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Midisoft.com Metamorphosis Into recordLab.com?

Midisoft, formed in 1986 - New name, as of October 1999:  RecordLab according to Foster Business Library corporate annual reports collection.

Update: As of 7/11/2002, www.Midisoft.com is back online! IDD (Interactive Digital Design) International - Info: info@iddincgermany.com Some of those Midisoft products are now For Sale again! Interesting. And Demos are available for download (7/11/2002).

Update: As of 9-24-01, from http://www.recordlab.com/contact_info.html, Support: techsupport@recordlab.com, still no sign of life. RecordLab Sound Cards Listing.

Audio Links

Dateline: June 8, 2001 

Remembering Midisoft – 
After having poked around for the 3rd time in the last twelve months, we may have an answer to Midisoft whereabouts! A recent Press Release @ Harmony-Central.com stated the whereabouts of another well-known midi software company who had us as loyal customers on a 386 in the Win 3.0 days. Remember Passport’s Master Tracks Pro (midi) and Encore (notation) software? Gvox.com appears ready to devote resources to those old favorites giving them possibly new life. We’ll see. Expect more on Gvox.com in a future article. Let’s see if they deliver 1st. We've carried those Passport Designs black gear bags to Comdex for the last 5 years while doing our Press / Media work advertising Passport Designs products. We were dedicated users and proud of it!

• Gvox.com & http://www.passportdesigns.com/ - Same sites. Gvox.com was smart enough to maintain the passportdesigns.com domain name - branding and smart marketing!

So curiosity set in again as to the whereabouts’ of Midisoft. According to Network Solutions WHOIS Lookup - WHOIS Search Results, 0x90 – Arlington, VA, admin@rtinternet.com (?) owns the Midisoft.com Domain name and points to visual.com. Midisoft.com has nothing @ all to do anything with audio or midi – bummer!

We moved on to another routine search using Google.com. One of the last products Midisoft had was a new Media Player. This turned up several shareware sites and reviews, which led us to an updated link, which led to an outdated link of http://www.recordLab.com/Products/Internet_Media_Player/internet_media_player.html ...link. This link showed us a new Domain URL - RecordLab.com.

RecordLab.com has a Web Message Board. The Web Message Board was most helpful in detailing other users experiences and their dismay. We suggest using Microsoft’s Internet Explorer if you’re going over there. Their site is not well coded for Netscape Communicator 4.75. http://www.recordlab.com:8080/~Board

The following comments are quoted in their entirety for clarity and content. Each Author is credited with their own comments regarding this news worthy matter.

Date:  Sunday, May 13, 2001 08:43 PM 

Quoting Kerry Gray, kerrygray@qwest.net,“ OK, I did some research - RecordLab is the new name of Midisoft - changed in October '99. Seems that Midisoft ran into a little trouble with SEC and someone thought it a good idea to dump the name Midisoft - Bonehead move!!! Musicians only know the Midisoft name - we didn't care if you lied to the SEC; however, you can now buy RecordLab stock for a nickel - that's right, a whopping 5 cents a share!!! WOW - I can practically own the company for $160 dollars!

This company - according to reports dated late 1999 and 2000 - is barely there. An nearly empty office and one fat guy wearing a hamburger grease stained t-shirt hocking what’s left in the warehouse over the internet.

Ok, I made that part up!!

Anyway, think twice before buying or downloading this software - if their stock gets any cheaper, they'll have to pay us to buy it!!!

Alas - you heard it here first - Midisoft is dead - no one will finance them! The latest good reports I've seen were dated late 1999 or early 2000!!

On a serious note - I feel like crying!!!” Real bummer. There was once upon a time when Microsoft & Midisoft were seemingly pretty close. Some punctuations and misspellings were corrected as needed.

Date:  Tuesday, May 29, 2001 11:09 PM 

Quoting jojo,  “a little Midisoft history lesson:

In October 1999, Midisoft formally changed its name to recordLab.com to accompany the companies plan to capitalize on the emerging "music on the Internet" market and to carve out a niche that, at the time, was largely being ignored by the MP3.com's and similar music sites; that being the amateur and emerging artists who had no place to go to find music creation tools (midisoft and recordLab.com branded products), information (initially focused on advice on the recording process from producers, engineers, artists, and others in and around the music business), and services (a number of which were planned pending funding).

The company launched the initial recordLab.com site in December 1999 while it was still pursing additional investment. The primary content was streaming media (audio and video) content from the aforementioned producers, engineers, etc. It lacked much of the other planned content, but was a pretty good effort considering the limited funding the company had at the time.

Part of that site is actually live although it isn't updated and certainly isn't being advertised/promoted by the new ownership/management: To view the written articles (the streaming media is not working -- too bad) go to www.recordlab.com/reclab.asp

In May of 2000, as I'm told, the primary investor (BP Software out of Dallas) stopped writing checks and, as most know, the capital markets went south along with the dramatic fall of the stock market. The company simply ran out of time/money to fully launch the revised business, and all employees were let go in late May 2000.

Very little happened between May 2000 and early Q1 2001; the recordLab and Midisoft sites went down and, I assume, the company missed out on renewing the Midisoft.com domain name, which explains in part why searches for midisoft come up with little info.

According to the most recent SEC filings (April 2001), a new LA-based investment group purchased a controlling interest in the company by buying out a sizeable chunk of BP Software’s holdings. A new management team has apparently been put in place along with a new Board of Directors.

From a product standpoint, the only thing I can assume is that the company sold the remaining boxed software inventory to Guitar Center, which has been running promotions in print and in the stores for all Midisoft-branded products at $10! A real steal, even with the flaws and bugs in the shipping version (v5.05 of Studio, Worship Studio, and Desktop Sheet Music).

