

For those who haven't been keeping score, Ms. Rosenfeld is the widow of TPO founder Andrew Rosenfeld, and if this piece in the Guardian is any indication, she was pretty broken up by his death - so I suppose it's possible that she bought the shares for mostly sentimental reasons, i.e., she doesn't want the company he founded to fail, at least not so soon, because that failure might appear to be a stain on his legacy or whatever.

Hard to say!

However, due to these share purchases I'd say it's most likely that TPO will survive for at least another 6 weeks, and since Michigan State will almost certainly beat Washington State, the various charities involved will simply have to wait until the next Jimbo-related "when will this travesty finally blow up" wager to get those hoped-for contributions.

Randy from Boise · Unread post by **Randy from Boise** » Sun Dec 24, 2017 4:40 am

Midsize Jake wrote:./...since Michigan State will almost certainly beat Washington State....

There is money to be made in Vegas if you really feel that way...

t

Moderator's note: Final score: Michigan State 42, Washington State 17.

Poetlister · Unread post by **Poetlister** » Sat Jan 13, 2018 8:29 pm

Phone firm backed by Wikipedia boss Jimmy Wales fights to survive

Shares in the mobile telecom The People's Operator collapsed after fundraising
The company's contracts allowed users give 10 per cent of their fee to a charity
But the concept has failed to take off, making a £2.9m loss in the first half of 2017

Thisismoney.co.uk

Renée Bagslint · Unread post by **Renée Bagslint** » Sat Jan 13, 2018 8:33 pm

An anonymous tipster wrote:Word on the street is that this represents a good opportunity to double your money in a short time. Cash in bank exceeds market valuation. Very strong buy.

Unread post by **Zoloft** » Sat Jan 13, 2018 8:59 pm

Renée Bagslint wrote:
An anonymous tipster wrote:Word on the street is that this represents a good opportunity to double your money in a short time. Cash in bank exceeds market valuation. Very strong buy.

You could say the same of a house on fire.

Poetlister · Unread post by **Poetlister** » Sat Jan 13, 2018 9:08 pm

Zoloft wrote:You could say the same of a house on fire.

Very true, although of course buying the house doesn't give you the owner's money.

I wonder if the anonymous tipster has a COI.

Randy from Boise · Unread post by **Randy from Boise** » Sun Jan 14, 2018 3:03 am

I don't give a damn about this company now; won my bet and then lost my winnings because of the mighty Michigan States.

Bad year for the Pac-12, putting it mildly.

Hi Greg!

RfB

Poetlister · Unread post by **Poetlister** » Sun Jan 14, 2018 1:13 pm

Randy from Boise wrote:I don't give a damn about this company now; won my bet and then lost my winnings because of the mighty Michigan States.

Never gamble unless you're better informed than the other gambler.

Randy from Boise · Unread post by **Randy from Boise** » Mon Jan 15, 2018 4:26 am

Poetlister wrote:
Randy from Boise wrote:I don't give a damn about this company now; won my bet and then lost my winnings because of the mighty Michigan States.
Never gamble unless you're better informed than the other gambler.

Ah, that basic bet was made in advance of the season.

RfB

No Ledge · Unread post by **No Ledge** » Tue Jan 16, 2018 11:58 pm

Hmm. Lots of criticism on this site about the poor quality of the amateur-built-and-maintained content of Wikipedia, but as this shows, hiring professionals is no guarantee of quality. Presumably this was produced by professionals.

link https://www.thepeoplesoperator.com/View ... Newsletter[/link]

Poetlister · Unread post by **Poetlister** » Wed Jan 17, 2018 8:55 pm

If that's the quality of their PR, it is scarcely surprising that they're floundering. Can you imagine the effect that this could have on people thinking of moving to them?

Earthy Astringent · Unread post by **Earthy Astringent** » Thu Jan 18, 2018 8:38 am

I forwarded over your concerns to their department of redundancy department.