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Music Retailer Trans World Buys Stake in Custom CD Kiosk Firm Mix & Burn

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on March 30, 2006 - 9:13am.
Albany, N.Y. - Trans World Entertainment, a music and entertainment retail chain that operates over 1,100 stores under brands including f.y.e., Sam Goody and Wherehouse, announced on Thursday that it has acquired a controlling interest in Mix & Burn, a provider of digital content services to retailers. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. St. Paul, Minn.-based Mix & Burn develops in-store kiosks that let consumers mix custom playlists and burn them to CDs. The company plans to soon expand its service to enable downloads from the kiosks directly onto portable music and video players, and onto cell phones. "In the near future Mix & Burn will become a feature of the 'Download Zone' section of our stores as we continue to transform the store to be a source of digital as well as physical entertainment content," said Trans World president and COO Jim Litwak.
tags: Trans World | Buy | Music Retailer | Stake | Custom CD Kiosk Firm Mix & Burn |

VNU to Buy Majority Stake in Media Analytics Firm BuzzMetrics

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on January 20, 2006 - 2:47am.
Amsterdam - VNU NV, the Netherlands-based publisher of Billboard and The Hollywood Reporter, and currently the largest market-research firm in the world, announced that it has agreed to acquire a majority stake in BuzzMetrics, a New York-based media analytics firm. VNU said the deal, for which financial terms were not disclosed, would enhance its media-measurement capabilities and extend its reach into the "fast-growing sphere" of consumer-generated media, such as blogs and public message boards. Under the terms of the deal, VNU will acquire a 50.1% stake in BuzzMetrics, which today agreed to merge with Intelliseek, a Cincinnati-based consumer-generated media analytics firm.
tags: VNU | Stake | BuzzMetrics |

Chinese Wireless Firm Hurray Buys Stake in Freeland Music

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on November 14, 2005 - 7:16am.
Beijing - Hurray Holding Co., a Chinese wireless entertainment publisher, announced on Monday that it has paid $7.56 million to acquire a 60% stake in Freeland Music, a Chinese producer and distributor of recorded music. Hurray will distribute Freeland's music -- which includes top-selling artists Xiangxiang, Yang Chengang and Yang Yi -- via wireless and Internet platforms, while Freeland will continue physical distribution.
tags: Music | Stake | Hurray | Chinese Wireless |

Report: Time Warner in Talks to Sell AOL Stake to Microsoft

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on September 15, 2005 - 11:24am.
Dulles, Va. -- In a deal that could potentially change the landscape for Internet service providers in the U.S., the New York Post reported on Thursday that software giant Microsoft is in "advanced" talks to acquire a stake in America Online from parent Time Warner, then combine it with its own MSN Internet offering. Citing two sources, the Post reported that Microsoft would pay an undetermined sum, leaving it and Time Warner as equal partners in the venture. A different source, however, told Reuters that the Post's report is "way overblown," adding that the two companies are discussing possible cooperation between their Internet search and advertising networks. The Post's sources said the deal potentially could be completed within the next several weeks. Time Warner has reportedly also had similar discussions with both Yahoo and Google, though Microsoft remains its preferred partner. Hurt by an exodus of dial-up subscribers fleeing to broadband providers, AOL has seen its customer base dwindle from 26 million to less than 22 million since 2003. Time Warner merged with AOL in 2000. In recent weeks, billionaire financier Carl Icahn has been in discussions with Time Warner regarding ways that the media company can increase shareholder value. Specific plans for AOL, however, had not been made public.
tags: Microsoft | AOL | Deal | Time Warner | Stake | Repots |

Benchmark Capital Acquires 40% Stake in U.K. Game Developer Codemasters

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on April 4, 2005 - 4:29am.
London -- Benchmark Capital Europe, a unit of the California-based venture capital firm, announced on Monday that it has acquired a 40% interest in U.K.-based video game publisher Codemasters. The developer is credited with titles including "Colin McRae Rally," "American Idol" and "Brian Lara Cricket." The investment will be used for the acquisition of third-party licenses and game titles, as well as to accelerate the company's new game development, and also to expand into mobile and massively multiplayer online game markets. Other Benchmark investments include Finnish online games firm Sulake, eBay and Red Hat.
tags: Benchmark Capital | Codemasters | Stake | Acquires | U.K. Game Developer |

Random House Buys Stake in Mobile Content Publisher Vocel

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on February 22, 2005 - 4:41am.
Frankfurt -- Random House, the publishing unit of German media group Bertelsmann, announced that it has bought a minority stake in Vocel, a San Diego-based provider of educational materials for wireless devices. Financial terms for the deal were not disclosed. Random House said the move would allow the company to expand Vocel's offerings to deliver foreign language study guides, video game playing tips and other wireless content over mobile phones. "Random House considers the mobile phone to be an important future platform for the delivery of information to consumers," said Random House Ventures president Richard Sarnoff.
tags: Stake | Mobiles | Random | Vocel |

