KEY POINTS:
Appointment by Plus SMS of a joint chief executive and chairman does not breach market rules but the Shareholders Association says separation of such key positions is better for governance.
Current chief executive Christopher Tiensch's appointment to be the third chairman in about three months follows the resignation of George Brooks, announced this week.
NZSX's corporate governance best practice code says a director should not simultaneously hold both roles - which does not make it a breach of the rules but does require a company to inform the market by including it in its annual report.
However, the best practice code does not apply to the less regulated NZAX, where Plus SMS is listed.
Shareholders Association chairman Bruce Sheppard said yesterday that keeping the roles separate generally provided better governance.
"When you combine the proxy of owners and the proxy of the workers in the same role, where the hell do you get your division of responsibilities and the separate advocacy of each particular subgroup's interests in a robust manner?" Sheppard said.
"It's just hard."
Brooks was appointed after Jim Bracknell resigned in the wake of a debacle which saw the company's share price collapse. Brooks said he had decided to exit after providing the company with guidance during its recent strategic review.
The share price of Plus SMS - which plans to enable global text-message campaigns and competitions using single codes - collapsed in September after the company admitted making incorrect statements. Bracknell and founder Garry Donoghue resigned and a Securities Commission inquiry was launched.
In the same month, a review found that contracts previously negotiated with various telecom operators were mainly for fixed-line numbers and therefore unsuitable.
The company posted a net loss of $4.9 million for the six months to September 30.
It said yesterday it had completed the acquisition of mobile content provider Content Technology Mexico in a deal worth US$1.2 million ($1.75 million) in cash, plus 10 million Plus SMS shares at 20c each over a two-year period.
Tiensch, who was appointed chief executive in June, said he was delighted with the acquisition.
The deal was expected to give the company its first sales revenue.
"Together we will offer a comprehensive suite of content services to mobile operators, media companies and consumers," he said.
"CTM and Plus SMS are jointly implementing several new business opportunities, which will be announced in the coming months."
Plus SMS shares - whose 52-week high was 78c - closed unchanged yesterday at 20c.
