UVR Media, LLC (formerly UploadVR, Inc. and Upload, Inc.) is an American

media company Mass media refers to a diverse array of media technologies that reach a large audience via mass communication. The technologies through which this communication takes place include a variety of outlets. Broadcast media transmit information ...

that operates ''UploadVR'', a

virtual reality Virtual reality (VR) is a simulated experience that employs pose tracking and 3D near-eye displays to give the user an immersive feel of a virtual world. Applications of virtual reality include entertainment (particularly video games), educ ...

-focused

trade publication A trade magazine, also called a trade journal or trade paper (colloquially or disparagingly a trade rag), is a magazine or newspaper whose target audience is people who work in a particular trade or industry. The collective term for thi ...

website. The company was founded as UploadVR in 2014 by Taylor Freeman, Will Mason, and Nick Ochoa as a

coworking Coworking is an arrangement in which workers for different companies share an office space. It allows cost savings and convenience through the use of common infrastructures, such as equipment, utilities and receptionist and custodial services, a ...

company based in

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...

. It later expanded to organize events, provide business incubation, and operate the ''UploadVR'' website. After rebranding to Upload and relocating to

Marina del Rey Marina del Rey (Spanish language, Spanish for "Marina of the King") is an unincorporated area, unincorporated seaside community in Los Angeles County, California, with an eponymous harbor that is a major boating and water recreation destination ...

in 2017, the company was sued over alleged

gender discrimination Sexism is prejudice or discrimination based on one's sex or gender. Sexism can affect anyone, but it primarily affects women and girls.There is a clear and broad consensus among academic scholars in multiple fields that sexism refers primaril ...

sexual harassment Sexual harassment is a type of harassment involving the use of explicit or implicit sexual overtones, including the unwelcome and inappropriate promises of rewards in exchange for sexual favors. Sexual harassment includes a range of actions fro ...

, and

wrongful termination In law, wrongful dismissal, also called wrongful termination or wrongful discharge, is a situation in which an employee's contract of employment has been terminated by the employer, where the termination breaches one or more terms of the contra ...

. The lawsuit was settled in September 2017 and Upload subsequently hired

chief operating officer A chief operating officer or chief operations officer, also called a COO, is one of the highest-ranking executive positions in an organization, composing part of the "C-suite". The COO is usually the second-in-command at the firm, especially if t ...

Anne Ahola Ward, who instituted mandatory anti-harassment training before leaving the company in October that year. Lacking financing, Upload shut down its offices and coworking spaces in March 2018, while the ''UploadVR'' website remained operational under UVR Media, which was incorporated as a new entity.

History

Upload was founded as UploadVR in 2014 by Taylor Freeman, William "Will" Mason, and Nicholas "Nick" Ochoa in

. Ochoa dropped out of the company early in its development, while Freeman and Mason acted as

chief executive officer A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especially ...

and

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: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...

, respectively. Later that year, Mason began writing about

via the company's website. Initial contributors for this

included Ryan Damm, Matthew Terndrup, Tony Davidson, and Ian Hamilton. In December 2015, the company received in

seed funding Seed money, sometimes known as seed funding or seed capital, is a form of securities offering in which an investor invests capital in a startup company in exchange for an equity stake or convertible note stake in the company. The term ''seed'' su ...

from

Shanda Shanda Group is a privately-owned multinational investment firm. With offices in Shanghai, Singapore, Hong Kong, New York and Redwood City, the firm invests in public markets, real estate and venture capital, focusing on companies in the field ...

. In January 2016, UploadVR announced the formation of Upload Collective, an incubation and

space. The collective grew to host over startups where multiple events were hosted every week. In 2016, Upload partnered with

Udacity Udacity, Inc. is an American for-profit educational organization founded by Sebastian Thrun, David Stavens, and Mike Sokolsky offering massive open online courses. According to Thrun, the origin of the name Udacity comes from the company's des ...

, Google, HTC and

Unity Unity may refer to: Buildings * Unity Building, Oregon, Illinois, US; a historic building * Unity Building (Chicago), Illinois, US; a skyscraper * Unity Buildings, Liverpool, UK; two buildings in England * Unity Chapel, Wyoming, Wisconsin, US; a h ...

to develop the VR Nanodegree. They then partnered with Make School to create the UploadVR Academy, a 10-week boot camp for advanced developers to learn how to build desktop and mobile VR games using Unity. In September 2016, a

Series A round A series A round (also known as series A financing or series A investment) is the name typically given to a company's first significant round of venture capital financing. The name refers to the class of preferred stock sold to investors in exch ...

of funding, led by Colopl, raised for UploadVR. Further investors included

General Catalyst General Catalyst, formerly General Catalyst Partners (GCP), is an American venture capital firm focused on early stage and growth investments. The firm was founded in 2000 in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and also has offices in San Francisco, Palo A ...

