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SouthPeak Interactive Corporation,
doing business as A trade name, trading name, or business name is a pseudonym used by companies that do not operate under their registered company name. The term for this type of alternative name is fictitious business name. Registering the fictitious name with ...
SouthPeak Games, was an American
video game publisher A video game publisher is a company that publishes video games that have been developed either internally by the publisher or externally by a video game developer. They often finance the development, sometimes by paying a video game developer ...
based in
Midlothian, Virginia Midlothian ( ) is an Unincorporated area#United States, unincorporated area and census-designated place in Chesterfield County, Virginia, U.S. Settled as a coal town, Midlothian village experienced suburbanization effects and is now part of t ...
. Founded on March 1, 1996, as a subsidiary of
SAS Institute SAS Institute (or SAS, pronounced "sass") is an American multinational developer of analytics and artificial intelligence software based in Cary, North Carolina. SAS develops and markets a suite of analytics software ( also called SAS), which ...
in
Cary, North Carolina Cary is a town in Wake County, North Carolina, Wake, Chatham County, North Carolina, Chatham, and Durham County, North Carolina, Durham counties in the U.S. state of North Carolina and is part of the Raleigh, North Carolina, Raleigh-Cary, NC M ...
, it was sold and moved to
Midlothian, Virginia Midlothian ( ) is an Unincorporated area#United States, unincorporated area and census-designated place in Chesterfield County, Virginia, U.S. Settled as a coal town, Midlothian village experienced suburbanization effects and is now part of t ...
in 2000, and became a
public company A public company is a company whose ownership is organized via shares of share capital, stock which are intended to be freely traded on a stock exchange or in over-the-counter (finance), over-the-counter markets. A public (publicly traded) co ...
in 2008. Also in 2008, the company acquired and closed
Austin, Texas Austin ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Texas. It is the county seat and most populous city of Travis County, Texas, Travis County, with portions extending into Hays County, Texas, Hays and W ...
–based publisher
Gamecock Media Group Gamecock Media Group was an American video game publisher based in Austin, Texas, founded in February 2007 by Mike Wilson, Harry Miller and Rick Stults, formerly founders and executives of Gathering of Developers. The company was acquired by ...
, and opened a separate
digital distribution Digital distribution, also referred to as content delivery, online distribution, or electronic software distribution, among others, is the delivery or distribution of information or materials through digital platforms. The distribution of digital ...
subsidiary 7Sixty in
Grapevine, Texas Grapevine is a city located in northeast Tarrant County, Texas, United States, with minor portions extending into Dallas County, Texas, Dallas and Denton County, Texas, Denton counties. Its population was 50,631 in the 2020 United States Census, ...
in 2011. SouthPeak Games quietly disappeared from the public eye in July 2013.


History


Foundation and sale (1996–2005)

SouthPeak Games was founded as SouthPeak Interactive LLC on March 1, 1996, as a
subsidiary A subsidiary, subsidiary company, or daughter company is a company (law), company completely or partially owned or controlled by another company, called the parent company or holding company, which has legal and financial control over the subsidia ...
of
SAS Institute SAS Institute (or SAS, pronounced "sass") is an American multinational developer of analytics and artificial intelligence software based in Cary, North Carolina. SAS develops and markets a suite of analytics software ( also called SAS), which ...
. Both companies were headquartered in
Cary, North Carolina Cary is a town in Wake County, North Carolina, Wake, Chatham County, North Carolina, Chatham, and Durham County, North Carolina, Durham counties in the U.S. state of North Carolina and is part of the Raleigh, North Carolina, Raleigh-Cary, NC M ...
. SAS Institute's
executive vice-president A vice president or vice-president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vice ...
and chief technology officer, Armistead Sapp, was appointed as the new company's
president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...
. In 1997, SouthPeak Games signed a deal with
Red Storm Entertainment Red Storm Entertainment, Inc. is an American video game developer and studio of Ubisoft based in Cary, North Carolina. Founded in November 1996 between author Tom Clancy, manager Doug Littlejohns, and software development company Virtus Corpo ...
that would grant them the exclusive license to distribute all of their upcoming titles, but this was terminated by Red Storm in April 2000. In March 1999, SouthPeak Games acquired the license to develop games based on the ''
Wild Wild West ''Wild Wild West'' is a 1999 American steampunk Western film directed by Barry Sonnenfeld and written by S. S. Wilson and Brent Maddock alongside Jeffrey Price and Peter S. Seaman, based on a story conceived by Jim and John Thomas. Loosely ...
'' film. Starting from September 27, 1999,
Raleigh, North Carolina Raleigh ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of North Carolina. It is the List of municipalities in North Carolina, second-most populous city in the state (after Charlotte, North Carolina, Charlotte) ...
–based creative shop Front Door acquired advertisement production rights for games published by SouthPeak Games for . On October 16, 2000, SAS Institute sold SouthPeak Games to
Midlothian, Virginia Midlothian ( ) is an Unincorporated area#United States, unincorporated area and census-designated place in Chesterfield County, Virginia, U.S. Settled as a coal town, Midlothian village experienced suburbanization effects and is now part of t ...
–based
privately held company A privately held company (or simply a private company) is a company whose Stock, shares and related rights or obligations are not offered for public subscription or publicly negotiated in their respective listed markets. Instead, the Private equi ...
Terry Phillips Sales, Inc., owned by brothers Terry Marshall Phillips and Gregory Robert Phillips, for , making Terry Phillips the new
director Director may refer to: Literature * ''Director'' (magazine), a British magazine * ''The Director'' (novel), a 1971 novel by Henry Denker * ''The Director'' (play), a 2000 play by Nancy Hasty Music * Director (band), an Irish rock band * ''D ...
of SouthPeak Games. As result of the sale, all assets related to SouthPeak Games were moved the Midlothian location, while all staff at the Cary location were laid off or re-employed directly by SAS Institute. The company in its new location was legally registered as SouthPeak Interactive, L.L.C. on October 19, 2000. In August 2005, Melanie Mroz was appointed executive vice-president of SouthPeak Games.


