Marc Collins-Rector
Encyclopedia
Marc John Collins-Rector (born October 16, 1959) is an American businessman best known for founding Digital Entertainment Network
, an online streaming video broadcaster and a notable dot-com failure
.
In the early 1980s Rector founded Telequest, a Florida
-based telecommunications company. In 1984, Rector founded World TravelNet, a company that electronically coordinated cruises and tours; its affiliate, World ComNet, was floated on the Vancouver Stock Exchange
in 1987. Its valuation briefly peaked at $100 million before increasing competition led to bankruptcy
. Rector later founded an early ISP, Concentric Network, in 1991 along with colleague and lover Chad Shackley.
video pioneer, Digital Entertainment Network
. Collins-Rector was the co-founder and Chairman of DEN, which exhausted its funding following a failed IPO bid and collapsed amid allegations that Collins-Rector had sexually abused children
, coercing
them with drugs and guns.
, ending up in Spain
. He fought extradition
proceedings for two years before returning to the United States, where he pleaded guilty to eight charges of child enticement and registered as a sex offender
. Collins-Rector admitted luring five minors across state lines for sexual purposes. He received credit for time that he had served in a Spanish jail. Some of his victims sued
in civil court, winning a $4.5 million under a summary judgement.
service company IGE
, which was founded by ex-DEN VP Brock Pierce
. IGE initially used an address in the city of Marbella
, Spain, where Collins-Rector, Shackely, and Pierce shared a villa until it was raided by Interpol
in 2002.
Digital Entertainment Network
Digital Entertainment Network was a multimedia and web television dot-com company.-Founding:Rector hired traditional media executives from Broadcast TV, Film, Commercials, Documentary and Cable to create a destination website featuring serialized "6 minute shows" on the internet.Launched in 1996,...
, an online streaming video broadcaster and a notable dot-com failure
Dot-com company
A dot-com company, or simply a dot-com , is a company that does most of its business on the Internet, usually through a website that uses the popular top-level domain, ".com" .While the term can refer to present-day companies, it is also used specifically to refer to companies with...
.
Early life
He changed his name from Mark Rector to Marc Collins-Rector in 1998.In the early 1980s Rector founded Telequest, a Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
-based telecommunications company. In 1984, Rector founded World TravelNet, a company that electronically coordinated cruises and tours; its affiliate, World ComNet, was floated on the Vancouver Stock Exchange
Vancouver Stock Exchange
The Vancouver Stock Exchange was a stock exchange based in Vancouver, British Columbia. It was incorporated 1906 and was the third major stock exchange in Canada, after the Toronto Stock Exchange and Montreal Stock Exchange , and featured many small-cap and exploration stocks.In 1991, it listed...
in 1987. Its valuation briefly peaked at $100 million before increasing competition led to bankruptcy
Bankruptcy
Bankruptcy is a legal status of an insolvent person or an organisation, that is, one that cannot repay the debts owed to creditors. In most jurisdictions bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the debtor....
. Rector later founded an early ISP, Concentric Network, in 1991 along with colleague and lover Chad Shackley.
DEN
Rector and Shackley sold Concentric in 1995 and, using money raised here and close to $100m of investor and venture capital, formed an early InternetInternet
The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
video pioneer, Digital Entertainment Network
Digital Entertainment Network
Digital Entertainment Network was a multimedia and web television dot-com company.-Founding:Rector hired traditional media executives from Broadcast TV, Film, Commercials, Documentary and Cable to create a destination website featuring serialized "6 minute shows" on the internet.Launched in 1996,...
. Collins-Rector was the co-founder and Chairman of DEN, which exhausted its funding following a failed IPO bid and collapsed amid allegations that Collins-Rector had sexually abused children
Child sexual abuse
Child sexual abuse is a form of child abuse in which an adult or older adolescent uses a child for sexual stimulation. Forms of child sexual abuse include asking or pressuring a child to engage in sexual activities , indecent exposure with intent to gratify their own sexual desires or to...
, coercing
Coercion
Coercion is the practice of forcing another party to behave in an involuntary manner by use of threats or intimidation or some other form of pressure or force. In law, coercion is codified as the duress crime. Such actions are used as leverage, to force the victim to act in the desired way...
them with drugs and guns.
Child enticement conviction
Collins-Rector fled to EuropeEurope
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, ending up in Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
. He fought extradition
Extradition
Extradition is the official process whereby one nation or state surrenders a suspected or convicted criminal to another nation or state. Between nation states, extradition is regulated by treaties...
proceedings for two years before returning to the United States, where he pleaded guilty to eight charges of child enticement and registered as a sex offender
Sex offender
A sex offender is a person who has committed a sex crime. What constitutes a sex crime differs by culture and by legal jurisdiction. Most jurisdictions compile their laws into sections such as traffic, assault, sexual, etc. The majority of convicted sex offenders have convictions for crimes of a...
. Collins-Rector admitted luring five minors across state lines for sexual purposes. He received credit for time that he had served in a Spanish jail. Some of his victims sued
Lawsuit
A lawsuit or "suit in law" is a civil action brought in a court of law in which a plaintiff, a party who claims to have incurred loss as a result of a defendant's actions, demands a legal or equitable remedy. The defendant is required to respond to the plaintiff's complaint...
in civil court, winning a $4.5 million under a summary judgement.
Later career
Media reports claim that Collins-Rector was a silent partner in the MMORPGMMORPG
Massively multiplayer online role-playing game is a genre of role-playing video games in which a very large number of players interact with one another within a virtual game world....
service company IGE
IGE
IGE was one of the largest services company buying and selling virtual currencies and accounts for MMORPG. During its peak time, it had offices in Los Angeles, China , and headquarters & customer service centre in Hong Kong. IGE was one of the main monopoly in virtual economy services, also known...
, which was founded by ex-DEN VP Brock Pierce
Brock Pierce
Brock Pierce , is an entrepreneur best known for pioneering the market for virtual goods in online games. He has founded or co-founded seven companies, acquired more than thirty companies, and closed a dozen corporate finance transactions securing more than $200 million of funding on behalf of his...
. IGE initially used an address in the city of Marbella
Marbella
Marbella is a town in Andalusia, Spain. It is situated on the Mediterranean Sea, in the province of Málaga, beneath the La Concha mountain. In 2000 the city had 98,823 inhabitants, in 2004, 116,234, in 2010 approximately 135,000....
, Spain, where Collins-Rector, Shackely, and Pierce shared a villa until it was raided by Interpol
Interpol
Interpol, whose full name is the International Criminal Police Organization – INTERPOL, is an organization facilitating international police cooperation...
in 2002.