Comtam
Comtam (from Computers, Telecommunication and Media) was a Hopelandian telecommunications company founded in 1965 and dismantled in [sometime in the mid-2010s]. Over its years of operation it has branched successfully outside of the telecommunications market and into numerous other businesses.
History[edit | edit source]
Comtam (initially an abbreviation of Communications, Technology and Media) was founded in February 1965. It was created when the once-powerful Zircon Corporation decided to separate all computing operations into a separate company. Until Zircon's bankruptcy four years later, a tiny fraction of Zircon's workforce worked at Comtam.
At launch, Comtam was a company that emulated IBM and its Hopelandian branch, HBM. The company released computers, dot matrix printers, telephone books in association with regional telecommunication companies and even published agendas. This was the start of Comtam's plan to diversify its businesses, in order to keep the legacy of the dwindling Zircon Corporation.
Following the bankruptcy of the Zircon Corporation, approximately 200 of its staff joined Comtam. Some Zircon businesses, particularly the few radio stations and newspapers it owned, were integrated into Comtam. This marked the beginning of the growth of the company.
Interests in broadcasting[edit | edit source]
Comtam initially did not have a strong interest in the broadcasting industry. This changed in 1969 when Zircon went defunct. Comtam proceeded to buy Zircon's four remaining radio stations and two newspapers. Comtam proceeded to use radio as the key means for advertising, since the larger radio and television networks refused to promote their products, especially due to their connection with Zircon.
Comtam would later buy ailing radio stations elsewhere in the country and build the Comtam Radio Network.
First golden age and international expansion[edit | edit source]
In September 1971, Comtam started exporting computers to Great Giana, Patagonia and Bensonia. They were used in universities and the like to create virtual libraries using the limited technologies of the time.
Comtam also built its own training center in 1972. They later set up offices in the United States and Northulia in order to continue their worldwide growth.
Home appliances[edit | edit source]
Comtam started manufacturing television sets and radios in Hopeland and neighboring countries in 1974. Zircon did have a television set manufacturing plant from 1950 to 1968, it was abandoned shortly before Zircon shut down. Comtam decided to begin work on improvements for the plant in late 1972. By then Comtam had since become one of Hopeland's fastest-growing companies. Comtam television sets were sold across much of South Sierra, as long as they were exported to NTSC countries. Its intention was to create a durable line of color television sets.
Cable[edit | edit source]
Comtam started trialling cable television services in Albany in 1982. It was one of South Sierra's first cable networks. Comtam programmed four cable channels: Comtam News Television, The Sports Network, The Movie Channel and the Hopelandian Entertainment Network. These were the first Hopelandian cable channels to be sent over by satellite to other cities in the country where Comtam was piloting cable television services. In 1985 it claimed to have 100,000 subscribers. By the end of the 80s, Comtam was the largest MSO cable operator in Hopeland with over 1,6 million subscribers.
OS war[edit | edit source]
In 1985, when Microsoft released its first Windows OS worldwide, Comtam was at a crossroads. The company's businesses were diversifying yet it seemed that they were actually putting less effort into their computing division. In November 1985, Comtam released ComOS. ComOS was controversial at the time of release, as it was considered to be a Windows clone.
Crisis[edit | edit source]
Comtam's television operations started to damage when XTN, the network it owned, proceeded to merge with the TotalAccess network to create a new, larger network, the OK Network. TotalAccess was starting to generate losses and was sold to IBS, but even IBS's ownership of the network wasn't enough.
Bankruptcy[edit | edit source]
The media affair caused Comtam to lose shares in the sectors
Operations[edit | edit source]
At its height, Comtam's key operations were as follows:
- Comtam Computing
- Comtam Broadcasting
- Comtam Communications
- Comtam International
- Comtam Publishing
- Comtam Film and Television
- Comtam Shopping
The fate of the divisions:
- Comtam Broadcasting was a part of the OK Network until 2007, when IBC bought the remaining shares. The radio stations were either sold to Award Broadcasting, IBS or NBN between 2011 and 2012.
- Comtam Film and Television stopped producing television series when it left the OK Network. It last produced a film in 2009, but there later was inactivity that eventually resulted in its shutdown in 2011.