Electronic Arts Completes Purchase of 20% Stake in Rival Ubisoft

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on February 3, 2005 - 3:25am.
Redwood City, Calif. -- Video game publisher Electronic Arts announced on Thursday that it has completed its previously announced purchase of 3.5 million shares of French publisher Ubisoft, for a price of about $89 million. Ubisoft executives had previously said it had held no talks with Electronic Arts, and considered the purchase of a 20% stake as "hostile." Separately, Redwood City, Calif.-based Electronic Arts announced that it has signed NASCAR driver Ryan Newman to serve as spokesman and appear on the cover of its "NASCAR SimRacing" PC title. EA Tiburon developed the game, which will ship to retailers on Feb. 15.
tags: Electronic Arts | Stake | Purchases | Rival Ubisoft |

Games Publisher Electronic Arts Buys 20% Stake in French Rival Ubisoft

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on January 3, 2005 - 4:06am.
Redwood City, Calif. -- Video game publisher Electronic Arts announced that it has acquired a 19.9% stake in a rival game publisher, France-based Ubisoft Entertainment. The deal is valued at between $85 million and $100 million. Electronic Arts said it has no plans to integrate its development or publishing business with Ubisoft, which has created titles including "Myst," "Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time" and "Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell."
tags: Ubisoft | Electronic Arts | Stake | Games Publisher | French Rival |

China's TOM Online Pays $17 Million for Stake in Mobile Firm Indiagames

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on December 17, 2004 - 9:00am.
Hong Kong -- Chinese wireless Internet provider TOM Online announced on Friday that it has acquired an 81% stake in mobile game developer Indiagames for $17.7 million. The company purchased shares from Infinity Ventures, IL&FS Investment Managers, and Indiagames' management team -- which will remain intact and retain the remaining 19% stake in the company. Founded in 1999, India-based Indiagames has developed mobile games based on Hollywood properties including "Spider-Man," "Predator," "Buffy the Vampire Slayer," "Jurassic Park" and "The Mummy." The company distributes its games through over 100 mobile operators globally. TOM Online said the deal will establish its presence in the mobile games markets in India and China.
tags: Mobile | China | Stake | Indiagames | TOM Online |

Mforma Buys Stake in Chinese Mobile Game Developer Magus-Soft

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on October 11, 2004 - 2:28am.
Bellevue, Wash. -- Wireless entertainment publisher Mforma Group announced on Monday that it has made a strategic investment in Chinese mobile games developer Magus-Soft, by purchasing the investment stake held by Siemens Mobile Acceleration. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Beijing-based Magus-Soft has developed over 80 mobile games and applications, including "Team China Soccer" and "Super League Football." The Siemens investment unit purchased its minority stake in Magus-Soft in 2002. Magus-Soft has "made major accomplishments since their founding in 2001 and today have nationwide service agreements to deliver SMS, WAP, Java, and BREW content to consumers throughout China," said Mforma CEO Daniel Kranzler. "They have developed a stellar catalog of content and a platform that supports multiple technologies and protocols."
tags: Mforma | Stake | Chinese Mobile Game Developer | Magus-Soft |

AOL Repurchases Stake in Europe Unit for $812.5 Million

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on April 9, 2003 - 2:52am.
Dulles, Va. -- AOL Time Warner said on Wednesday that it has repurchased its stake in AOL Europe, a unit of America Online, from Vivendi Universal for $812.5 million in cash. While the majority of Wall Street analysts expected AOL to pay the French telecommunications giant with cash, many speculated that AOL might negotiate a deal in stock in order to preserve its balance sheet, currently straddled with more than $27 billion in debt. "We believe that repurchasing this interest in AOL Europe with cash, rather than equity, is the right decision for our shareholders, given the current trading price of our stock," said Dick Parsons, the chairman-elect and CEO of AOL Time Warner. AOL Time Warner executives have subsequently warned investors that the company's debt could increase to as much as $29 billion this year. http://makeashorterlink.com/?K15A22624
tags: Europe | AOL | Time Warner | Stake |

Liberty Media Looks to Purchase Stake in Hotel VOD Firm On Command

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on April 3, 2003 - 3:16am.
Denver -- On Command, a provider of in-room entertainment technologies like video-on-demand to the hotel and cruise ship industries, announced on Thursday that media giant Liberty Media has expressed interest in buying all outstanding shares in the company. Under the proposed deal, On Command stockholders would receive 0.0787 of a share of Liberty Media stock for each share of On Command they own. Denver-based On Command said it has established a committee of independent directors to consider the proposal, and will engage independent legal counsel and financial advisors.
tags: VOD | Stake | On Command | Liberty |

Electronic Arts Buys Stake in Swedish Developer Digital Illusions

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on February 12, 2003 - 3:23am.
Redwood City, Calif. -- Game developer Electronic Arts announced on Wednesday that it has made a strategic investment and acquired a minority stake in Digital Illusions (DICE), a Sweden-based game developer. The company also signed a long-term agreement to become the exclusive worldwide publisher of DICE titles. Redwood City, Calif.-based Electronic Arts recently partnered with DICE to publish "Battlefield 1942," a popular online multiplayer game that is now distributed in over 36 countries and has shipped more than 900,000 units to date. http://biz.yahoo.com/bw/030212/120065_1.html
tags: Electronic Arts | Digital | Swedish | Stake |