Library House, the data gatherer whose online products offer intelligence on VC deals and innovative venture-backed European companies, has apparently gone in to administration.
Library House hit hard times with bitter irony, as the very venture capitalists whose deals it thrives on for new data, sit on their money through the downturn. It's still aiming to sell all or part of the business.
For me, there is a sense of sorrow as well as a sense of loss. Library House were the organisers of both the UK Technology, Innovation & Growth Forum which Pingar presented to in March this year. They also organised the more recent Essential MediaTech 2008 Conference. It says something about the current VC investment climate in the UK & Europe.
If they can't raise funds, who can?
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Library House would be in the same position in any economic climate. Chairman Doug RIchards started working for a hedge fund in 2006/2007 and aimed to take deals from VC community. This annoyed many in the VC community as we were being asked to fund someone who was in our business. His media profile (Doug was in the first of the 7 series of Dragons Den although he made one investment which failed within 6 months) gave him undue media attention when he pontificated upon on the collapse of the VC industry. Since this point they lost their top tier VC subscribers. I understand it also lost money from public sector activities when Doug Richards took money from regional development agencies to run his school for start ups which was 'inspired' by Running the Gauntlet competition the Library House ran nationally. If a business consistently loses revenue to other businesses with some ownership overlap, it will fail - eventually.
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