Hip Interactive Corp.

Hip Interactive was a Canadian company formed on 12th December 1995 and incorporated on 13th July 1999. Operations began on 9th December 1999 and it was first listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange on 3rd May 2000. One of the company's co-founders was Michael Haines. It had distribution facilities in Toronto, Montreal, and Vancouver. The company was led by CEO Arindra Singh.

Hip Interactive was a provider of electronic entertainment products, including PC and video games, movies, video arcade games, and proprietary games, branded as Hip Games, and accessories, branded as Hip Gear. The company distributed all first party products, including SCEA, Microsoft and Nintendo hardware, software and accessories, as well as third party licensed video game software.

The company also operated through the European subsidiary Hip Interactive Europe based in Marseilles, France. It was formed through the acquisition of the French publisher Light & Shadow Production (L.S.P.) when all the outstanding shares were bought in February 2004. In August 2004 Hip acquired the US publisher ARUSH Entertainment. Other company names tied to the company (subsidiaries, related and affiliated corporations) are Hip Interactive (Quebec) Inc., Hip Interactive Holdings USA, Inc. and Hip Interactive USA, Inc. The company had a close relationship with the Canadian company Groove Media Inc. through its retail publishing label Groove Games, distributing many of its titles. Most likely this came about when Michael Haines became a partner and COO at Groove Media in January 2003 and the managing director of Groove Games Ltd. in May 2006.

On 11th July 2005 the company filed for bankruptcy and was placed in receivership. On 13th September 2005 a class action suit was started by Rochelle Goldstein (Assistant to Controller) and Lisa Cochrane (Office Manager) for all personnel to claim damages for unpaid wages, commissions, vacation pay, severance pay and such other debts between 1st January 2005 and 11th July 2005. It was brought against 9 people of the management and directors. On 12th August 2008 the company was delisted from the Toronto Stock Exchange.