GTE Interactive Media
| Video game developer | |
| Industry | Video game and Telecom |
| Fate | Dissolved |
| Founded | 1990 |
| Defunct | March 14, 1997 |
| Headquarters | Carlsbad, California, United States |
Number of locations | 1 (1997) |
| Owner | GTE Corporation |
Number of employees | 120 high in 1996, 85 end (1997) |
| Parent | GTE Vantage |
|
Footnotes / references [1] | |
GTE Interactive Media was founded as GTE ImagiTrek in 1990 by Richard E. Robinson, as a division of GTE Vantage, a wholly owned subsidiary of the now defunct telecommunications provider GTE. Located in Carlsbad, California, the unit's focus was on the development of videos, of interactive television platforms, and of interactive video game products for arcade machines, home console cartridges, and CD-ROMs, including development and publishing under the GTE Entertainment brand.[1][2][3]
Originally named GTE ImagiTrek, it was renamed GTE Interactive Media in 1994. In January 1995, the division entered a partnership with Nintendo for the development of arcade games and of online networking.[4] In the same month, they previewed their first title, FX Fighter, at Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.[5]
Experiencing difficulties in the video game market and a boom in the deregulated telecommunications market, the division steadily cut down a high of 120 employees in 1996. Failing to find a buyer or partner, it announced in January 1997 that it would cease operations on March 14, 1997. Citing hardships in the entire CD-ROM market, Dick Nordman, finance director for GTE's new ventures group in Irving, Texas, explained, "In the beginning, the idea was that we wanted to get into the content business. Now, with everything else going on in the telecommunications industry, we felt our energies would be better spent in the telco arena."[1]
Gameography
This is a list of video games designed in whole or in part by GTE Interactive Media.[6]
| Title | Platform | Developer | Release Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Time Traveler Hologram | Arcade | GTE Interactive Media (for SEGA) |
1991 |
| M.C. Hammer's Soulfire | SEGA Genesis | Unknown | Unreleased |
| StreetSports Jammit | PC, 3DO, SNES SEGA Genesis |
GTE Interactive Media | 1994 |
| FX Fighter | PC | Argonaut Games | 1995 |
| Rolling Stones Voodoo Lounge | PC | Second Vision | 1995 |
| Forrest Gump: Artists, Music, and Times | PC | GTE Interactive Media | 1995 |
| NCAA Championship Basketball | PC | GTE Interactive Media | 1995 |
| Street Hockey '95 | SNES | GTE Interactive Media | 1995 |
| Tank Girl | PC | Argonaut Games | Unreleased |
| Dust: A Tale of the Wired West | PC | Cyberflix | 1995 |
| Sea Legends | PC | Ocean Software | May 31, 1996 |
| SkullCracker | PC | Cyberflix | Sep 30, 1996 |
| Timelapse | PC | GTE Interactive Media | Sep 30, 1996 |
| Timelapse | MAC | GTE Interactive Media | Oct 1, 1996 |
| Titanic: Adventure Out of Time | PC | Cyberflix | Nov 12, 1996 |
| FX Fighter Turbo | PC | Argonaut Games | 1996 |
References
- 1 2 3 Kaplan, Karen (January 27, 1997). "GTE Hangs Up on Bid to Enter Multimedia". Retrieved January 27, 2015.
- ↑ Andrews, Edmund. "GTE Introduces an Interactive Video Unit", "New York Times", June 21, 1994. Retrieved on May 12, 2008.
- ↑ Scherer, Ron (June 17, 1994). "GTE Plunges Into Interactive Media". The Christian Science Monitor. Retrieved January 28, 2015.
- ↑ "GTE's Venture With Nintendo". International New York Times (The New York Times Company). January 9, 1995. Retrieved January 27, 2015.
- ↑ Carlton, Jim (January 4, 1995). "Nintendo/GTE Interactive to Offer Games for Interactive-TV". Wall Street Journal. Retrieved January 27, 2015.
- ↑ "GTE Entertainment Profile"GameSpot Retrieved on May 12, 2008.