IPVG temporarily halts trading due to talks with investors

MANILA, Philippines - Information and technology company IPVG Corp. requested the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) to temporarily suspend the trading of its shares starting Tuesday, October 21, until 9:00 AM of October 30, 2008. “This request is being made in regard to certain ongoing negotiations between the company and two major investors," IPVG said in a disclosure to the bourse. Starting 10:30 in the morning of Tuesday, trading of IPVG shares was already halted, as indicated in the company’s request. As of Tuesday, shares of IPVG were at P1.20 apiece, P0.32 centavos lower than the previous session. In 2005, IPVG established two subsidiaries, IP Converge Data Center to focus on its information and telecommunications initiatives, and IP E-Game Ventures Inc. to pursue its online computer games business. In late August, I-Play Online Games Inc.—a joint venture between IP E-Game Ventures Inc. and GMA New Media Inc. (GMA-NMI)—secured the license to sell, manage, and provide technical and customer support to users of a real-time online game based on the National Basketball Association (NBA). A subsidiary of GMA Network Inc., GMA NMI is the parent company of Media Merge Corp., the entity which owns and runs GMANews.TV. - GMANews.TV