MINNEAPOLIS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 23, 1998--Navarre Corporation (Nasdaq:NAVR) announced today a new exclusive national distribution agreement with MasterTone Multimedia Ltd., with offices in the U.K. and the U.S.
MasterTone, a leader in the European dance community, initially plans to release three new compact discs, two on April 7 and another on April 21. An additional twelve titles are slated for the balance of the year. The first releases from MasterTone will include mixes from internationally renowned DJ Doc Martin, "The Lisa Marie Experience" and the first of a series of dance compilations entitled "Dance Beat Collection," featuring dance interpretations of the music of the Bee Gees. Future releases will come from DJ Roger Sanchez, Todd Terry and other major artists. The same tittles will be released simultaneously in Europe. MasterTone will maintain copyrights on both sides of the Atlantic for their releases. They will kick off their domestic schedule with a major media event at NARM, the music industry's premier annual conference, in San Francisco on March 15.
MasterTone is best known in the U.S. for its cutting edge, value-added retail packaging. They also produce music collectors' books, high quality, midline and budget based music merchandise and are the largest independent publisher of DVDs in Europe. By tapping into MasterTone's access to both content and creative marketing services, Navarre will now become a primary point of contact for retailers seeking unique content and packaging in today's highly competitive retail environment. Navarre will utilize both its Independent Distribution and Alternative Retail Marketing divisions to initialize this asset base. In addition, Navarre hopes to connect its domestic labels overseas via MasterTone's own sales and distribution network.
MasterTone's senior director, Christopher Cary states, "We have made enormous inroads as a marketing and product positions company. We looked carefully at all of the alternatives and decided there was really only one choice that was Navarre. The size and versatility of our rights catalog, the breadth of our creative capability and our intent to become a major force in the international dance music scene, fit perfectly with Navarre's expertise and strategic plan. We are very excited to be joining the Navarre family."
Navarre Corporation, based in Minneapolis, is a major publisher and distributor of consumer software and entertainment products nationwide. Navarre also owns and operates NetRadio Network (www.netradio.net) the world's leading on demand Webcaster of originally programmed audio content. For further information, please visit Navarre's Web site at www.navarre.com.
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