Quarterdeck sells StarNine

Quarterdeck Corp. of Marina del Rey, Calif., this week closed a deal to sell StarNine, the maker of the Mac Web server WebStar, to Platinum Utility Holdings.

Quarterdeck bought Berkeley, Calif.-based StarNine in late 1995 (see 10.02.95, Page 4). Naomi Pearce, head of StarNine's public relations firm, speculated that Quarterdeck, which originally developed Internet software for Windows machines, wanted to "get back to basics" and divest itself of its Macintosh product line.

However, Pearce said she does not expect there to be many staffing changes at StarNine and added that the company expects to announce new products in the near future. One of the announcements may concern a Web server for Rhapsody, Apple's next-generation operating system, according to the company.