Gaia, Inc.

Gaia, Inc.
Public
Traded as NASDAQ: GAIA
Industry Video production
Founded 1988 (1988)
Boulder, Colorado, U.S.
Founder Jirka Rysavy
Headquarters Louisville, Colorado, U.S.
Website www.gaia.com

Gaia, Inc., formerly Gaiam, Inc., is a global digital video streaming service and online community delivering curated media to subscribers in over 120 countries.[1] Its brands include Gaiam TV which changed its name to Gaia in 2016.[2] They supply media on pseudoscience, conspiracy theories and yoga. The Gaia site has received criticism of its promotion of falsified content.[3][4]

History

Gaiam was founded in Boulder, Colorado in 1988 by Jirka Rysavy.[5] His vision was to serve the "conscious consumer", a group subsequently named the "Cultural Creatives" by sociologist Paul Ray in 1996: educated consumers who make purchasing decisions based on their values.[6] Paul Ray now serves on Gaiam's board of directors. The company was named after Gaia, a mother earth deity important for the Minoan civilization of ancient Crete, and referencing the Gaia hypothesis.

In 2003, it bought a 50.1% share in its UK distributor Leisure Systems International (LSI). LSI subsequently changed its name to Gaiam Ltd.[7] In May 2008 however the UK directors of Gaiam Ltd bought back their share of the business and changed the company name again to HAB International Ltd. In 2001, Gaiam merged with Real Goods Solar, a California-based company specializing in the production and distribution of solar power systems, other renewable energy equipment, and off-grid/sustainable living products.[8] In 2005, Gaiam acquired the media assets of GoodTimes Entertainment Inc. and Jetlag Productions which included brands such as GT Xpress, The FIRM, and Billy Blanks.[9]

Gaiam launched Real Goods in 2008 to provide "off grid living" items like solar power invertors and tankless water heaters. In 2007, Gaiam acquired both Lime.com[10] and Zaadz.com[11] for a greater community presence. Zaadz then was renamed Gaia.com, but it was deemed unprofitable and eventually it was shut down in 2010. In 2012, Gaiam acquired a DVD distributor from Universal Music Group Distribution (a subsidiary of Vivendi) and merged it with its home entertainment division, forming Gaiam Vivendi Entertainment.[12][13]

Gaia

In 2011, Gaiam, Inc announced the launch of Gaiam TV,[14] which was renamed to Gaia in November 2015.[15] The site is a subscription and streaming service for videos on yoga, fitness, personal growth, spirituality, and pseudoscience. Shows, such as that hosted by George Noory,[16] cover several pseudoscientific topics such as psychic vampires, hollow earth theory, and mummified aliens.[3][17][18] This content has been criticised as misleading or falsified.[3][4] Videos feature individuals, such as Rodney Yee and Jillian Michaels, as well as Deepak Chopra and The Dalai Lama.

References

  1. ↑ Editorial, Reuters. "${Instrument_CompanyName} ${Instrument_Ric} Company Profile | Reuters.com". U.S. Retrieved 2017-10-01.
  2. ↑ Miller, Ben (11 May 2016). "Gaiam metamorphosis: Will sell its yoga brand and also change its name". Denver Business Journal. Archived from the original on 18 August 2016. Retrieved 8 August 2016.
  3. 1 2 3 "An ancient, mummified alien has been found, group claims". The Independent. 2017-06-26. Retrieved 2018-04-02.
  4. 1 2 "FACT CHECK: Did Researchers Find a Mummified, Three-Fingered Alien in Nazca, Peru?". Snopes.com. Retrieved 2018-04-02.
  5. ↑ 'Gaiam Third Child of Entrepreneur Rysavy,' Boulder County Business Report, November 1, 1998, p. 1.
  6. ↑ Ray, P. H. (2001). The Cultural Creatives: How 50 Million People Are Changing the World. New York: Broadway
  7. ↑ Gaiam, Inc. (2003). 10-K Annual Report 2003. Retrieved December 20, 2012 from Gaiam Corporate Website Archived June 16, 2012, at the Wayback Machine.
  8. ↑ 'Gaiam, Real Goods to Merge,' Denver Post, October 17, 2000, p. C2.
  9. ↑ Gaiam closes GoodTimes Entertainment Deal at $35M" Archived 2013-12-14 at the Wayback Machine.. Denver Business Journal. 9-14-2005. Retrieved 12-20-2012.
  10. ↑ "Gaiam, Zaadz, LIME Media & Conscious Enlightenment Create Unified Source for LOHAS". Bloomberg. 6-6-2007. Retrieved 12-20-2012
  11. ↑ Zaadz: Green Living Social Network Acquired" Archived 2013-01-26 at the Wayback Machine.. Mashable. 6-6-2007. Retrieved 12-20-2012
  12. ↑ Gaiam Completes Acquisition of Vivendi Entertainment Creating Gaiam Vivendi Entertainment, the Nation’s Largest Independent Content Distributor - MarketWatch Archived 2012-05-05 at the Wayback Machine.
  13. ↑ "Gaiam Acquires Vivendi Entertainment: Deal creates major indie distrib of nontheatrical content" Archived 2012-06-29 at the Wayback Machine.. Variety Magazine. 4-3-2012. Retrieved 12-20-2012
  14. ↑ Gaiam, Inc (2011). 10-K Annual Report 2011. Retrieved December 20, 2012 from Gaiam Corporate Website. Archived February 1, 2014, at the Wayback Machine.
  15. ↑ "Gaiam TV Is Now Gaia." Retrieved 24 November , 2015, from Gaia corporate website. Archived 2015-11-25 at the Wayback Machine.
  16. ↑ "George Noory's Online TV Show Launches December 14th" Archived 2014-02-03 at the Wayback Machine.. All Access. 12-11-2012.
  17. ↑ "'Alien' mummies likely to be distorted, stolen Nazca bodies". NewsComAu. Retrieved 2018-04-02.
  18. ↑ Heaney, Christopher. "The Racism Behind Alien Mummy Hoaxes". The Atlantic. Retrieved 2018-04-02.
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