Acquisitions (2005–2009)

On January 16, 2008, SouthPeak Games acquired
public company A public company is a company whose ownership is organized via shares of share capital, stock which are intended to be freely traded on a stock exchange or in over-the-counter (finance), over-the-counter markets. A public (publicly traded) co ...
Global Services Partners Acquisition Corp. (GSPAC), a company intentionally created as a blank check to " consummate a business combination", for . Through that transaction, SouthPeak Games performed a
reverse merger takeover A reverse takeover (RTO), reverse merger, or reverse IPO is the acquisition of a public company by a private company so that the private company can bypass the lengthy and complex process of going public. Sometimes, conversely, the public compan ...
, and thus merged itself into GSPAC to form a new public entity titled SouthPeak Interactive Corporation, with Mroz becoming president and
chief executive officer A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a chief executive or managing director, is the top-ranking corporate officer charged with the management of an organization, usually a company or a nonprofit organization. CEOs find roles in variou ...
, and Phillips becoming
chairman The chair, also chairman, chairwoman, or chairperson, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by members of the gro ...
. On June 19, 2008, the company announced that they had raised a total of through
private investment in public equity A private investment in public equity, often called a PIPE deal, involves the selling of publicly traded common shares or some form of preferred stock or convertible security to private investors. It is an allocation of shares in a public compan ...
, in order to expand its business. On October 14, 2008, the company announced that it had acquired
Austin, Texas Austin ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Texas. It is the county seat and most populous city of Travis County, Texas, Travis County, with portions extending into Hays County, Texas, Hays and W ...
–based video game publisher
Gamecock Media Group Gamecock Media Group was an American video game publisher based in Austin, Texas, founded in February 2007 by Mike Wilson, Harry Miller and Rick Stults, formerly founders and executives of Gathering of Developers. The company was acquired by ...
, including its upcoming titles, '' Legendary'', '' Mushroom Men'', and '' Velvet Assassin''. Gamecock Media Group was initially made a publishing
subsidiary A subsidiary, subsidiary company, or daughter company is a company (law), company completely or partially owned or controlled by another company, called the parent company or holding company, which has legal and financial control over the subsidia ...
, however, it was closed shortly after. In August 2009, SouthPeak Games started facing legal issues with
work-for-hire In copyright law, a work made for hire (work for hire or WFH) is a work whose copyright is initially owned by an entity other than the actual creator as a result of an employment relationship or, in some cases, a commission. It is an exception to t ...
vendors who had worked on games published by Gamecock Media Group, accusing SouthPeak Games of not paying outstanding
royalties A royalty payment is a payment made by one party to another that owns a particular asset, for the right to ongoing use of that asset. Royalties are typically agreed upon as a percentage of gross or net revenues derived from the use of an asset or ...
, although SouthPeak Games had already acknowledged these issues when they acquired Gamecock Media Group. When SouthPeak Games released their 2009 Q1 quarterly report on November 13, 2009, it was revealed that, after American video game developer and publisher
Midway Games Midway Games Inc. (formerly Midway Manufacturing and Bally Midway, and commonly known simply as Midway) was an American video game company that existed from 1958 to 2010. Midway's franchises included ''Mortal Kombat'', ''Rampage (franchise), Ra ...
filed for
Chapter 11 bankruptcy Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code ( Title 11 of the United States Code) permits reorganization under the bankruptcy laws of the United States. Such reorganization, known as Chapter 11 bankruptcy, is available to every business, w ...
in February 2009, SouthPeak Games had acquired the exclusive rights to publishing video games based on the ''
TNA Impact! ''TNA Impact!'' (stylized as ''TNA iMPACT!'') is an American professional wrestling television program produced by the American promotion Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA) that debuted on June 4, 2004. It also features wrestlers from WWE's ...
'' television program for , however, they could not agree with
Total Nonstop Action Wrestling Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (abbreviated as TNA Wrestling or TNA) is an American professional wrestling promotion based in Nashville, Tennessee. It is a subsidiary of Anthem Sports & Entertainment, a Canadian media company owned by busines ...
upon any further titles to be developed.


