Destra Corporation, the Australian digital media and entertainment firm, has been placed in voluntary administration.
Destra today (Nov. 13) appointed PPB as administrators after its largest shareholder Prime Media Group withdrew financial support of the financially troubled company.
The development draws curtains on a tumultuous year that has seen the company’s founder ousted, and a fire-sale of its entertainment assets in an effort to cover bank debt.
Destra placed its entertainment businesses on the block in April when Prime Media, the regional TV and radio station operator, seized control of the board and axed the company’s founder and then CEO Domenic Carosa.
Destra Entertainment had included record labels Rajon Music (various genres), Central Station Records (dance), Compass Records (country) and MRA Entertainment (world/adult contemporary); Destra Vision, which distributes children and documentary video and DVD titles; and budget audio and video content publisher and distribution company Payless Entertainment.
Payless Entertainment was spun-off in a management buyout this September, and the following month Central Station Records (CSR) was sold to the dance label’s Sydney-based GM Jamie Raeburn.
“Continued adverse trends in the consumer and advertising markets and unprecedented capital market volatility have, however, contributed to making asset sales difficult,” Destra reported.
To make matters worse, a prospective buyer for the entertainment division later walked away from the negotiating table.
Established by Carosa in 2003, Destra crafted a reputation as one of Australia’s Internet-era success stories. Growth and expansion followed, as the firm set up various online community sites and media entertainment distributor networks. But the company was exposed to sharp losses on the Australian stock exchange in March.
