Atom.com
| Company type | Humor, film website |
|---|---|
| Industry | Online video entertainment, film |
| Founded | 1998 |
| Founder | Mika Salmi |
| Defunct | 2012 |
| Fate | Absorbed into Comedy Central |
| Successor | CC Studios |
| Headquarters | San Francisco, California, United States |
| Parent | Paramount Media Networks (Paramount Global) |
| Website | atom |
Atom.com (formerly AtomFilms) was a broadband entertainment network offering original short subject movies, animations, and series by independent creators.[1][2][3] The company was founded in 1998 in Seattle by Mika Salmi.[4] Sequoia Capital, led by Michael Moritz, was the lead investor in Atom Films.[5][6]
Overview
[edit]Atom Films was the first online video platform for Oscar winners Jason Reitman,[7][8] Aardman Animations,[9][10] and David Lynch.[11] It was the first site to work with a major intellectual property rights owner to allow derivative works by the general public when it created a partnership with George Lucas and LucasFilm for The Official Star Wars Fan Film Awards in November 2000.[12][13]
Buyout
[edit]On August 10, 2006, Atom Entertainment was bought by MTV Networks (now called Paramount Media Networks) with all its properties, including AtomFilms, Addicting Games, Addicting Clips (renamed AtomUploads) and Shockwave.com.[14] The buyout occurred shortly after negotiations against and subsequently with Google to purchase YouTube. In 2012, Atom.com was absorbed into Comedy Central, and was renamed CC Studios.
References
[edit]- ^ Marriott, Michel (April 29, 2004). "NEWS WATCH: ENTERTAINMENT; Hurtling Onto Your Hard Drive, Short Films on Demand". The New York Times.
- ^ Lyman, Rick (March 27, 2000). "MEDIA; Hollywood Greets Online Entrepreneurs". The New York Times.
- ^ Harmon, Amy (December 16, 2000). "COMPANY NEWS; SHOCKWAVE.COM SETS ATOMFILMS TAKEOVER". The New York Times.
- ^ Houston, Frank (June 15, 2000). "Hollywood Flirts With Short Films on the Web". The New York Times.
- ^ "Viacom's MTV Unit Buys Atom Entertainment for Its Film, Gaming Web Sites - The Washington Post". The Washington Post.
- ^ "A VC With A Silicon Touch: Michael L. Moritz, WG' 78". Wharton Magazine. 2007-07-01. Retrieved 2021-06-29.
- ^ Nichols, Peter M. (2000-12-30). "Now Playing, Short Stories At a Web Theater Near You". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2021-06-29.
- ^ "AtomFilms trusts in Sundance short".
- ^ "Mika Salmi : AtomShockwave va diffuser les prochains épisodes d'Aardman Animations". 4 February 2002.
- ^ "Aardman's 'Angry' at AtomFilms site". 12 April 2000.
- ^ "David Lynch to produce "crude and bad quality" cartoons for web". TheGuardian.com. 23 March 2000.
- ^ "AtomFilms.com is the official site for Star Wars spoofs | EW.com". Entertainment Weekly.
- ^ "Lights, sabers, action! / 'Star Wars' fan films out of this world thanks to cheaper, powerful technology". 9 May 2005.
- ^ Ahrens, Frank (August 10, 2006). "Viacom's MTV unit buys Atom Entertainment for its film, gaming web sites". The Washington Post. Retrieved October 16, 2006.
External links
[edit]- Atom Official Website (no longer active)