A hint: the best buy is Worship Studio as it has a few extras that Studio and DSM don't; And, in case you didn't know, DSM is simply studio with a crippled digital audio recording capability.

No other news other than what is on the recordLab.com site is apparently available. And the only hint of what "might" happen product-wise is an announcement by Vedalabs last month that recordLab has licensed their peer-2-peer engine. The press release was Vedalab's, NOT recordlab - in fact they weren't even quoted, so its hard to tell what will come of that...

My guess is the company is simply trying to reorganize, develop a new business model that has some visibility to profitability, and try to either attract investment or slowly build some revenues in the hope of raising the stock price from it's current .02 - .05 range. The new management appears to be "in control" at a .02 per share price, so even raising the price to a quarter, fifty cents, or even a buck portends huge profit potential for them. Still leaves public shareholders with little to rave about, but if they are serious about making a business out of all this, perhaps there is still hope.

If you're optimistic, keep posting and sending requests for bug fixes, upgrades, patches, etc. -- perhaps it will make a difference, help them acquire the capital required to make a go of it.

Time will tell....” – jojo.

As of the writing of this article, recordLab.com has not updated their site since 2000. They’re still advertising recordLab.com participation @ NAMM 2000! Are we cautiously optimistic or practically realistic? Look how long it’s been (1993?) since we’ve seen anything out of Passport products, currently owned by Gvox.com. For those of us who remember Turtle Beach sound cards, they merged with Voyetra, makers of audio / midi software who also decided @ one point in time to jump on the Internet audio wagon. Still riding – Yes. http://www.voyetra-turtle-beach.com/

Currently, Network Solutions WHOIS Lookup / WHOIS Search Results show Domain Name: recordLab.com owned by Midisoft Corporation. recordLab.com contacts include: Administrative, Rick Hancock, rickh@smartcollector.net and Technical, Andrew Horvath, andrewhorvath@HOTMAIL.COM or Web Board Admin webmaster@recordLab.com.

recordLab.com Admin posted their “Here To Help” notices on 3/20/01. Users are asking why the blackout on communications? Is recordLab.com going to continue to ignore customers? None of the contacts above were contacted for comment on this article. Who me? I’m just the cook&ldots; ;) Current (tongue in cheek) recordLab.com motto by ignoring customers, “Don’t Ask. Don’t Tell.”

Recent SEC Filings: 

Searching through the SEC Edgar database for Record Lab & Midisoft turned up an interesting story. Midisoft has been around the block with investors from June 30, 1998 reporting activity with Shaul C. Baruch - Filing Date of 03/10/1999 to The Argentum Group, Dated: February 18, 2000, Filing Date: 02/22/2000 to apparently, BP Software, Ltd. (Shaul C. Baruch) sold shares of recordLab Corporation stock to Future Arts Ltd., a.k.a. FAL (Rachamim, Esther and Shavit Siromachoff), an Investment Holding Company on November 30th, 2000 – Filing Date: 04/27/2001.

recordLab Corporation has sold retired Midisoft inventory in bulk to Guitar Center to raise more cash. RecordLab does not appear @ this time to be in bankruptcy or receivership. In January 2001 new appointed BOD Members included: Dalton Kaye; Rick L. Hancock will serve as President, Secretary and Treasurer/CFO; Rachamim Siromachoff (Dr. Siro), K. Allen Le as CEO and as of March 1, 2001 once elected, Alan Gerson will serve as CEO and President. 

http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/882692/000101968701500052/recordlab_8k-120100.txt ...link.

The only indication of recordLab’s future is indicated as a licensing agreement with Vedalabs, Inc. for the proprietary VME - VedaLabs Media Engine(TM) dated April 16, 2001. Reminds me of where Voyetra / Turtle Beach was headed 2 years ago – Internet Audio. Sure but can they make any money doing that?

VedaLabs Press Release Dated 05-08-2001:

• RecordLab Licenses Vedalabs's Media Engine and Peer To Peer Product For Music Collaboration ...link.

This Press Relase suggests we can expect to see recordLab products this summer through Guitar Center stores. Missed that date! They go on to quote another exec, Steven Levey, Executive Vice President, RecordLab. FYI: RecordLab, Inc., RecordLab.com and Midisoft are registered trademarks of recordLab Corporation. OK.

As of the Filing Date: 04/27/2001:

• SEC Info - Future Arts Ltd, et al. - SC 13D - Record Lab Corp - (4/27/01) ...link.

Former Midisoft Corporation is now recordLab Corporation (RCLB). Looks like the recordLab ball is in FAL’s court. Let’s hope this will lead to some new badly needed capital for the newly formed recordLab. They have the technology, they can rebuild anew. As Microsoft has shown us in the past, why create it when you can buy it! Customers are awaiting your products! What about those previous Midisoft customers – casualties too?

• DigitalSoundPro.com - Internet Tapedeck Spotlighted on recordLab.com - Issaquah, Wash., (April 28, 2000) ...link.
  

• Yahoo! Finance - Midisoft Corporation - Quarterly Report (SEC form 10QSB) (05-22-2000) ...link expired!
  
• Record Lab Corporation (RCLB) Filings available from SEC EDGAR-Online.com ...link.
  
• The Ford Language Institute, Press Release - Media Contact (May 12, 2000 / June 7, 2000) ...link.
  
• Former recordLab.com PR Firm, >>>>>> brainstorm marketing <<<<<< ...link.

For Further recordLab.com Information: 

Media and Investor Contact: 
(We have not verified this contact as stated on Ford Language Institute site.) 
Marsha Murry, General Manager 
Corporate Development 
marsham@recordLab.com
(425) 391-3610

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June 9, 2001
Gill Boyd, BuildOrBuy News