, NetEase, Sparkland Capital, Unity Ventures, CRCM,

GREE GREE (derived from an abbreviation of the " Six degrees of separation" concept) is a Japanese social networking service founded by Yoshikazu Tanaka and operated by GREE, Inc. GREE focuses primarily on mobile games and over ninety percent of it ...

, GC Tracker, Outpost Capital, David Chao, and Julia Popowitz. Private investor

Joe Kraus Joe Kraus is the founder of Excite, JotSpot, and DigitalConsumer.org, along with his long-time business partner Graham Spencer. Currently, Kraus is an Investment Partner on the GV team and President at Lime. Career A long time entrepreneur, K ...

also contributed . In early 2017, UploadVR rebranded as Upload, shifting the "UploadVR" branding to its media arm. Tal Blevins, the co-founder and former

editor-in-chief An editor-in-chief (EIC), also known as lead editor or chief editor, is a publication's editorial leader who has final responsibility for its operations and policies. The highest-ranking editor of a publication may also be titled editor, managing ...

IGN ''IGN'' (formerly ''Imagine Games Network'') is an American video game and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa distri ...

, was hired in January 2017 to head the editorial part of this arm. In January 2017, Upload opened further offices in the Marina Business Center in Marina del Rey, California. In the signing of the lease for of office space, Upload was represented by Garrett Ellis and Carter Haslam of CBRE, with support by Jeff Pion and Shay Bolton, while Hankey Investment Company, the owner of the business center, was represented by Christopher Strickfaden of NGKF. The offices were expected to be opened up as a further coworking space and the company's new headquarters in April. By May 2017, Upload had 17 full-time employees and several contractors. In 2017, Upload ceased plans to establish a

venture fund Venture capital (often abbreviated as VC) is a form of private equity financing that is provided by venture capital firms or funds to start-up company, startups, early-stage, and emerging companies that have been deemed to have high growth poten ...

named Upload Ventures, for which it had been raising . In May, one former female employee filed a lawsuit against the company, Freeman, and Mason. The case was settled in September that year. In June 2017, the company hired Jacquelyn Ford Morie to head up its education efforts, and appointed Anne Ahola Ward, the former chief executive officer of CircleClick, as

. Ward instituted a mandatory anti-harassment training at the company, composed of a two-hour session led by an external consultant. Ward left her position by October, less than four months after her appointment.

Oculus VR Reality Labs is a business of Meta Platforms (formerly Facebook Inc.) that produces virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) hardware and software, including virtual reality headsets such as Quest, and online platforms such as Horizon ...

founder reportedly

Palmer Luckey Palmer Freeman Luckey (born September 19, 1992) is an American entrepreneur best known as the founder of Oculus VR and designer of the Oculus Rift, a virtual reality head-mounted display that is widely credited with reviving the virtual reality ...

stepped in to continue funding Upload, infusing as much as to keep it afloat. By March 2018, Luckey had ceased financing the company and, because the company had failed to acquire further funding, Upload's offices and coworking spaces were shut down. The lease for the San Francisco offices had already been taken over, while all staff were let go from the Marina del Rey headquarters on March 15. The properties were ultimately transferred to Starfish and

The Riveter ''The Riveter'' is a 1940 American Donald Duck short film directed by Dick Lundy and produced by Walt Disney. In the short film, Donald lands a job working high steel as a riveter for construction foreman Pete. Plot Donald comes across a sign ...

, respectively. The ''UploadVR'' website was unaffected by this closure. It became operated by a new entity, UVR Media, LLC, which was incorporated in March 2018.

Lawsuit

In May 2017, Elizabeth Scott, who had been the director of digital and

social media Social media are interactive media technologies that facilitate the creation and sharing of information, ideas, interests, and other forms of expression through virtual communities and networks. While challenges to the definition of ''social medi ...

at Upload between April 2016 and March 2017, filed a

civil lawsuit - A lawsuit is a proceeding by a party or parties against another in the civil court of law. The archaic term "suit in law" is found in only a small number of laws still in effect today. The term "lawsuit" is used in reference to a civil actio ...

against Upload, Freeman and Mason, alleging

, and

. The suit claimed that the male employees of the organization, including the founders, had created a work environment hostile against female employees, and openly discussed their sexual arousal with the affected personnel. It also stated that Upload had established a dedicated room, dubbed the "kink room", to encourage sexual intercourse at the workplace. When contacted by media outlets, Upload stated that the claims were "entirely without merit". The lawsuit was settled in September 2017 for a "modest sum". The lawsuit and its aftermath spawned a front-page article in ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'', prompting Freeman and Mason to release an open apology. At least six employees left Upload in solidarity with Scott.

