By Tom T. Moore
Years ago I was flown to Denver, Colorado to record two, back-to-back one-hour interviews with Gaiam TV about my three The “Gentle Way” books and my “First Contact: Conversations with an ET book”. I thought everyone might like to know more about this streaming subscription, Internet TV network. They will never compete for the large number of subscribers Netflix has. Instead, they have chosen to be a niche streaming service specializing in inspirational, spiritual (not religious), paranormal, UFOs, astrology, yoga, and exercise topics. Most recently they focus exclusively in yoga and fitness.
Perhaps you’ve bought one of their many products offered on their website at Gaiam.com or in one of over 40,000 retail locations. The name Gaiam was a combination of Gaia, soul of the earth, and I Am. They are a publicly traded company (GAIA). Their headquarters building in Louisville (next to Boulder) is quite large; it houses the warehouse for their sales of clothing, home goods, wellness, fitness, yoga and videos, along with corporate offices and Gaiam TV. Their latest SEC filing that I read lists their assets at just under $190 million, so this company is not a “flash-in-the-pan-gone-tomorrow” business.
Gaiam was founded in Boulder, Colorado in 1988 by Jirka Rysavy. His vision was to serve the “conscious consumer”, a group subsequently named the “Cultural Creative’s” by sociologist Paul Ray in 1996. Gaiam states they are working to establish a new conscious media genre and distribution channels for filmmakers and artists who want to make a difference. Joining other genres like classics, drama and action, conscious media includes feature films, documentaries, edutainment and personal development programs that they believe will inspire all of us to expand our awareness, pursue positive change in our lives and grow more connected to each other and to the planet.
Tom Moore
Originally a catalog business, Gaiam has products in stores worldwide. In 2001 Gaiam merged with Real Goods Solar, a California-based company specializing in the production and distribution of solar power systems, other renewable energy equipment, and off-grid/sustainable living products. They recently sold the majority of shares in this company for $18 million, retaining about 12% ownership
In 2012 they bought Vivendi Entertainment for $13 million and combined their video library with Gaiam’s into the GVE division. In October of 2013, they sold the GVE division, excluding the health and wellness programs, to Cinedigm for $51 million. Then on November 8, 2013, Gaiam announced that it had acquired My Yoga Online, with over 200,000 subscribers (my best guess) and 1,000 Yoga and fitness videos, giving them over 6,000 programs to offer on their own service at $9.95 per month.
Float Left Interactive, a leading provider of Roku channel development and TV application solutions, announced today that it was selected to revamp Gaiam TV’s popular subscription-based lifestyle streaming channel on the Roku platform. And how many of you reading this article has heard of Gaiam TV? They need to do a better job of spreading the word that a streaming TV service just for spiritual minded people exists.
You would think there would not be a problem in budgeting some advertising dollars, but perhaps they’ve been too busy in their sales and acquisitions to turn their focus on publicizing Gaiam TV.
The bottom line is: I believe they will become a significant force to bring truly unique programming to anyone who wishes to make positive changes not only for their health and spirituality, but also for their communities and the planet.
*Tom T. Moore is an entertainment industry CEO, speaker, frequent radio guest, and author of the three “The Gentle Way” books and “First Contact: Conversations with an ET, plus a weekly newsletter and blog – www.thegentlewaybook.com.
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