Ex-BT tech chief quits Phorm

Stratis Scleparis, the former BT Retail chief technology officer who joined Phorm after overseeing secret trials of its web monitoring and profiling system, has quit the firm. Phorm is expected to reveal further heavy losses when it announces its half year financial results on Monday. A spokesman for Phorm said Scleparis had …

[David Lawrence]

When a rat deserts a sinking ship....

...it normally only makes a pathetic squeaking noise. That one was quite eloquent but 'twas a load of bulls**t all the same!

[Anonymous Coward]

Are you sure?

Stratis Scleparis is an anagram of "It is starless crap". Sounds just like Phorm to me.

[Anonymous Coward]

Does..

Anyone want to offer him a job?

Pingus

[this]

Real Names?

Why do all the people who are involved in these types of business tend to have made-up names straight out of some second rate SF novel? Stratis Scleparis and Kent Ertugrul indeed!

[Anonymous Coward]

Did he forget to say sorry?

I wonder what his "other interests" might be.

Perhaps its a welcome opportunity to join other mail bag embroidery enthusiasts, a chance to serve the community he loves by litter picking, or even artfully sculpting scrap of granite with his friends?

I hope so.

[dunncha]

smirk

But I'll bet he will just walk into a brand new equally well paid position at BT now.

Smirk slips a bit

Wish I could do that

[Anonymous Coward]

The sound of...

Coming from the privacy pirates (sic), a cheer similar to that heard when someone drops and smashes a pint glass in a busy pub.

Sad that StopPhoulPlay has gone. It was amusing on several levels.

[Anonymous Coward]

Can we have

A Nelson Piquet Jr moment and spill the beans?

[Ed Blackshaw]

Translation:

"I am proud of the contribution that I and my team have made in the development of Phorm's unique online content and advertising personalisation technologies."

may possibly equate to:

"I am proud that I was responsible for unlawful trials of illegal bugging software, and that my team of lawyers has managed to prevent me being prosecuted for these actions"?

Hopefully this toad will now find it difficult to find new employment, except for firms which already have a tainted image themselves, probably through the 'old boy' network.

(Pirate icon, as the day is nearly upon us!)

[Camilla Smythe]

Small scale trials.....??

Websites in Korea indicate that the 'trials' involved 1000 housholds/people and ended about 4th September.

[N2]

Die Phorm

only another 150 pee to go

[Anonymous Coward]

Stratis Scleparis...

Is clearly a poisonous human being.

[YorkieDav]

Dear Phorm...

Please don't let the door hit you on the arse on the way out.

I hear Korea is lovely this time of year.

Sincerely,

YorkieDav

[John Smith 19]

Kent Ertugrul is not made up

It's Armenian I think.

[Alexander Hanff 1]

Wow I never noticed...

...that stopphoulplay had finally been taken down. Thanks for pointing it out.

Alexander "The Angry Activist" Hanff

[David 45]

Jolly good show, chaps

I would agree - the words "sinking" and "rats" definitely come to mind!

[MYOFB]

". . . pursue other interests" . . .

. . . is a euphemism for being shown the door, given the push, or in very, very simple terms: SACKED!!

I have worked in many companies that, on the departure of a well known and apparently successful employee, an email from a 'high ranking' figure used the exact terminology.

The reality of what actually tranpsired is, the high ranking bull shitters were out-bullshitted by a bigger bullshitter, finally caught on and didn't like it one bit . . . ergo statement of " pursuing other interests"!!

Sclerapis' parting "comment" was manufactured by Phorm in a "please stay calm, everything is ok" moment or by Sclerapis himself in as much as "I'm as good at what I do as I say I am"

Whichever is the case, there's still a lingering smell of . . . Bullshit!!

[Anonymous Coward]

One word

Reeeeeesult!

More words: did he go of his own accord, or was he pushed?

[Jason Hall]

@dunncha

"But I'll bet he will just walk into a brand new equally well paid position at BT now."

No, he left BT first... *now* he is off to work for government where he can change the laws to allow phorm to do their dirty snooping. Either that or to work for oftel.

[Anonymous Coward]

Leaving statement

>In a statement, Scleparis said: "I am proud of the contribution that I and my team have made in the

>development of Phorm's unique online content and advertising personalisation technologies.

>

>"I wish the Company every success with its current market trials and the roll out to full deployment

>of its innovative service."

From my experience of being behind the scenes when press statements are made it is very unlikely that Scleparis actually said any of the above.

[Michael Orton]

nom de plume???

He had to go---his name sounds like some terrible un-stopable fatal disease--- oh sorry, of course, PHORM was shorthand/code for that.

[Chris Williams]

Re: UK ISP's did NOT pressure for opt-out

Nope. BT asked for that change before the EU got involved.

[Andrew McLachlan]

Friends and Family Stock anyone?

Great gig. Get the technology deployed into the company you work for and then leave to work at that same start-up.....

Anyone see a problem with this?

Justice....

[Anonymous Coward]

Gap on the CV?

What's he going to do... leave an embarrassing gap in his CV, or admit working for Phorm.

Would *you* employ and ex-phormer?

I suppose he could *say* he was travelling abroad, or in prison, or something less damning...

[Neoc]

Translation of article.

Ex-BT tech chief was shown the door after Phorm stated "you failed to deliver us BT as promised, you're out of here".

[Anonymous Coward]

@AC

AC:"Stratis Scleparis...Is clearly a poisonous human being."

Sorry to disappoint your uniformed and blinkered view of the world but he's actually a very nice bloke indeed and one of the best managers I ever worked for (in his pre-BT/Phorm days).

I think he's been misguided over Phorm and realised it quite early on but he's not the sort of person who would just up and quit without trying to fix the problem before leaving.

[archie lukas]

Huzzah -public pressure is winning

The sooner these boys are unemployed -the better.

[Anonymous Coward]

@AC - 09:02

I'm sure he is nice, but he knew full well what he was doing when thought that Phorm might be the biggest gravy train in history. Selling services to BT? Nice little earner. Especially as he would have been privy to all the inside details, working in BT tech.

No, too much ch-ching at stake to think clearly. He could have backed out at any time, but the lure of the spondoolics was just too much and now you reap what you sow.

[mikew]

David Sawday, Director of Corporate Communications, also gone

David Sawday, Director of Corporate Communications, has also gone:

http://www.phorm.com/about_us/executive_team/index.html

[Thomas Jerome]

teh ph0Rm phail philes

Knocked this Phorm-themed Spotify playlist up a while back. It was a slow Friday... http://tiny.cc/aEpoo