iFilm
Type of site | Video hosting service |
|---|---|
| Headquarters | San Francisco, California,U.S. |
| Owner | Defy Media |
| Created by | Raphael Raphael – Founder Rodger Raderman– Founder J. Patrick Forden – Co-Founder Luke McDonough– Co-Founder Kevin Wendle– Co-Founder |
| Industry | Internet |
| Commercial | Yes |
| Registration | Not required |
| Launched | 1997 |
| Current status | Closed in 2008 |
iFilmis a discontinued U.S.-basedvideo-sharingwebsiteon which users could upload, share and view videos. It was founded by filmmaker Raphael Raphael in 1997. It was later acquired by iFilm.net, a popular online interactive film and media archive, originally specializing inindependent films.Ifilm.net was founded in 1998 by new media entrepreneursRoger Raderman,J. Patrick Forden, and Luke McDonough. Percepticon Corporation engineered and built the website and content publishing system. Greg Deocampo, the founding CTO, developed the core engineering team, encoding network, presentation engine, and ad serving network. Its URL is now owned byDefy Media.
Company history
[edit]iFilm was founded in 1997 by filmmaker Raphael Raphael as a thinktank for artists and technicians about future directions of film. Raphael sold the domain to Rodger Raderman, founder of iFilm.net. The original intent of iFilm was to make short, independent films available online. It rejected home movies and pornography, but was open to all other film types. By August 1999, the site had over 450 movies, offices in New York, Los Angeles, and San Francisco, and employed 40+ people. Also during the summer of 1999, film editorAndrew Hindesand former sales and marketing head ofVariety (magazine)Coco Jonesjoined the iFilm team. "If the consumer thinks about 'films', then we want them to come to iFilm as their first point of entry," said founder Rodger Raderman. "We see ourselves as the portal – the first stop on the web for all things film-related."
iFilm had many high-profile investors, such as Axiom Ventures, Inc.,Eastman Kodak,Liberty Digital, Rainbow Media (NowAMC Networks,Sony Pictures Entertainment,Vulcan Inc.,andYahoo!.
iFilm suffered serious losses in 2000 as a result of thedot-com bubblebust. It reorganized under CEO Kevin Wendel in 2001 and rebounded with a new focus onviral video.Prior to 2005, whenYouTubewas founded, iFilm was one of the primary destinations for viral videos on the internet.
Acquisition
[edit]On October 15, 2005, under CEOBlair HarrisoniFilm was purchased byViacomfor $49 million, with the hopes of creating their own user-generated YouTube rival.[1]Instead, in December 2006, iFilm was bundled withMTV Networks' entertainment group. iFilm had a brief life withMTV Networks.On January 13, 2006, a television series presented as a collaboration between iFilm andVH1entitledWeb Junk 20debuted onVH1.[2]The show was marginally popular, airing for 3 seasons.
Rebranding
[edit]Erik Flannigan,MTV Networks'VP of digital media, suggested that the core audience of iFilm, who were primarily young males, aligned perfectly with Viacom'sSpike.During the first quarter of 2008, the two brands were merged. The iFilm brand was no more and re-branded and re-purposed asSpike.[3]The content ofSpikewas set to be composed ofSpikeprogramming,Comedy Centralclips,GameTrailersandMTVvideos. When Defy Media bought the URL from Viacom in 2014, it changed it so it redirects to Defy propertyScreen Junkies.
Investors
[edit]iFilm had many high-profile investors, such as Axiom Ventures, Inc.,Eastman Kodak,Liberty Digital, Rainbow Media (nowAMC Networks),Sony Pictures Entertainment,Vulcan Inc.,andYahoo!.
Content
[edit]Triumph the Insult Comic Dogfirst became a "viral video" at iFilm.[4]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^Ben Fritz (13 October 2005)."Viacom goes online for $49 mil".Variety.Retrieved18 February2012.
- ^"Week In Review Digest".AllBusiness.Retrieved18 February2012.
- ^Andrew Hampp (11 September 2007)."Once Considered a YouTube Rival, MTV Does Away With IFilm".AdAge.Retrieved18 February2012.
- ^Robert Smigel—Robert Smigel Found The Triumph Puppet While Furniture Shopping—Conan O'BrienNeeds A FriendviaYoutube
- Rodger Raderman's iFilm Tumbler
- AdAge: Once considered a YouTube rival, MTV does away with iFilm
- iMedia Connection: iFilm's Fisk explores new digital landscape
- PaidContent.org: After being merged with Spike TV's site, MTV to remove iFilm brand next year
- Variety:Viacom goes online for $49 million
- The Independent:iFilm Network
- New York Times:Film's digital potential has Hollywood on edge
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