DIC Ent. will see some if its popular animated and live-action titles get wider reach through home video and digital avenues the U.S. and Canada through a distribution deal with Alliance Entertainment Corp.(AEC), a Source Interlink company through its NCircle Ent. division. The three-year, multi-million-dollar agreement provides DIC titles access to new first-time distribution at brick-and-mortar retail outlets while also opening the door to delivery on digital platforms.
Under the terms of the deal, AEC will have a first-look option to distribute the newly produced television series for the KOL’s Secret Slumber Party programming block on CBS, including the animated Horseland. The company also has the option to distribute direct-to-video properties, including The Secret Millionaire’s Club, as well as library titles such as Sabrina The Animated Series, Heathcliff, Sonic The Hedgehog and Super Mario Bros. Beginning in the first quarter of 2007, the properties will be made available in mass market and specialty retailers, including national and regional supermarket and drugstore chains.
‘AEC is recognized as the premiere wholesale distributor of home entertainment product to retail markets, with unique capabilities that will ensure widespread retail placement for DIC properties,’ says Nancy Fowler, DIC’s head of global sales. ‘Their distribution expertise will result in an ongoing retail presence for both classic catalog titles and newly produced properties, and we are thrilled to have a partner of AEC’s caliber onboard to guide our product into the marketplace.’
The non-exclusive digital rights will allow AEC to distribute DIC properties via digital streaming and downloads to computers and mobile video devices. No concrete plans for digital roll-outs have yet been announced.
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