Lawsuits (2009–2011)

In December 2009,
TimeGate Studios TimeGate Studios was an American video game developer based in Sugar Land, Texas. The company, founded in 1998, released eight titles before closing in 2013. History TimeGate Studios was founded in 1998 by Alan and Adel Chaveleh, who respectivel ...
, the developer of '' Section 8'', which was to be published by Gamecock Media Group before their acquisition, sued SouthPeak Games over
breach of contract Breach of contract is a legal cause of action and a type of civil wrong, in which a binding agreement or bargained-for exchange is not honored by one or more of the parties to the contract by non-performance or interference with the other part ...
, accusing them of withholding 24 outstanding milestone payments with a sum of around , in addition to royalty payments for the development of ''Section 8''. In response, SouthPeak Games filed a
counterclaim In a court of law, a party's claim is a counterclaim if one party asserts claims in response to the claims of another. In other words, if a plaintiff initiates a lawsuit and a defendant responds to the lawsuit with claims of their own against t ...
against TimeGate Studios, stating that they willingly shipped a game of poor quality in order to negatively manipulated the product's sales, seeking in damages. In November 2011, arbitrator Peter Vogel ruled in favor of SouthPeak Games, ordering TimeGates Studios to pay the and hand over the license to the ''Section 8''
intellectual property Intellectual property (IP) is a category of property that includes intangible creations of the human intellect. There are many types of intellectual property, and some countries recognize more than others. The best-known types are patents, co ...
to SouthPeak Games, which was, however, overturned by a federal court in March 2012, claiming that the original contract foresaw that TimeGate Studios would retain the ''Section 8'' license in the publishing deal. Regardless, in April 2013, the United States courts of appeals closed the lawsuit in favor of SouthPeak Games, forcing TimeGate Studios to pay a total of in damages, and again pass the ''Section 8'' license to SouthPeak Games. In November 2009, SouthPeak Games lost a legal battle to German distributor
CDV Software CDV Software Entertainment AG (formerly CDV Software GmbH, stylized as cdv) was a German publisher of video games founded 1989 in Karlsruhe. In April 2000 CDV became a Frankfurt stock market traded company. In the beginning of the 2000s, CDV wa ...
, which concerned the failure to deliver three out of four unspecified games before Christmas 2008, and was ordered to pay . Additionally, on February 19, 2010, the judge ruled upon CDV Software's other claims, including
copyright infringement Copyright infringement (at times referred to as piracy) is the use of Copyright#Scope, works protected by copyright without permission for a usage where such permission is required, thereby infringing certain exclusive rights granted to the c ...
and breach of contract, ordering SouthPeak Games to hand in further, undisclosed payments. Mid-issue, on April 8, 2010, Reba McDermott was appointed
chief financial officer A chief financial officer (CFO) is an officer of a company or organization who is assigned the primary responsibility for making decisions for the company for projects and its finances; i.a.: financial planning, management of financial risks, ...
, replacing Melanie Mroz, who previously served that role interimly, but saw her appointment terminated nine months later. As a result of the outstanding bills, on July 20, 2010, British distributor Centresoft put 40,000 units of SouthPeak Games stock on ice to auction them off, generating by August 6, 2010. The legal issue was announced to be resolved on October 14, 2010, and CDV Software dropped all charges against SouthPeak Games on November 10, 2010. However, all payments ordered by the settlement court were not paid by SouthPeak Games, as a result of which CDV Software filed for preliminary
insolvency In accounting, insolvency is the state of being unable to pay the debts, by a person or company ( debtor), at maturity; those in a state of insolvency are said to be ''insolvent''. There are two forms: cash-flow insolvency and balance-sheet i ...
on April 15, 2010. In June 2010, American publisher
Majesco Entertainment Majesco Games Corporation (formerly Majesco Sales Inc. and Majesco Entertainment Company) is an American video game publisher and distributor based in Hazlet, New Jersey. The company was founded as Majesco Sales in Edison, New Jersey in 1986, an ...
announced the upcoming release of '' My Baby 3 & Friends'', the third entry in the '' My Baby'' franchise, of which the first two were published by SouthPeak Games. In response to the announcement, on July 21, 2010, SouthPeak Games sued Majesco over copyright infringement over the ''My Baby''
intellectual property Intellectual property (IP) is a category of property that includes intangible creations of the human intellect. There are many types of intellectual property, and some countries recognize more than others. The best-known types are patents, co ...
, despite its developer, French studio Nobilis, actually owning it at the time. Five days later, on July 26, 2010, Nobilis responded to the accusation, citing SouthPeak Games' failure to pay royalties as reason to switch to Majesco and cease operations with SouthPeak Games. Due to damages caused by the legal issue, SouthPeak Games halted the distribution of all released titles in the ''My Baby'' series, namely, '' My Baby Boy'', '' My Baby Girl'', and '' My Baby First Steps'' on October 13, 2010. It was reported on January 10, 2011, that SouthPeak Games had won against Majesco and Nobilis, with the
Lyon Lyon (Franco-Provençal: ''Liyon'') is a city in France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of the French Alps, southeast of Paris, north of Marseille, southwest of Geneva, Switzerland, north ...
Commercial Court stating that Nobilis had no legal basis for ceasing operations with SouthPeak Games, wherefore all rights to there series were returned to SouthPeak Games. In November 2010, the
U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is an independent agency of the United States federal government, created in the aftermath of the Wall Street crash of 1929. Its primary purpose is to enforce laws against market m ...
(SEC) issued
cease and desist A cease and desist letter is a document sent by one party, often a business, to warn another party that they believe the other party is committing an unlawful act, such as copyright infringement, and that they will take legal action if the oth ...
orders against Phillips, Mroz, and SouthPeak Games for submitting incorrect
SEC filing The SEC filing is a financial statement or other formal document submitted to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Public companies, certain insiders, and broker-dealers are required to make regular SEC filings. Investors and fina ...
s, which SouthPeak Games later stated to have been an
error An error (from the Latin , meaning 'to wander'Oxford English Dictionary, s.v. “error (n.), Etymology,” September 2023, .) is an inaccurate or incorrect action, thought, or judgement. In statistics, "error" refers to the difference between t ...
. After net losses of and in the first and second quarters of the company's
fiscal year A fiscal year (also known as a financial year, or sometimes budget year) is used in government accounting, which varies between countries, and for budget purposes. It is also used for financial reporting by businesses and other organizations. La ...
2011, respectively, SouthPeak Games was delisted from the
New York Stock Exchange The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE, nicknamed "The Big Board") is an American stock exchange in the Financial District, Manhattan, Financial District of Lower Manhattan in New York City. It is the List of stock exchanges, largest stock excha ...
in September 2011.


