Shares digital

Hot on the heels of its acquisition of RCV Entertainment in January and an output deal with Yari Film Group (YFG) in March, Entertainment One (ETO:AIM) has agreed an output deal with US independent studio THINKFilm.

Through its subsidiary, Seville Pictures, the company will be the exclusive Canadian distributor of films produced by THINKFilm until the end of 2010. Included in THINKFilm’s current and upcoming feature list are Bordertown, which stars Jennifer Lopez and Antonio Banderas, and In The Shadow Of The Moon, winner of the World Cinema Audience Award at Sundance 2007.

Through the deal, Entertainment One has also acquired THINKFilm’s library of 235 critically-acclaimed and commercially-proven features for the remainder of the term that THINKFilm owns the pictures. Thanks to the acquisition, Entertainment One’s filmed entertainment catalogue now includes more than 700 titles, with new additions including Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, the Academy Award-winning All About My Mother, and The Assassination of Richard Nixon.

‘The long-term output deal and acquisition of THINKFilm’s 235-title library is another important step in building up our quality content ownership, which is a crucial element in our strategy of developing a powerful independent international distribution network,’ says chief executive, Darren Throop.

Entertainment One joined Aim one year ago and plans to build up a leading international entertainment and content ownership and distribution business. Entertainment One is the largest DVD, CD and video game wholesaler in Canada, and its subsidiary, Koch Entertainment is the largest independent record label in the US. The shares were unchanged at 96p.

Shares says: Rapid expansion bodes well for the future.