I'm not very familiar with the intricacies of the deals done but, looking at that first article you linked to, I read it as:
Vitalturn was owned by Sumner, Hook, Morris & Gilbert and they all had a 25% share.
Sumner, Morris & Gilbert then set up a new company to technically replace Vitalturn (although this company would still exist in some form).
This new company would (presumably) be split as follows - Sumner 31.66%, Morris 31.66%, Gilbert 31.66%, Vitalturn 5% (I say 'presumably'; the article doesn't specify).
So, in theory (and based on what I think the article is saying), the band had the following shares:
Sumner 32.92% (31.67% from the new company + 1.25% from Vitalturn)
Morris 32.92% (31.67% from the new company + 1.25% from Vitalturn)
Gilbert 32.92% (31.67% from the new company + 1.25% from Vitalturn)
Hook 1.25% (1.25% from Vitalturn)
So, that was Hook's point. He was getting much less return from his investment in the 'New Order' brand.
As I understand it (and I might be completely wrong here), is that this new company (and Vitalturn also, for that matter) look after the New Order 'brand' and not just (even?) any new music that is produced by the band or live performances etc.
This brand is something that Hook has had a significant input into.
Obviously Hook should always earn royalties against LPs he appeared on.
However, his (legitimate, IMHO) argument is that, when the band are asked to perform live or appear in magazines / television etc., or in respect of merchandising, all of this is because the band / brand have built up a significant following / status over the years, and he has helped with that. Hook thought that this should be represented in the financial split, with him getting more than 1.25%.
He also has a gripe that the other three decided on this without him (again, he has a point!).
It's technical stuff and I'm sure that we are not party to all the intricacies of it. I also might be completely wrong. 😕
As regards the argument that either 'Hook left' or 'the band split', I guess it all depends on your personal perception.
As I mentioned above, Hook stated the band had split (presumably) without consulting with Steve and Barney (Gillian had already left). Sumner and Morris then issued a statement along the lines of 'we have not split but must assume that Hook no longer wants to be a part of New Order'.
Based on the above, it certainly seems that 'Hook split'.
However, New Order definitely did 'cease' (at least in practice) at that point, with Sumner, Morris and Cunningham adopting the 'Bad Lieutenant' name, writing non-New Order material and touring under this new name. I think Hook could legitimately argue that, because of this, the band had 'split'; else why didn't they continue performing as New Order? In theory, they could've released 'Never Cry Another Tear' under the 'New Order' name (incorporating Chapman and Evans into the line-up). But nope - they made a deliberate action of calling the band a new name.
Then, to make matters worse, when Steve, Barney and Phil decided to reignite 'New Order', they only invited back Gillian, and not Peter. This must've annoyed him somewhat.
For what it's worth, I'm firmly in the Sumner, Morris and Gilbert camp. This is mainly due to the way inglorious way that Hook has conducted himself throughout. But also comes down to my opinion that 'deciding that you don't want to work with the others' doesn't equate to 'the band has split up'.
(NB announcing that 'split' to the press smacks a little of him deciding the future of the band; something that he's annoyed that the rest of the band did with without him - see above!).
However, even though I favour the other three, that doesn't mean to say that Hook doesn't have a point. If he was only receiving 1.25% of the 'New Order' brand (in addition to his usual royalties), this does seem unfair, to say the least. And I think he has a fairly reasonable (though not conclusive) argument that the band 'split'.
It's complicated, ain't it? [:eek]