Accolades

Freeman and Mason were named in the media category of ''

Forbes ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine owned by Integrated Whale Media Investments and the Forbes family. Published eight times a year, it features articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. ''Forbes'' also re ...

''s "30 Under 30" list of successful young entrepreneurs in 2017.

References

{{Reflist, refs= {{cite web, last=Peterson, first=Steve, date=June 7, 2016, title=UploadVR Academy Is Kicking VR Content Creation Into High Gear, url=https://www.alistdaily.com/digital/uploadvr-academy-kicking-vr-content-creation-high-gear/, website=AList, access-date=December 8, 2020, archive-date=July 12, 2020, archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200712014547/https://www.alistdaily.com/digital/uploadvr-academy-kicking-vr-content-creation-high-gear/, url-status=live {{cite web, last=Farivar, first=Cyrus, date=May 16, 2017, title=UploadVR set up "kink room" at the office, says ex-employee in lawsuit, url=https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2017/05/uploadvr-set-up-kink-room-at-the-office-says-ex-employee-in-lawsuit/, website=

Ars Technica ''Ars Technica'' is a website covering news and opinions in technology, science, politics, and society, created by Ken Fisher and Jon Stokes in 1998. It publishes news, reviews, and guides on issues such as computer hardware and software, sci ...

, access-date=May 19, 2017, archive-date=May 19, 2017, archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170519054732/https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2017/05/uploadvr-set-up-kink-room-at-the-office-says-ex-employee-in-lawsuit/, url-status=live {{cite web, last=Segall, first=Laurie, date=November 10, 2017, title=Startup had a 'kink room.' Can it be reformed?, url=https://money.cnn.com/2017/11/10/technology/culture/divided-we-code-sexual-harassment/index.html, website=

CNN Business CNN Business (formerly CNN Money) is a financial news and information website, operated by CNN. The website was originally formed as a joint venture between CNN.com and Time Warner's ''Fortune'' and ''Money'' magazines. Since the spin-off of Tim ...

, access-date=December 8, 2020, archive-date=November 11, 2020, archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201111233013/https://money.cnn.com/2017/11/10/technology/culture/divided-we-code-sexual-harassment/index.html, url-status=live {{cite web, last=Allen, first=Matt, date=November 16, 2020, title=The UploadVR Lawsuit, Media Men List, and Tragic Unintended Impacts of #MeToo in Media and Tech, url=https://disruptglobal.io/the-uploadvr-lawsuit-media-men-list-and-tragic-unintended-impacts-of-metoo-in-media-and-tech/, website=Disrupt Global, access-date=May 26, 2021, archive-date=May 26, 2021, archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210526061154/https://disruptglobal.io/the-uploadvr-lawsuit-media-men-list-and-tragic-unintended-impacts-of-metoo-in-media-and-tech/, url-status=live {{cite web, last=Dhillon, first=Sunny, date=October 24, 2016, title=I Invest In VR Companies–Here’s How To Get Hired By One, url=https://www.fastcompany.com/3064891/i-invest-in-vr-companies-heres-how-to-get-hired-by-one, website=

Fast Company ''Fast Company'' is a monthly American business magazine published in print and online that focuses on technology, business, and design. It publishes six print issues per year. History ''Fast Company'' was launched in November 1995 by Alan Web ...

, access-date=December 8, 2020, archive-date=September 25, 2020, archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200925145349/https://www.fastcompany.com/3064891/i-invest-in-vr-companies-heres-how-to-get-hired-by-one, url-status=live {{cite web, last1=Inverso, first1=Emily, last2=Vinton, first2=Kate, last3=Berg, first3=Madeline, date=2017, title=30 Under 30 2017: Media – Taylor Freeman, 26, Will Mason, 26, url=https://www.forbes.com/pictures/gfgl45glef/taylor-freeman-26-will/, website=

, access-date=December 8, 2020, archive-date=August 3, 2019, archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190803203113/https://www.forbes.com/pictures/gfgl45glef/taylor-freeman-26-will/, url-status=dead {{cite web, last=Patel, first=Deep, date=June 21, 2016, title=San Francisco Startup Lets Anyone Enter The World Of Virtual Reality, url=https://www.huffpost.com/entry/san-francisco-startup-let_b_10562806, website=

HuffPost ''HuffPost'' (formerly ''The Huffington Post'' until 2017 and sometimes abbreviated ''HuffPo'') is an American progressive news website, with localized and international editions. The site offers news, satire, blogs, and original content, and ...

