Maker of ReplayTV Recorders Fires CEO

Sonicblue Inc. said Thursday that it fired its chairman, chief executive and president, Ken Potashner, and named as interim CEO its marketing vice president, L. Gregory Ballard.

Santa Clara, Calif.-based Sonicblue, manufacturer of ReplayTV digital video recorders and Rio digital music players, among other devices, did not say why it had fired Potashner.

Sonicblue representatives did not return calls and e-mails seeking comment.

The company said in a statement that it would address the changes in an early-morning conference call today.

Ballard is the former chief executive of 3dfx, a graphics company, and he previously ran Internet and music businesses.

During his tenure, Potashner steered the company aggressively and took on media conglomerates that, among other things, tried to force Sonicblue to track the television viewing habits of people who used its ReplayTV recorder to skip commercials, and to report its findings back to them.

The top ranks at the company have been in turmoil for some time.

In April, the chief operating officer left the company just one day after it named its third chief financial officer in a year.

It also said Anthony Wood, founder of ReplayTV and a member of the team since Sonicblue’s acquisition, left to pursue other projects.

On July 31, Sonicblue reported a net loss of $23.5 million on revenue of $61.7 million.

Sonicblue shares closed down 6.4% at 44 cents Thursday on Nasdaq before trading was halted.