Wednesday, March 14, 2012

TORONTO-LIME.com has new ownership!

First this news came out the February 8, 2012

After 16 successfull years online, Caribbean website giant TORONTO-LIME.com closes its doors

Founder and president, Jef Lo announced today that TORONTO-LIME.com will be no more after 16 years online. After being touted the number one Caribbean website for so many years the question is why?

"It's time for me to move on" says Jef. "In the initial start-up, the mission was to give Caribbean content a place on the worldwide web. Back in 1996, the only information that would appear in a search engine for the keywords 'Soca/Calypso' was about Harry Belafonte. Over the years TORONTO-LIME.com has inspired many to post their knowledge and content online. Today there’s nothing Caribbean you cannot Google. I think I've reached my goal."

When asked if this was a move to early retirement, Jef said laughingly, "Business was good, but not that good." According to Mr. Lo, his immediate plans are to take some time off before returning to his other business (Soca Bookings), where his focus will now lie in artist management and public relations.

TORONTO-LIME.com is now officially off-line. The highly prominent domain name will be up for sale within the next few weeks and speculation on how high bidding will reach for the heavily sought-after brand is anyone's guess.




Then this news came;

TORONTO-LIME.com has new ownership! - Caribbean website mogul sold to two separate entertainment groups in parts for undisclosed figure

Toronto, ON, Canada - March 14, 2012 - The rumor mill has been in full swing for several weeks after the sudden announcement that Caribbean news and entertainment website TORONTO-LIME.com would be up for grabs. Founder and former president Jef Lo, confirmed today that the much sought after brand has been disassembled into its integral parts and sold to two separate Canadian firms.

Time 2 Lime Entertainment, who until now, has been an underground player making waves within the Urban and Caribbean community will reportedly take over the websites key features, including content and back-end technology. As part of the recently inked deal in

Mid-February, Mr. Lo has not only handed over the website's existing technologies to Time 2 Lime, but has also given-up an all new back-end, rumored to have been under development for several months now.

While a bit of a surprise to Jef, Time 2 Lime Entertainment declined the highly branded domain name (TORONTO-LIME.com) and will be announcing an all new online name in the upcoming weeks. Making a successful grab for the heavily touted TORONTO-LIME.com domain was ClubCrawlers, yet another Canadian based online group specializing in club and event promotions.

Neither Time 2 Lime, ClubCrawlers nor Jef would comment on a figure for the exchanges. However, shocking hints have been made suggesting that the transfer of the TORONTO-LIME.com brand did not go to the highest bidder. When asked for validation of the rumor Jef slyly smirked and shared, "At the end of the bidding process the decision was not a hard one. I want the integrity of the business to remain intact and I believe these two firms are best fitted to not only carry on the legacy, but also take things to new heights ".

Although Jef has yet to formally announce plans for future endeavors, Time 2 Lime has confirmed that Jef will remain a key part of their organization for a one year period as the company’s marketing consultant. In the immediate weeks Jef will be developing the business model and marketing strategy for Time 2 Lime’s upcoming online project. Both the management team and moderators will be recruited by Jef.

A definite launch date was not offered, but Time 2 Lime’s new website is expected to go live some time in either March or April 2012. The future of the TORONTO-LIME.com (domain name) has yet to announced.

No comments: