HOT HOT HOT INTERVIEW
Found this posted on stockhouse READ ON
CDPLUS.COM on Businessworld
>> Susan: YOU'RE WATCHING
NEWSWORLD BUSINESS NEWS, STILL
AHEAD TODAY, A CANADIAN
COMPANY THAT'S HOPING TO TAP
INTO THE MARKET FOR ON LINE
MUSIC.
WE'LL TALK TO THE CEO OF CD
PLUS.COM, STAY WITH US.
TEST.
USE SUES WELCOME BACK TO
NEWSWORLD BUSINESS NEWS, I'M
SUSAN REISLER.
IT'S ESTIMATED THAT WITHIN
FIVE YEARS, GLOBAL INTERNET
MUSIC SALES WILL REACH $4
BILLION U.S., AND TO NO ONE'S
SURPRISE, THE U.S. IS EXPECTED
TO DOMINATE THE DIGITAL MUSIC
MARKET.
BUT WITH THE RISE OF
UNAUTHORIZED MUSIC RECORDING
SOFTWARE FORMATS LIKE MP 3,
THE ISSUES OF COPYRIGHT AND
TECHNOLOGY REMAIN TO BE
ADDRESSED.
LAST WEEK ON LINE MUSIC
RETAILER CD PLUS.COM ANNOUNCED
THAT IT WOULD BECOME THE FIRST
CANADIAN COMPANY TO OFFER
COPYRIGHTED MUSIC OVER THE
INTERNET AND JOINING ME IN
STUDIO TO TALK ABOUT THEIR
STRATEGY TO GROW THE
AUTHORIZED ON LINE MUSIC
BUSINESS IS LEECYEN IN A, THE
PRESIDENT AND CEO OF CD
PLUS.COM.
GOOD TO SEE YOU.
THANK YOU FOR COMING IN.
>> THANK YOU, SUSAN.
>> Susan: YOU ARE IN A NUMBER
OF BUSINESS, YOU HAVE BRICKS
AND MORTAR COMPANIES, YOU HAVE
THE INTERNET AND NOW YOU'RE
TALKING ABOUT OTHER ENTER NET
STRATEGY SO MAYBE YOU COULD
TELL ME WHERE YOU SEE REVENUES
COMING FROM, THE BIGGEST SHARE,
HOW DO YOU BREAK UP THAT?
>> CD PLUS.COM HAS THREE
DIVISIONS, WE HAVE WHAT WE
REFER TO AS OUR BRICKS AND
MORTAR DIVISION OF
APPROXIMATELY 150 STORES
ACROSS CANADA, SELLING CD'S
AND RELATED PRODUCTS IN MALLS
AND STREET STORES.
WE HAVE A USED MUSIC DIVISION
WHICH ALSO SELLS USED MUSIC IN
A SIMILAR FORMAT, DIFFERENT
STORES.
AND THEN WE HAVE OUR INTERNET
DIVISION AND INSIDE OUR
INTERNET WE SELL CD'S THROUGH
THE NET AND WE ARE IN THE
PROCESS OF ESTABSHING A
DOWNLOADING BUSINESS, WHERE WE
CAN SELL DOWNLOADED MUSIC
DIRECTLY TO CONSUMERS THROUGH
THE NET.
>> Susan: WHERE DO YOU SEE THE
GROWTH COMING FROM IN THE
SHORT TERM?
>> WELL, CLEARLY, THE -- WE
SEE THE SAME NUMBERS YOU SEE,
WE GET OUR FAIR SHARE OF THAT
INTERNET BUSINESS, AS A FAIRLY
SUBSTANTIAL BUSINESS.
WE BELIEVE THE INTERNET WILL
CONTINUE TO GROW.
PEOPLE WILL BUY CD'S ACROSS
THE INTERNET BUT WE ALSO
BELIEVE DOWN LOADING IS AN
OPPORTUNITY FOR US, IT WOULD
HAVE A SHARE OF THAT BUSINESS.
I DOUBT IT WOULD BE MUCH MORE
THAN 10 OR 15% OF THE INTERNET
BUSINESS.
>> Susan: SO IT'S REALLY THE
INTERNET, IFLT E, THE
CATALOGUE BUSINESS IF YOU LIKE
WHERE YOU SEE THE MOST GROWTH
COMING FROM.
>> CORRECT.
I THINK CONSUMERS ALWAYS WILL
WANT TO TOUCH AND FEEL THE
PRODUCT, GIVE IT AWAY, GIFTING
AND SO ON, IMPULSE SALES,
THAT'S WHERE MOST OF IT WILL
BE.
