Sad news this afternoon – Berg, creators of the Little Printer and Cloudwash, the connected washing machine, have decided to call it a day:

Folks, I’ve got some news about Berg to share.
We’re wrapping up for this incarnation.
Our partnerships and our services, they’re
done. A few things left, then hibernation.

The reason is clear, but sad:

We’ve not reached a sustainable business
in connected products.

Of course, this doesn’t mean the internet of things has failed – just that one of the pioneers and early thinkers has failed to find a business model. As they say, the problem with being a pioneer is that you often end up face-down in the dust, with arrows in your back…