Company type | Subsidiary |
---|---|
Predecessor | Machinima, Inc. |
Founded | January 2011 |
Founder | George Strompolos |
Defunct | October 31, 2021 [1] |
Headquarters | Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
Key people |
|
Parent | Otter Media |
Website | fullscreen |
Fullscreen, Inc. was an American entertainment company which offered software tools, services, and consultation to social media content creators and brands. It was an original multi-channel network on YouTube. It was fully acquired for $845M in 2018 by AT&T-owned Otter Media, which is now a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. [2] [3]
Fullscreen also provided channel management and optimization services for brands and media companies to grow their presence on social media. [4] [5] [6] Fullscreen's clients included NBCUniversal, Mattel, Fox, Fremantle, JASH, [7] Fine Brothers Entertainment, [8] and more. [9]
Fullscreen was founded in January 2011 by CEO George Strompolos. [10] Strompolos hired Ezra Cooperstein as Fullscreen's COO. [11] [12]
Peter Chernin was a strategic partner and advisor since Fullscreen's inception. [13] In May 2011, the Chernin Group officially came on board as an investor. In the fall of 2014, the Chernin Group and AT&T's Otter Media acquired a controlling stake of Fullscreen, aligning with Otter Media's focus on youth media. [14] [15] [16]
In 2014, Fullscreen acquired the companies ScrewAttack and Rooster Teeth. [17] [18] ScrewAttack now operates as a division of Rooster Teeth, continuing their Death Battle and Top10 series. In May 2015, Fullscreen acquired social media creative agency McBeard. [19] [20]
That same year, Fullscreen rebranded itself as Fullscreen Media, consisting of three separate businesses: Fullscreen Creator Network, a management service that works with established and up-and-coming creators; Fullscreen Entertainment, which comprises Fullscreen Live, its subsidiary studio Rooster Teeth, Fullscreen Productions and its original subscription service; and Fullscreen Brandworks, a unit dedicated to branded content run by former Razorfish CEO Pete Stein. [21] [22] [23] [24] In November 2015, Andy Forssell joined the company as COO. [25]
In 2016, Fullscreen launched a subscription video on demand app. [26] [27] In addition to Roku, the subscription service was available for iPhone, iPad, Apple TV, Android phones and tablets, and Google Chromecast devices and was also available via Amazon Channels. [28] [29] [30] The app was available as a free trial to people who have AT&T. [31] [32] [33]
Aside from the talent network, Fullscreen's Video Labs team works with brands and entertainment companies to help them become more successful on YouTube. [34] In September 2016, Fullscreen subsidiary McBeard acquired Video Labs, rounding out the social offerings for the company to include social creative, insights, optimization, and distribution for clients. [19]
Fullscreen is also partnering with Mattel to create its own social influencer network, the first of which will be The Hot Wheels Network. [35] [36]
On November 14, 2017, Fullscreen announced the closure of their video on-demand service as of January 2018. [37]
On April 4, 2018, Fullscreen acquired the influencer marketing firm Reelio [38]
On January 26, 2018, Ezra Cooperstein left Fullscreen for Rooster Teeth, becoming their president. [39]
On September 7, 2018, in a memo to all Fullscreen employees, George Strompolos announced he would be stepping down from the company as CEO and moving into an advisory role. [40] [41]
On February 1, 2019, Machinima, Inc. merged into Fullscreen, laying off its 81 employees and ceased all operations.
On August 11, 2020, Jukin Media announced partnerships with Fullscreen and BroadbandTV to provide their rosters of influencers and YouTubers exclusive discounts to Jukin's library, dedicated customer support, and early access to new features. [42]
On November 10, 2020, WarnerMedia laid off most or all of the Fullscreen team as part of a company-wide reorganization. [43]
On November 30, 2012, Fullscreen launched their Million Dollar Creator Fund committing one million dollars' worth of advertising and promotion to their creators. Every month, four channels within the Fullscreen network will be awarded up to $10,000 in pre-roll advertising and guerilla campaigns, in which Fullscreen will pay its other partners to promote the winning channels. [44] [45] [46] [47]
Fullscreen's LGBTQ-pride programming kicked off with the season 2 premiere of Hella Gay with Miles McKenna, featuring Miles McKenna, on June 1 with three back-to-back episodes. [48]
Rooster Teeth Productions, LLC was an American entertainment company headquartered in Austin, Texas. Founded in 2003 by Burnie Burns, Matt Hullum, Geoff Ramsey, Jason Saldaña, Gus Sorola, and Joel Heyman, Rooster Teeth was a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery Global Streaming & Interactive Entertainment, which is a division of Warner Bros. Discovery.
