Sydney Development Corporation ("SDC"), was the first publicly-traded software company in Canada.
Founded by Tarrnie Williams, SDC developed an online real-time project management system for the IBM System z[citation needed] mainframe computer, then various different business applications for microcomputers such as the Apple II, and eventually became the first developer and publisher of computer games for microcomputers in Canada.
[1][2] In 1981, SDC agreed to publish Evolution by Don Mattrick and Jeff Sembers, after Williams's 10-year-old son enjoyed a demo of the game.
[3] Evolution sold over 400,000 copies, and Mattrick and Sembers went on to found Distinctive Software.
[4] Sydney Development Corp. was the fastest-growing public company in Canada in the five-year period 1978 to 1983 with fiscal year 1983 revenues of Can$21 million (equivalent to $57 million in 2023[5]).