Celebdaq
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Celebdaq was an online "
celebrity Celebrity is a condition of fame and broad public recognition of a person or group due to the attention given to them by mass media. The word is also used to refer to famous individuals. A person may attain celebrity status by having great w ...
stock exchange A stock exchange, securities exchange, or bourse is an exchange where stockbrokers and traders can buy and sell securities, such as shares of stock, bonds and other financial instruments. Stock exchanges may also provide facilities for ...
" game on the BBC's
website A website (also written as a web site) is any web page whose content is identified by a common domain name and is published on at least one web server. Websites are typically dedicated to a particular topic or purpose, such as news, educatio ...
. The game had its own television show on
BBC Three BBC Three is a British free-to-air Public service broadcasting in the United Kingdom, public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It was first launched on 9 February 2003 with programmes for a 16 to 34-year-old target aud ...
. The television show was presented by
Paddy O'Connell Guy Patrick "Paddy" O'Connell (born 11 March 1966, in Guildford, Surrey) is an English television and radio presenter. He presents BBC Radio 4's '' Broadcasting House'' programme and '' Newsnight''. He is also an occasional presenter of the '' ...
and Libby Potter until
comedian A comedian (feminine comedienne) or comic is a person who seeks to entertainment, entertain an audience by making them laughter, laugh. This might be through jokes or amusing situations, or acting foolishly (as in slapstick), or employing prop c ...
Jenny Eclair Jenny Eclair (born Jenny Clare Hargreaves; 16 March 1960) is an English comedian, novelist, and actress, best known for her roles in '' Grumpy Old Women'' between 2004 and 2007 and in '' Loose Women'' in 2011 and 2012. Early life Eclair was bor ...
became the presenter. Players were given the opportunity to buy and sell
shares In financial markets, a share (sometimes referred to as stock or equity) is a unit of equity ownership in the capital stock of a corporation. It can refer to units of mutual funds, limited partnerships, and real estate investment trusts. Sha ...
in celebrities using £10,000 of virtual cash. As in real-life stock markets, the trading of shares caused each celebrity's share price to fluctuate, allowing profits to be realised. Weekly
dividend A dividend is a distribution of profits by a corporation to its shareholders, after which the stock exchange decreases the price of the stock by the dividend to remove volatility. The market has no control over the stock price on open on the ex ...
s were paid on shares owned based upon how much press coverage the celebrity received in a number of daily
newspaper A newspaper is a Periodical literature, periodical publication containing written News, information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers can cover a wide variety of fields such as poli ...
s and
magazine A magazine is a periodical literature, periodical publication, print or digital, produced on a regular schedule, that contains any of a variety of subject-oriented textual and visual content (media), content forms. Magazines are generally fin ...
s. There was also a version specifically concentrating on sportspeople, called Sportdaq.


History

Celebdaq was launched on the BBC website in mid-2002. It was based on other very similar games: Popex.com, which had been "trading" in musicians since 1998, and Hollywood Stock Exchange. The Celebdaq code was a port of the Popex code, with some additions. The website consciously imitated the financial setting of the Stock Exchange with share prices fluctuating continuously around the clock. After a slow start and a number of rule changes to prevent cheating, the game rapidly gained popularity and a weekly prize for "Top Trader" was instigated consisting of £100 in cash along with a stripy jacket replicating those worn by traders on the floor of the stock exchange. The prize was later changed to a selection of merchandise. The site was used to promote the new
BBC Three BBC Three is a British free-to-air Public service broadcasting in the United Kingdom, public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It was first launched on 9 February 2003 with programmes for a 16 to 34-year-old target aud ...
digital channel which opened the following year, and Patrick (Paddy) O'Connell, a former business correspondent and real-life stock exchange expert, was engaged as presenter of the tie-in BBC Three TV shows which were broadcast from 14 February 2003 to 18 March 2004. In 2004, Celebdaq was chosen as the best entertainment site on the internet at the Interactive
Bafta awards The British Academy Film Awards, more commonly known as the BAFTAs or BAFTA Awards, is an annual film award show hosted by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) to honour the best Cinema of the United Kingdom, British and Worl ...
. Until 2005, the BBC also provided online message boards for traders to discuss strategy and post tips for the coming week. Following an incident in which a footballer who had taken out an injunction preventing publication of a story was named on the site, the BBC tightened editorial controls and shortly afterwards the official Celebdaq message boards were scrapped altogether. Several
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were formed, where experienced players and former top traders posted their weekly tips thread, but these ended along with MSN Groups in 2009. On January 7, 2010, the BBC announced the creation of a new Celebdaq game. The two games ran in tandem, with the new game created by Monterosa, running in beta. Although it was possible to upgrade an account, it was not possible to carry on trading shares that were already owned.


Site closure

Celebdaq and its sister website Sportdaq were both closed on Friday 26 February 2010 as part of a series of cuts to the BBC's online services. The BBC stated that its online operation needed a "new, harder focus on quality and distinctiveness".


Revival

Celebdaq was re-established and relaunched by a fan of the original game at the end of December 2018 and ran until 2024. Traders were able to buy and sell stocks in celebrities and receive dividends and increases to their portfolio value based on their stocks' performances. The revamped incarnation was far more dynamic than the original and share prices change daily through media exposure. Additional features such as stock having a "life span" after which it becomes worthless were also present. Traders were also given the ability to purchase "trophies" to showcase traders' financial status in the game.


Weekly events


Millionaire Day

Everyone who had a
portfolio Portfolio may refer to: Objects * Portfolio (briefcase), a type of briefcase Collections * Portfolio (finance), a collection of assets held by an institution or a private individual * Artist's portfolio, a sample of an artist's work or a ...
worth over a million pounds was "kneecapped". In the early hours of Monday morning, traders who were worth over a million pounds had their portfolio emptied, and exchanged for a status symbol, depending on how much they had. See ''Kneecapping and Status Symbols''. Traders who had their portfolio emptied were given £10,000 to keep on playing.


Top Trader

For a time the person who made the most profit in percentage terms during the previous 7 days won Celebdaq merchandise. The winner has often made 20+ fold increase. After 1 August 2007 the "Top Trader" competition was suspended.


Diary Day

A list of upcoming celebrity events during the following week was put on the website. This was used as a guide to who is likely to get dividends.


Dividend Friday

The dividends accumulated during the last 7 days were handed out. The dividend received depended on how long the owner had the share. Only shares that were owned from Monday till Friday receive the full dividend.


Kneecapping and Status Symbols

Kneecapping occurred when someone accumulated over £1 million. They had all their money and shares taken off them and given a fresh £10,000. This prevented people from controlling the market when they acquired large amounts of cash. To compensate them they were given status symbols to replace the number of millions they had. * £1 million: Fat Wad of Cash * £5 million: Sexy Car * £10 million: Luxury Yacht * £25 million: Very Big House in the Country * £50 million: Executive Jet * £100 million: Exotic Island * £500 million: Crown of a Minor Nation State * £1 billion: You Become
Bill Gates William Henry Gates III (born October 28, 1955) is an American businessman and philanthropist. A pioneer of the microcomputer revolution of the 1970s and 1980s, he co-founded the software company Microsoft in 1975 with his childhood friend ...


References


External links

*{{bbc.co.uk, celebdaq * http://www.celebdaq.co.uk Celebdaq Internet properties established in 2002 Internet properties disestablished in 2010 2002 establishments in the United Kingdom 2010 disestablishments in the United Kingdom BAFTA Interactive Award winners 2000s British game shows 2003 British television series debuts 2004 British television series endings BBC television game shows