[coredog64]

One fairly recent example of this in the software business is TIBCO. They were making stupid short-term decisions to satisfy investors. The theory was that going private would allow them to reorganize the business and focus on core competencies without second-guessing by investors.

That or it was just a way for Vivek Ranadive to get the maximum payout for his equity stake so that he could focus on running his NBA team.

As a side note, I went to the annual TIBCO conference right before the buyout and it was pretty clear there that Vivek didn't give a wet rat's rear about TIBCO or software anymore and just wanted to spend his day being an NBA owner.