, access-date=December 8, 2020, archive-date=July 12, 2020, archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200712083409/https://www.huffpost.com/entry/san-francisco-startup-let_b_10562806, url-status=live {{cite web, last=Streitfeld, first=David, date=September 15, 2017, title=Lurid Lawsuit's Quiet End Leaves Silicon Valley Start-Up Barely Dented, url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/15/technology/lurid-lawsuits-quiet-end-leaves-silicon-valley-start-up-barely-dented.html, website=

, access-date=December 8, 2020, archive-date=November 12, 2020, archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201112035556/https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/15/technology/lurid-lawsuits-quiet-end-leaves-silicon-valley-start-up-barely-dented.html, url-status=live {{cite web, title=UVR MEDIA, LLC, url=https://opencorporates.com/companies/us_ca/201807510112, website=

OpenCorporates OpenCorporates is a website that shares data on corporations under the copyleft Open Database License. The company was launched on 20 December 2010, by Chris Taggart and Rob McKinnon. Recognition In 2011, the site won third place in the O ...

, access-date=December 8, 2020, archive-date=December 8, 2020, archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201208100812/https://opencorporates.com/companies/us_ca/201807510112, url-status=live {{cite web, last=Miet, first=Hannah, date=February 1, 2017, title=San Francisco's Upload Inc. signs 20K lease in Marina del Rey, url=https://therealdeal.com/la/2017/02/01/san-franciscos-upload-inc-signs-20k-lease-in-marina-del-rey/, website= The Real Deal, access-date=December 8, 2020, archive-date=August 3, 2019, archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190803203117/https://therealdeal.com/la/2017/02/01/san-franciscos-upload-inc-signs-20k-lease-in-marina-del-rey/, url-status=live {{cite web, last=Matney, first=Lucas, date=March 16, 2018, title=VR startup Upload shuts down its offices as funding from Palmer Luckey runs out, url=https://techcrunch.com/2018/03/16/vr-startup-upload-shuts-down-its-offices-as-funding-from-oculus-founder-runs-out/, website=

TechCrunch TechCrunch is an American online newspaper focusing on high tech and startup companies. It was founded in June 2005 by Archimedes Ventures, led by partners Michael Arrington and Keith Teare. In 2010, AOL acquired the company for approximately ...

, access-date=March 20, 2018, archive-date=March 19, 2018, archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180319203923/https://techcrunch.com/2018/03/16/vr-startup-upload-shuts-down-its-offices-as-funding-from-oculus-founder-runs-out/, url-status=live {{cite web, last=Matney, first=Lucas, date=March 15, 2017, title=UploadVR sued over 'rampant' sexual behavior in the workplace and wrongful termination, url=https://techcrunch.com/2017/05/15/uploadvr-sued-over-rampant-sexual-behavior-in-the-workplace-and-wrongful-termination/, website=

, access-date=August 25, 2017, archive-date=August 25, 2017, archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170825233259/https://techcrunch.com/2017/05/15/uploadvr-sued-over-rampant-sexual-behavior-in-the-workplace-and-wrongful-termination/, url-status=live {{cite web, last=Matney, first=Lucas, date=October 16, 2017, title=Upload exec tasked with turning things around at the troubled VR startup has already quit, url=https://techcrunch.com/2017/10/16/upload-exec-tasked-with-turning-things-around-at-the-troubled-vr-startup-has-already-quit/, website=

, access-date=October 20, 2017, archive-date=October 21, 2017, archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171021005352/https://techcrunch.com/2017/10/16/upload-exec-tasked-with-turning-things-around-at-the-troubled-vr-startup-has-already-quit/, url-status=live {{cite web, last=Matney, first=Lucas, date=May 16, 2017, title=Upload VR startup raised {{US$, 4.5 million, long=no Series A from Colopl, General Catalyst last year, url=https://techcrunch.com/2017/05/16/upload-vr-startup-raised-4-5-million-series-a-from-colopl-general-catalyst-last-year/, website=

, access-date=December 8, 2020, archive-date=August 15, 2020, archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200815061841/https://techcrunch.com/2017/05/16/upload-vr-startup-raised-4-5-million-series-a-from-colopl-general-catalyst-last-year/, url-status=live {{cite web, last1=Matney, first1=Lucas, last2=Shieber, first2=Jonathan, date=September 6, 2017, title=VR company Upload settles sexual harassment suit, though some still feel unsettled, url=https://techcrunch.com/2017/09/06/vr-company-upload-settles-sexual-harassment-suit-though-some-still-feel-unsettled/, website=