7Sixty, closure (2011–2013)

On July 12, 2011, SouthPeak Games opened a new
digital distribution Digital distribution, also referred to as content delivery, online distribution, or electronic software distribution, among others, is the delivery or distribution of information or materials through digital platforms. The distribution of digital ...
subsidiary, 7Sixty LLC, in
Grapevine, Texas Grapevine is a city located in northeast Tarrant County, Texas, United States, with minor portions extending into Dallas County, Texas, Dallas and Denton County, Texas, Denton counties. Its population was 50,631 in the 2020 United States Census, ...
. Led by
vice president A vice president or vice-president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vi ...
of publishing Leslie House and vice president of interactive entertainment Jeff Hutchinson, the studio was established in order to expand SouthPeak Games' business strategies to cover the digital market, with their first title to be '' Stronghold 3''. ''Stronghold 3'', released on October 25, 2011, would become the last game published by SouthPeak Games or 7Sixty, and both companies left the public eye in July 2013.


Technology

The first title using Video Reality was '' Temujin: The Capricorn Collection'', a psychological thriller that started selling in September 1997. The second title utilizing Video Reality was '' Dark Side of the Moon: A Sci-Fi Adventure'' and the third and last title utilizing Video Reality was '' 20,000 Leagues: The Adventure Continues'', which was never released to the public.


Games published


References

{{Authority control Companies traded over-the-counter in the United States Video game companies established in 1996 Video game companies disestablished in 2013 Defunct video game companies of the United States Video game publishers Defunct companies based in Virginia 1996 establishments in North Carolina 2013 disestablishments in North Carolina