Charlie Muirhead

Charlie Muirhead
Residence London, England
Alma mater Imperial College London
Occupation Entrepreneur
Website Rightster Homepage

Charlie Muirhead is a British Internet entrepreneur. He founded his first company, Orchestream, at the age of 21. He went on to found other companies including NexAgent, iGabriel, InterProvider, and t5m. He is currently the founder and CEO of Brave Bison, formerly known as Rightster, a digital video streaming company that helps firms monetise their digital content.

Founded companies

Orchestream

Muirhead handled his first management buyout (of a musical-equipment rental business) at the age of 18.[1] At 19 he enrolled at the Imperial College London to study computer science. In 1996, while in college, Muirhead founded the company Orchestream at the age of 21, which allowed web users to prioritise their data on the Internet. He left college early to work on the company full-time, though he received a note from the College stating that he could return if his business idea fell through.[2] By 1999 the company was worth £1 billion and was listed on the NASDAQ.[3] He stepped down from his position as CEO in 2000, though maintained a position as non-executive director with the company. Orchestream was bought by Metasolv in 2002 for £6 million, a valuation described as "embarrassing"[4] and "peanuts"[5] by the media. It was subsequently sold to Oracle in 2006.[6]

NexAgent, iGabriel, and InterProvider

In July 2000 he also founded the data communications company Nexagent, which secured £10.3m in its first round of funding,.[7] Muirhead served as President and CEO of the company until 2003. In 2003 he relinquished his role as CEO but retained his role as President of the company.[8] Muirhead also founded iGabriel.net—an Internet incubator fund that invested in start-up web companies.[9] According to The Daily Telegraph, "Unlike other incubators, iGabriel only accepts funds from individuals, and mainly from people in the technology or media industries who can help develop the companies in which the fund invests."[10] iGabriel.net would eventually merge with Pi-Capital.[11] In 2001 Muirhead founded the company InterProvider.[12] InterProvider supplied proprietary software and serviced interconnections to telecom operators, and Time Magazine featured Muirhead as an up-and-coming entrepreneur in its coverage of the company's founding.[13]

t5m

In 2007 Muirhead founded the company t5m, standing for "the 5th medium". The website is an online television network that features interviews with prominent individuals talking about socially conscious issues. Early offerings included an exclusive channel run by Nelson Mandela's charity 46664, which partnered with t5m for World AIDS Day.[3] The company relaunched in 2008 to syndicate original content clips between 3 and 5 minutes long, and distribute its own proprietary video-player. t5m combines the traditional television format of network-owned syndication alongside programs with production company-owned rights.[14] The company also produces the television show Trinny and Susannah – What They Did Next.[15]

Rightster / Brave Bison

In 2011 Muirhead founded Rightster, a software company that automates the end-to-end lifecycle for content owners, publishers, and marketers of digital video content including distribution, marketing, and monetisation of the content.[16] Content partners for the company come from a broad range of industries, from London Fashion Week[17] to ITN Productions[18] and The Guardian newspaper.[19] The company provides rights management through a cloud-based platform in addition to live streaming, audience development and YouTube/Facebook management services.[20] Events that have streamed on Rightster have included the Wedding of Prince William and Catherine Middleton and the Leveson Inquiry.[21] By March 2012, monthly video views of Rightster's clients grew from approximately one million views per month to 100 million views per month. Its staff also quadrupled during that time, and has offices in London, New York City, and Delhi.[22]

On 10 May 2016, it was announced that the company is relaunching under the name Brave Bison.[2]

Awards

References

  1. ↑ "Charles Muirhead". Time Magazine. 29 October 2001. Retrieved 23 May 2012.
  2. ↑ Rachelle Thackray (10 November 1999). "Me and My Partner: Charles Muirhead, Ashley Ward". London: The Independent. Retrieved 23 May 2012.
  3. 1 2 "Trailblazer: Geek guru". Revolution Magazine. 14 March 2008. Retrieved 23 May 2012.
  4. ↑ Cassy, John (2001-09-18). "Orchestream sell-off embarrasses Muirhead". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2016-08-06.
  5. ↑ "Orchestream Goes for Peanuts | Light Reading". Retrieved 2016-08-06.
  6. ↑ http://www.growthbusiness.co.uk/the-entrepreneur/business-leaders/268741/richard-muirhead-walking-the-line.thtml
  7. ↑ Guy Paisner (20 May 2002). "Nexagent secures £10.3m funding". Financial News. Retrieved 23 May 2012.
  8. ↑ "Nexagent chief executive stands down". Telecompaper. 21 January 2003. Retrieved 23 May 2012.
  9. ↑ Lauren Mills (30 July 2000). "iGabriel backs Sourceree". London: The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 23 May 2012.
  10. ↑ Neil Bennett (11 March 2001). "Muirhead sets up new tech venture". London: The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 4 February 2013.
  11. ↑ "Speaker: Charlie Muirhead". Retrieved 28 January 2013.
  12. ↑ Neil Bennett (11 March 2011). "Muirhead sets up new tech venture". London: The Telegraph. Retrieved 23 May 2012.
  13. ↑ "Charles Muirhead: INTERPROVIDER". Time Magazine. 29 October 2001. Retrieved 4 February 2013.
  14. ↑ Mike Butcher (19 December 2008). "t5m re-launches as a branded content studio, syndicator and video player". TechCrunch. Retrieved 23 May 2012.
  15. ↑ "Charlie Muirhead, CEO and founder, Rightster". London: The Guardian. 6 August 2012. Retrieved 4 February 2013.
  16. ↑ "Company Profile". Web Mission, San Francisco 2011. Retrieved 23 May 2012.
  17. ↑ "BFC Partners With Rightster". 29 June 2011. Retrieved 23 May 2012.
  18. ↑ Andrew Laughlin (1 May 2012). "Murdochs' Leveson evidence live stream tops 2m viewers". Digital Spy. Retrieved 23 May 2012.
  19. ↑ "Guardian News & Media partners with Rightster to enhance its YouTube presence". The Guardian. London. 29 May 2012. Retrieved 11 June 2012.
  20. ↑ Stuart Dredge (3 April 2012). "Liveblog: Making money from VOD on Tap". MIPBlog. Retrieved 11 June 2012.
  21. ↑ Vikki Chowney (19 January 2012). "ITN unifies online ad sales with Rightster". Retrieved 4 February 2013.
  22. ↑ "Rightster Adds Key Executives to Support Fast Growing Turnkey Video Syndication Platform". International Association of Broadcasting Manufacturers. 2 April 2012. Retrieved 11 June 2012.

External links

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