DOWNLOADING WILL BE AN
IMPORTANT PART OF THAT BUT IT
WON'T BE THE DOMINANT PART OF
THAT.
>> Susan: SO LIKE ALL THE
STUDIES SAY THAT THE PEOPLE
WHO GET AHEAD ON THE INTERNET
BUSINESS ARE ONES WITH THE
BIGGEST NAME RECOGNITION.
CHAPTERS HAS THAT, THOUGH,
BOOKS WAS WHAT THEIR NAME WAS
ATTACHED TO BUT IT WON'T BE
HARD TO ADD THE CD'S.
HOW ARE YOU GOING TO BUILD
THAT KIND OF COMPARABLE NAME
RECOGNITION.
>> BRAND AWARENESS IS VERY
IMPORTANT AND THAT IS FOR US
AS WELL.
WE WILL DO IT THROUGH A NUMBER
OF AREAS, CROSS PROMPT
PROMOTING WITH OUR OWN STORES
WHERE WE HAVE PEOPLE THAT BUY
MUSIC GOING TO THOSE STORES ON
A REGULAR BASIS AND PROVIDING
INFORMATION TO THEM ABOUT OUR
SITE AT THAT POINT.
SECONDARILY, THROUGH
PARTNERSHIPS WITH OTHER WEB
SITES, LINKS, TO ARTISTS,
LINKS TO RECORD LABELS WHERE
PEOPLE THAT ARE GOING ON LINE
AND WANT TO BUY MUSIC WILL
COME THROUGH AND GET AWARENESS
THAT WAY.
AND THE THIRD WAY IS THE WAY
ALL OTHER CONSUMER PRODUCTS
ARE BUILT AND THAT IS THROUGH
TRADITIONAL MEDIA WHICH WE'LL
ALSO DO IN TIME.
>> Susan: THE INTERNET AS WE
ALL KNOW IS GLOBAL, IT DOESN'T
HAVE ANY HOME.
SO DON'T YOU ALSO FACE
COMPETITION FROM THE
AMAZON.COMS OF THE WORLD AND
WHAT'S IN THE UNITED STATES?
>> WE DO, WE ARE FORTUNATELY
WHERE THE COST OF CD'S AND THE
PRICE OF CD'S ARE LOWER THAN
IN THE UNITED STATES SO WE
HAVE A BUILT IN ADVANTAGE.
BUT WE HAVE TO REACH THOSE
CONSUMERS.
WE HAVE A NUMBER OF CONSUMERS
FROM THE U.S. AND ALL OVER THE
WORLD, IN FACT, VISITING OUR
WEB SITE.
WE HAVE THESE POWERFUL SEARCH
ENGINES THAT WILL FIND OUR
SITES, AND THEY LIKE WHAT THEY
SEE BOTH IN TERMS OF CONTENT
ON THE SITE AND THE SELECTION
OF PRODUCTS WE HAVE, AND YOUR
KMURM SERVICE POLICIES THEY'LL
BUY FROM YOU.
>> Susan: YOUR COMPANY'S
INVOLVED IN A REVERSE TAKE
OVER ESSENTIALLY SO IT CAN GET
LISTED.
WHAT'S THE SCHEDULE FOR THAT?
>> THE END OF THE MONTH THERE
WILL BE -- THEY'LL VOTE ON
WHETHER THEY WANT TO GO
FORWARD WITH THIS REVERSE TAKE
OVER AND IF THEY DO, WITHIN
TWO DAYS OF THAT, WE'LL BE
TRADING PUBLIC IN THE MARKET
AS CD PLUS.COM.
>> Susan: DO WE KNOW AT WHAT
PRICE FROM
>> DON'T KNOW PRICE.
CAN'T DETERMINE WHAT THE
MARKET WILL SAY.
THE SHARES OF SYNERGY BRANDS
ARE TRADING CURRENTLY WITH
THAT NEWS IN PLACE, SO THE
MARKET HAS GIVEN US SOME
VALUATION BUT I THINK YOU'LL
HAVE TO WAIT AND SEE UNTIL
THEY GO PUBLIC.
>> Susan: OKAY, LEE.
SIENNA, THANK YOU VERY MUCH
FOR THIS.
>> YOU'RE QUITE WELCOME THE
YOU'RE WATCHING NEWSWORLD
BUSINESSEWS.
WHEN WE COME BACK, WE'LL DIP
INTO OUR ELECTRONIC MAIL BAG.
FRED KETCHEN WILL BE THEY'RE
ANSWER SOME OF THE |
