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
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
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
^ 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