Tech company Unlockd is entering voluntary administration in the middle of a heated legal stoush with Google, months after speculation the company was heading for a debut on the Australian Stock Exchange.
Unlockd, whose app allows consumers to get discounts on their telecommunications services by watching advertisements when they unlock their phone screen, has slammed the search giant for its demise.
Unlockd chief executive Matt Berriman launched the freemium-model app in 2016.
The Australian start-up was backed by high-profile investors when it launched, including Lachlan Murdoch, former Seven managing director Peter Gammell and Catch of the Day founders Hezi and Gabby Leibovich. The freemium ad-supported phone plan company signed a deal with US-based Boost Mobile worth up to $100 million in 2016.
But by early-2018, around the time of a mooted initial public offering, Unlockd hit a snag when Google said it had breached some of the company’s policies and would therefore be restricted from AdMob and the Google Play Store.
Unlockd disagreed its apps went against the policies, saying Google’s actions were anti-competitive, and sued the search giant, later being granted an injunction in the UK High Court to prevent its apps from…
