(mt) Media Temple Completes Acquisition of Virb; Powers Live Red Carpet Celebrity Updates at 2013 Critics Choice Awards
Guests at the Critics’ Choice Awards Pre-Party on Wednesday, Jan. 9, hosted by Sam Rubin of KTLA and BFCA President Joey Berlin, can build custom websites at the company’s first Virb DIY Build-a-Thon
LOS ANGELES — Jan. 8, 2013 — Today, (mt) Media Temple, a leading provider of web hosting and cloud services announced the completion of the acquisition of Virb, a creative and affordable platform to build websites for small businesses, artists, musicians, and other creative industries. The acquisition further enables (mt) Media Temple’s mission to host great ideas from users around the world by increasing its vast offerings, providing customers greater access to simple tools for site-building, domain names, email, and web hosting.
(mt) Media Temple kicks off the official Virb acquisition during this year’s Critics’ Choice Awards, an annual award show recognizing outstanding achievements in cinema, voted on by the Broadcast Film Critics Association (BFCA). To celebrate, Virb will be sponsoring the first annual “DIY Build-a-thon,” hosted by Sam Rubin, entertainment reporter for KTLA 5 and Joey Berlin, president of the BFCA, during the Critics’ Choice Awards Pre-Party on Wednesday, Jan. 9. Critics and other entertainment influencers will have an opportunity during the three-hour event held at 41 Ocean Club, a brand-new members-only dining club, in Santa Monica to experience the simplicity of Virb first hand.
“We have considered Virb a part of the (mt) family since our relationship with the company began three years ago. This deal signifies our mutual mission to help small businesses, entrepreneurs and other creatives build and host great ideas,” said Demian Sellfors, CEO and Co-founder of (mt) Media Temple (@demian_sellfors). “We see the Critics’ Choice Awards as an ideal place to showcase Virb as we see a growing trend of celebrities, critics and creative professionals building their own websites to better establish their own individual brands or companies.”
“Coupled with the importance of a social media presence, personalized websites are a major source of small business’ presence and brand, (mt) Media Temple recognized the need to offer customers a simple DIY solution to easily build their own website and came to us to provide that solution,” said Brad Smith, founder and CEO of Virb (@brad). “The purpose of Virb is quite simple — easy-to-understand tools offering exceptional design. Virb gives anyone, from small businesses to actors and film directors, the ability to build their own professional-looking site. We make it easier to be famous.”
(mt) Media Temple and Virb most recently created the Critics’ Choice Movie Awards voting widget for the “People’s Choice” award to be presented during the live broadcast. Fans across the country have been answering the question, “What is your favorite film franchise?” at criticschoice.virb.com as well as 20+ high profile websites including ew.com and rottentomatoes.com. Voting is open until Jan. 9.
In addition, Virb will offer viewers a backstage pass before the Jan. 10 show begins to see live celebrity updates from the red carpet at criticschoice.virb.com.
About (mt) Media Temple
From its inception in 1998, (mt) Media Temple has been on a mission to help people and businesses succeed online. Over 125,000 customers in 100 countries now rely on (mt) Media Temple’s simple tools for domain registration, web hosting, business applications, virtual servers, and other cloud services to power more than 1.5 million websites. We take pride in offering a premium service at a competitive price, along with exemplary 24/7 customer support. Our customers range from everyday people to top bloggers, creative professionals, and small businesses, as well as large enterprises like Starbucks, Adidas, Samsung, and Toyota. With 200 dedicated, U.S.-based employees, (mt) Media Temple has been repeatedly recognized as one of the fastest growing companies in North America—and one of the best places to work. Find us anytime on the web at mediatemple.net or on Twitter @MediaTemple.
About VIRB
Virb’s mission is simple: give our customers one of the easiest ways to build their own website, with easy-to-learn management tools, integrated cloud hosting and a “one flat rate, everything you need” promise. Founded in 2010, tens of thousands of customers have already built their own websites with Virb. Customizable themes are available to appeal to everyone; from small businesses to artists, musicians and photographers. There’s also no need to build a separate mobile website; as Virb sites are optimized for all devices, no matter the size of the screen. Find out more at Virb.com and follow us on Twitter @Virb.
