The nagging issue regarding this merger has always been the timing of the significance of the events over the last 12 months. I would not have been opposed to a Google merger in brought to the table in 2011 and at a much higher share price. I am now against any Google merger, at any price (teeth gritting) and at any time given the apparent influence that Google has had over On2 management during this period. Much has been discussed here regarding the timeline and since I have been unavailable for committee participation, I do not know if this has been covered. So here it is as I have kept track:

1. Back in September of 2008 (nearly 3 years into a quiet Google relationship), On2 announced VP8. The initial PR citing MoveNetworks and Skype as adopters of VP8, quoting Kaikkonen, continues: “VP8 will replace our 7th generation codec and enables companies who are also developing client-side playback capability to deliver a supreme video over IP solution.” It continues to quote MoveNetworks and Skype regarding VP8:

“A solution that further reduces the bandwidth and playback complexity required while maintaining the highest quality video is a slam-dunk for Move Networks “ said Greg Smith, chief technology officer of Move Networks “With this kind of technology we can very quickly deliver our premium service to a much a wider audience without compromise.

“We continually look to push the boundaries for the quality of service possible using P2P IP communications” said Chiam Haass, vice president of Skype. “After introducing high quality video conferencing, using the previous generation of On2 Video (VP7), video calls have grown to account for more than 28% of all Skype calls. If we can reduce the data required further with more efficient compression Skype users will be able to enjoy even more compelling live video calls.”

The latter “official” and Eero censored PR references Adobe, ARM and the complimentary nature of VP8 with respect to the Open Screen Project.

2. In October of 2008, On2 and Google entered into discussions regarding a business combination. Curious that 2 of the adopters mentioned in the IBC release that was pulled from the net shortly after it was posted happen to occupy spaces that Google would prefer to dominate

3. October 29, 2008, Paul Wilkins publishes an article on VP6 and declares “VP6 has been ported to a wide variety of devices, chipsets and processors from leading companies including: ARM, TI (OMAP & DaVinci), Philips, Freescale, Marvell, C2, Videantis, Sony, Yamaha and Archos. Furthermore, On2 is currently working on a highly optimized hardware implementation of VP6, which is due to start shipping later this year. This implementation will be used in SoCs for mobile handsets and other low-power applications. This implementation will enable HD playback of VP6 video on mobile phones!”

4. On November 4, 2008, Mr. Pekka Salonoja (Hantro Exec. appointed to the On2 Board) resigned from the Board of Directors of On2 Technologies, Inc., effective that same day. Mr. Salonoja’s resignation was voluntary, and there were no disagreements between Mr. Salonoja and On2 pertaining to On2’s operations, policies or practices. Looking back at it now and the timing of the Google discussions, it’s hard to believe that there was not a disagreement.

5. On November 6, 2008, On2 Technologies reports a $29.2 million loss on $5 million in revenue in Q3, by taking a non-cash write down of the On2 Finland (Hantro) business of $26.2 million, sending the stock down to test its lows. (Ironically, contributing to the basis for the merger share price)

6. During the November 6, 2008 CC, a caller specifically asked if the company was positioning itself for acquisition. Matt Frost denied that the company was being positioned for an acquisition by a partner or customer. Clearly an outright lie, given what we now know about the timeline of events from the Google preliminary proxy.