2Clix Software
Encyclopedia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
. The name comes from the company's philosophy that "Nothing should take more than 2 clicks to open".
History
2Clix was founded in 1997 in Australia, but they also have offices in the United KingdomUnited Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
. The company's flagship product, 2Clix (also called Platinum One and Total ERP Software and now True ERP Software) is a business management and accounting suite.
2Clix was awarded a Gold Coast Business award in July 2004.
On 22 October 2007 it was reported that 2Clix has appointed Worrell's solvency and forensic accountants as an administrator. Registered creditors can access details from Worrell's site. Former employees have been made redundant and are registered as creditors to claim their owed entitlements.
Prior to their insolvency
Insolvency
Insolvency means the inability to pay one's debts as they fall due. Usually used to refer to a business, insolvency refers to the inability of a company to pay off its debts.Business insolvency is defined in two different ways:...
and liquidation proceedings, 2Clix management created a new company called Platinum One, intending to relaunch the same 2Clix software, rebranding it Platinum One. After the worldwide controversy in relation to the Whirlpool forum, which saw the name Platinum One heavily associated with 2Clix, the same management team have subsequently created a new company called Total ERP Solutions, again releasing exactly the same software package.
Whirlpool controversy
On 11 September 2007, WhirlpoolWhirlpool (website)
Whirlpool is an Australian broadband user web site, started in 1998 by founder, Simon Wright. Since then, it has grown significantly with over 450,000 registered users while remaining independent.-History:...
announced that its founder, Simon Wright, was being sued by 2Clix for alleged 'Injurious Falsehood', a tort not dissimilar to defamation under Australian law, resulting in "a severe downturn in monthly sales". Specifically, 2Clix claimed that comments on the Whirlpool Forums regarding alleged major issues with the product were 'False and Malicious'. 2Clix "quantifies its loss in income between January 2007 to July 2007 at approximately A$150,000 per month" and was suing for A$150,000 plus interest, plus legal costs. The complaint asked the court for A$150,000 total in the summary of relief, while claiming damages of A$150,000 per month.
While legal experts doubted the ability of 2Clix to win the case from the outset, it could have had major ramifications for website operators and their users. A win for 2Clix could have set a precedent and seriously limited the ability of web users to criticise companies' products and services.
Whirlpool users subsequently began donating money to assist the site in its coming legal battle. Some users claim to have had personally donated more than A$1000 through Paypal
PayPal
PayPal is an American-based global e-commerce business allowing payments and money transfers to be made through the Internet. Online money transfers serve as electronic alternatives to paying with traditional paper methods, such as checks and money orders....
and the Managing Director of PIPE Networks
PIPE Networks
PIPE Networks is an Australian company, based in Brisbane, Queensland, primarily involved in setting up peering exchanges. PIPE itself stands for "Public Internet Peering Exchange"...
personally pledged A$10,000 to support Whirlpool's cause.
On 19 September 2007, 2Clix solicitors, Turnbull & Co, stated that it had received instructions to discontinue the case. On 30 October 2007 the Queensland Ecourts website showed that documents to discontinue the case were received.
A former 2Clix senior employee of eight years said in July 2008 that 2Clix Australia's decision to liquidate was precipitated by the negative press resulting from its failed lawsuit against Whirlpool.
Action Group
In the wake of the Whirlpool controversy, a website http://www.2clixhelp.com/ was set up to help disaffected users of accounting software supplied by 2Clix.It was reported in July 2008 that more than 80 businesses had formed an action group alleging that 2Clix and Platinum One were holding their accounting data to ransom.