This little piggy runs out of grunt

By KARYN SCHERER

New Zealand's answer to internet retailer Amazon has crashed to earth, ending a two-year experiment to see whether the internet could revolutionise the mainstream retail sector.

Online bookseller FlyingPig became bacon yesterday, following a public row with its biggest creditor, Christchurch-based software company EStarOnline.

Wilson Neill pulled the plug on the site yesterday morning, just a fortnight short of what would have been the service's second birthday. EStar had threatened to stop hosting the site if it did not receive a guarantee of payment by midday.

EStar claims it is owed more than $120,000 for its services. It also says it has not yet received hundreds of thousands of shares it was promised in its contract with Wilson Neill a year ago.

Other creditors are believed to be owed more than $200,000.

Wilson Neill's general manager, Phil Vosper, said it was too early to say whether FlyingPig might be placed in receivership.

EStar has offered to buy the business from Wilson Neill, despite relations between the two companies worsening yesterday.

A statement issued by Mr Vosper claimed the company had been in dispute with EStar "for some time" over its services, and indicated it was considering legal action.

EStar chief executive Matthew Darby described the claims as "a load of rubbish" and said EStar was also considering legal action. He also claimed someone was trying to hack into its system to steal its software secrets.

"This is just a smokescreen which is trying to deflect away from the real issue, which is Wilson Neill reneging on their corporate responsibilities."

Publisher IT Media bought Flying Pig last year and was in turn bought by Wilson Neill, hospitality and technology company.

IT Media managing director Tim Connell, the sole director of FlyingPig, denied speculation the site's closure could spell trouble for the rest of his publishing company.

The company's other titles include Rugby World, Fishing World, New Zealand Business Times and teen magazine Creme.

Asked whether FlyingPig might be resurrected, Mr Connell replied: "I don't know what's going on."

The dispute is a further blow for Wilson Neill, which last year talked about relisting on the stock exchange.

Last November, director Paul Hyslop resigned after the Herald revealed he was involved in an insider-trading investigation.

In July, Mr Hyslop was one of three Wilson Neill directors who were fined a total of $30,250 after failing to comply with Companies Office rules.

The same month, Mr Connell quit as Wilson Neill's managing director, four months after taking a major stake in the company and promising to turn it around.

A deal to sell its Radionet subsidiary has yet to be finalised, and it is also facing a legal battle to force it to honour a claimed $2.7 million deal to buy internet company Yippee, which is in liquidation. Companies Office records show it has issued hundreds of millions of shares over the past year.

The company was due several months ago to report its annual results for the year to March 31 but has changed its balance date to the end of June.

Last month, it released unaudited financial information which appeared to show it had made a $5.5 million profit.

However, it has admitted it has yet to receive a large chunk of the $17.5 million it was promised by a Panamanian company for its wireless technology.

Its other assets include the Cobb & Co chain and Parnell restaurant Iguacu.