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Crowdfunding platform Indiegogo has halted further pledges for the Spectrum ZX Vega+ device.
It has also emerged that the company behind the device, Retro Computers, threatened the BBC in an attempt to keep the organisation from reporting on the issue.
The Vega+, which smashed its funding targets by reaching a total of 514k, had after a number of delays been expected to ship to backers last month. Furthermore, backers have started to voice their frustration at the lack of communication from the company.
The BBC has now revealed that in December 2016 Retro threatened it with legal action after it was contacted about the ongoing hold ups.
"Our clients are concerned that the BBC is in fact supporting and participating in a malicious campaign intended to denigrate our clients’ reputation," lawyers argued, also requesting that the BBC showed them a copy of any potential report 48 hours ahead of its publication. The BBC declined, of course.
Following this Retro told its backers that the delays were due to a design change to one of the console’s buttons. It has since blamed its ongoing silence on a business dispute with former directors.
As you can see, backers are up in arms:
Ahead of this most recent story, Retro tried to convince the BBC to stay quiet by claiming that the story was factually inaccurate” and might put people at risk of physical harm, alarm and distress”. The BBC held off to allow Retro to produce evidence of this threat, which they did not.
Trouble was brewing at Retro as far back as July 2014 when it clashed with former distributor Cornerstone Interactive.