Michael Justin "Burnie" Burns is an American actor, writer, producer, comedian, host, and director previously based in Austin, Texas. He was a co-founder, former chief executive officer, and former chief creative officer of Rooster Teeth. He is noted for his contributions in machinima, a form of film-making that uses video game technology in its production, and also works with animation and live action. Burns is also known for his work in the hosting and podcasting field.
Machinima, Inc. was an American independent multiplatform online entertainment network owned by WarnerMedia. The company was founded in January 2000 by Hugh Hancock and was headquartered in Los Angeles, California.
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Grace Anne Helbig is an American comedian, actress, and internet personality. She is the co-creator and co-host of the podcast This Might Get Weird (2018–present) alongside frequent collaborator Mamrie Hart and is the voice of Cindy Bear in the Max animated series Jellystone! (2021–present).
React Media, LLC is an American digital media and entertainment company founded by brothers Benny Fine and Rafi Fine. The Fines began creating content in 2003 and in 2011, founded their eponymous Fine Brothers Productions, Inc. Now known as React Media, the company produces the React video series, their several timed-spoiler series, narrative web series, and created a "transmedia" sitcom on YouTube, MyMusic.
Disney Digital Network was an American multi-channel network located in Culver City, California. It was originally the successor to Maker Studios, co-founded by Lisa Donovan, Danny Zappin, Scott Katz, Kassem Gharaibeh, Shay Carl, Rawn Erickson II, Ben Donovan, Philip DeFranco, Glasgow Phillips, Michael Gallagher, Matthew Clawson, and Paul Ballon in 2009. Maker Studios was originally conceived as an incubator for YouTube talent through the use of Super Channels like The Station. Maker Studios adopted the multi-channel network (MCN) model after the initial model failed to take root. Maker Studios was acquired by The Walt Disney Company in 2014 for $500 million, and was absorbed into the newly formed Disney Digital Network in 2017.
A multi-channel network (MCN) is an organization that works with video platforms to offer assistance to channel owners in areas such as "product, programming, funding, cross-promotion, partner management, digital rights management, monetization and sales, and audience development," in exchange for a percentage of the ad revenue from the channel.
BBTV is a Canadian media and technology company founded by CEO Shahrzad Rafati in 2005. In 2019, the company was the second-largest video property by unique viewers, according to comScore. Its head office is in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. BBTV's clients include the NBA, Paramount Global, and Sony Pictures.
RTX was a series of annual gaming and Internet conventions created by Rooster Teeth held primarily in Austin, Texas and for a period of time also Sydney, New South Wales, Australia and London, England, UK.
Warner/Chappell Music Inc. et al. v. Fullscreen Inc. et al. (13-cv-05472) was a case against multi-channel network Fullscreen, filed by the National Music Publishers Association on behalf of Warner/Chappell Music and 15 other music publishers, which alleged that Fullscreen illegally reaped the profits of unlicensed cover videos on YouTube without paying any royalties to the rightful publishers and songwriters.
Jennifer Ann McAllister, known previously by the pseudonym jennxpenn, is an American internet personality, actress, and online streamer. She is best known for her work on YouTube, for which she has been nominated at the Shorty and Teen Choice Awards, and for her livestreams on Twitch.
Michael Vincent Jones is an American actor, podcast host and internet personality who is known for his work with Rooster Teeth's gameplay division Achievement Hunter. He also co-hosted three-time Podcast Award winner Internet Box.
The Rooster Teeth Podcast, formerly known as the Drunk Tank, is a podcast produced by Rooster Teeth that aired weekly from December 9, 2008 to April 22, 2024 and featured various members of Rooster Teeth's staff discussing different topics each week. Throughout its run, main hosts included Rooster Teeth founders Gus Sorola, Burnie Burns, Geoff Ramsey and Joel Heyman as well as Gavin Free, Jack Pattillo and Barbara Dunkelman while Armando Torres, Griff Milton and Andrew Rosas acted as its final hosts. It is sometimes advertised as simply The RT Podcast. It was named Best Gaming Podcast by the Podcast Awards in 2012 and 2013.
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Night Inc. is an American digital talent management company founded in 2015 by Reed Duchscher. Through its talent management arm Night Media, the company currently manages digital creators including Kai Cenat, Hasan Piker, ZHC, The Costco Guys, and Safiya Nygaard. The firm previously managed MrBeast from 2018 to 2024. Since its founding, the company has expanded into venture capital investing, original programming, seed-stage investing, as well as maintaining its original talent management firm, Night Media. Duchscher is the CEO while the president since 2020 is Ezra Cooperstein, an early employee of the now-defunct Fullscreen and the former president of Rooster Teeth.
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The Fullscreen Creator Network has ceased operations as of October 31, 2021.
For instance, Fullscreen has built a side business, Channel Plus, that services the likes of NBC, Fox and FremantleMedia, and school them on how to distribute content on YouTube.