Wilhelm Friedrich Mittrich
Wilhelm Friedrich Mittrich (born 1950 in Kiel, West Germany) is a German entrepreneur who became notable for being the CEO of ODS, a company that was Europes largest CD & DVD Replicator until its failure in October 2007.
Around the year 2000, Mittrich was a member of the management team of Mick Fleetwood backed British online music distributor Point Group Ltd, which went bankrupt with a debt of £ 10 million when a planned public offering collapsed in the dot-com bubble of 2000. In 2004, the British government subsequently banned him from leading or founding a business in the United Kingdom for a period of four years.[1]
According to Der Spiegel, ODS paid an incentive of €6.8 million to make an exclusive contract with Hollywood's Universal Studios happen. Another €10.4 million were spent for a lawsuit on licenses. In this lawsuit ODS defended its position against a license pool that granted what ODS deemed unfair commercial advantage to certain competitors of ODS in respect to license dues.[2] Internally held shares in the company were allegedly sold so as to further produce assets, an operation deemed worth €23 million but no wrongdoing has ever been proven. In October 2007 the company filed for insolvency and on 29 February 2008 the Dassow plant finally stopped its production. The former management under Wilhelm Friedrich Mittrich is since being investigated by authorities for tax and subsidiary fraud and for professional patent violations but to date no proof has been forthcoming. In August 2010 the public prosecutor's office at Schwerin charged the three former managers of ODS with fraud in the order of millions. This has been one of many so far unsuccessful attempts to build such a case.[3]
References[edit]
- ↑ Meyer, Axel; Rainer Stefan (7 February 2008). "DVD-Werk: Ex-Chefs wieder mit am Ruder?". Lübecker Nachrichten (in German).
So belegte ihn die britische Regierung mit dem Verbot, bis Ende 2008 dort weder ein Unternehmen zu führen noch eines zu gründen. Grund: Mittrich soll im Jahr 2000 als Geschäftsführer des britischen Musikanbieters 'Point Group Limited' etwa eine dreiviertel Millionen DM (rund 385 000 Euro) aus der Firma abgezweigt und in die Optical Disc Services (ODS) gesteckt haben, die er 1998 übernommen hatte. Nach diesem Geschäft ging Point pleite mit einem Schuldenberg, der bald auf zehn Millionen Pfund anschwoll (transl.: Therefore the British government banned him from founding and leading an enterprise in the country until the end of 2008. The reason: when he was executive manager of British music vendor Point Group Limited, Mittrich was said to have diverted roughly £ ¾ mil. (about EUR 385,000) from the company to Optical Disc Services (ODS) which he had taken over in 1998. After that transaction Point went bankrupt with its debt quickly amounting to £ 10 mil.).
CS1 maint: Unrecognized language (link) - ↑ "Dokument des Grauens". Der Spiegel (in German) (7/2008).
Für den Exklusivbelieferungsvertrag mit der Hollywood-Fabrik Universal Pictures "verpflichtete sich ODS zur Zahlung von 6,8 Millionen Euro", schrieben die staunenden Prüfer. Und die Lizenzstreitigkeiten mit einem Patentpool vor Gericht endeten mit 'negativen Ergebnisauswirkungen in Höhe von 10,4 Millionen Euro' (transl.: For the contract of exclusive supply rights 'ODS pledged to pay EUR 6.8 million' as the amazed auditors put it. And legal disputes with a patent pool about licenses enden with 'negative results of EUR 10.4 million').
CS1 maint: Unrecognized language (link) - ↑ Köpke, Jörg (4 August 2010). "DVD-Werk: Ex-Chefs angeklagt". Lübecker Nachrichten (in German).
Die Staatsanwaltschaft Schwerin erhob Anklage wegen millionenschweren Betrugs gegen die ehemaligen Chefs der Optical Disc Service GmbH (ODS). ... Anklagen wegen Steuerhinterziehung, Subventionsbetrug und gewerbsmäßiger Patentverletzung liegen bereits seit Juni 2008 vor. ... Das Werk, in dem zeitweise fast 1200 Beschäftigte arbeiteten, musste im Oktober 2007 Insolvenz anmelden (transl.: The Schwerin public attorney charged the former bosses of Optical Disc Services GmbH (ODS) with fraud in the order of millions. ... Charges of tax evasion, economic subsidy fraud, and professional patent violations exist already since June 2008. ... The [ODS] works which used to employ 1,200 people at times had to file for insolvency in 2007).
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