, access-date=October 20, 2017, archive-date=October 21, 2017, archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171021005344/https://techcrunch.com/2017/09/06/vr-company-upload-settles-sexual-harassment-suit-though-some-still-feel-unsettled/, url-status=live {{cite web, last=Pressberg, first=Matt, date=March 30, 2017, title=Virtual Reality Firm Upload to Open LA Headquarters in April (Exclusive), url=https://www.thewrap.com/embargo-530-5-am-pt-virtual-reality-firm-upload-will-open-la-headquarters-in-april-exclusive/, website=

TheWrap ''TheWrap'' is an American online news website covering the business of entertainment and media via digital, print and live events. It was founded by journalist Sharon Waxman Sharon I. Waxman (born c.1963) is an American author, journalist, ...

, access-date=December 8, 2020, archive-date=August 4, 2020, archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200804003633/https://www.thewrap.com/embargo-530-5-am-pt-virtual-reality-firm-upload-will-open-la-headquarters-in-april-exclusive/, url-status=live {{cite web, date=March 16, 2018, title=Upload Focuses on Future of XR Education and Media, url=https://upload.io/upload-focuses-future-xr-education-media/, website=Upload, archive-date=March 20, 2018, archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180320151125/https://upload.io/upload-focuses-future-xr-education-media/, url-status=dead {{cite web, title=About Us, url=https://uploadvr.com/about-us/, website=UploadVR, access-date=December 8, 2020, archive-date=November 18, 2020, archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201118084259/https://uploadvr.com/about-us/, url-status=live {{cite web, last=Takahashi, first=Dean, date=December 16, 2015, title=UploadVR raises $1.25M in funding from China's Shanda Group, url=https://venturebeat.com/2015/12/16/uploadvr-raises-1-25m-in-funding-from-chinas-shanda-group/, website=

VentureBeat ''VentureBeat'' is an American technology website headquartered in San Francisco, California. It publishes news, analysis, long-form features, interviews, and videos. History The ''VentureBeat'' company was founded in 2006 by Matt Marshall, ...

, access-date=December 8, 2020, archive-date=November 8, 2020, archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201108142248/http://venturebeat.com/2015/12/16/uploadvr-raises-1-25m-in-funding-from-chinas-shanda-group/, url-status=live {{cite web, last=O'Brien, first=Chris, date=September 18, 2017, title=Upload founders apologize for 'turmoil' caused by their response to 'kink room' harassment lawsuit, url=https://venturebeat.com/2017/09/18/upload-founders-apologize-for-turmoil-caused-by-their-response-to-kink-room-sexual-harassment-lawsuit/, website=

, access-date=December 8, 2020, archive-date=August 3, 2019, archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190803210649/https://venturebeat.com/2017/09/18/upload-founders-apologize-for-turmoil-caused-by-their-response-to-kink-room-sexual-harassment-lawsuit/, url-status=live {{cite web, last=Bye, first=Kent, date=June 24, 2015, title=#154: Will Mason on accelerating the growth of the VR Industry with UploadVR coverage & consumer-facing events, url=http://voicesofvr.com/154-will-mason-on-accelerating-the-growth-of-the-vr-industry-with-uploadvr-coverage-consumer-facing-events/, website=Voices of VR, access-date=January 22, 2021, archive-date=January 23, 2021, archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210123011736/http://voicesofvr.com/154-will-mason-on-accelerating-the-growth-of-the-vr-industry-with-uploadvr-coverage-consumer-facing-events/, url-status=live {{cite web, last=Johnson, first=Eric, date=July 14, 2015, title=At Investor Event, VR Startups Brace for Slow Growth, url=https://www.vox.com/2015/7/14/11614690/at-investor-event-vr-startups-brace-for-slow-growth, website= Vox, access-date=December 8, 2020, archive-date=November 8, 2020, archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201108104041/https://www.vox.com/2015/7/14/11614690/at-investor-event-vr-startups-brace-for-slow-growth, url-status=live {{cite web, last=Graham, first=Peter, date=January 8, 2016, title=UploadVR Announces the Creation of Upload Collective, url=https://www.vrfocus.com/2016/01/uploadvr-announces-the-creation-of-upload-collective/, website=VRFocus, access-date=December 8, 2020, archive-date=October 27, 2020, archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201027062451/https://www.vrfocus.com/2016/01/uploadvr-announces-the-creation-of-upload-collective/, url-status=live American companies disestablished in 2018 American companies established in 2014 Mixed reality Technology companies based in the San Francisco Bay Area Technology companies disestablished in 2018 Technology companies established in 2014 Virtual reality companies Defunct technology companies based in California