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MSH Entertainment Set to Launch Internet Site To
Enter $1 Billion Children's Market
NEW YORK, Feb. 24 /PRNewswire/ -- MSH Entertainment Corp. (OTC Bulletin Board: MSHE - news) announced today
that it has launched its own Internet company targeted at the $1 billion children's marketplace.
Called JustKids.com, MSH indicated that it expected to be online by the second half of 1999 and will operate out of Sausalito,
California.
Commenting on the development, Robert Maerz, chairman of the family-oriented, multi-platform entertainment company stated
that ''with the acquisition of Abrams/Gentile Entertainment under our feet, we are now in a position to move aggressively to tap
this huge and growing market.''
Abrams/Gentile is one of the nation's foremost developers of toys and animated programming for children.
Aiming to capitalize on the advantages of ''vertical integration'' of entertainment, marketing, communications and technology,
Jonathan Stathakis, president and chief operating officer of MSH explained that ''we decided that we needed to have our own
internet company as a major component of the Company if we were to fully capitalize on our strengths in family entertainment
and merchandising.
''We are well along in the development and packaging of a number of toys and children's merchandise which are being readied
for what we expect will be the leading children's shopping mall on the web.''
JustKids.com will be headed by Bob Heyman, an Internet marketing pioneer and web site developer and the founder of
Cybernautics, which was acquired by U.S. Web Inc. in 1997.
At the outset, JustKids.com will focus on aggregating content -- rich web sites into an interactive network created with an eye
toward convergence with television and the Internet. The activities of the new operation will include the merchandising of
educational interactive toys and related products carefully developed in-house.
These products will be both stand alone products as well as spin-offs related to other projects and programming.
Mr. Heyman noted that ''there are an estimated 9.8 million children today using the net and that number will probably triple
over the next four or five years.
''Importantly, in the children's marketplace, no dominant 'category killer' player has emerged similar to Amazon.com in the
book sector.''
MSH will begin acquiring web sites developed by others as well as sites custom built by and for MSH. These sites will be
commercially scaled with the addition of network wide advertising sales and the utilization of branded content and characters.
With its acquisition of AGE, MSH now has a library of over 150 hours of quality children's animation programming. Mr.
Heyman noted further that ''we believe that a dynamic future opportunity of the Net will be the delivery of cartoons on
demand.''
As a wholly owned MSH subsidiary, Mr. Maerz explained that ''JustKids.com's business activities will include development
and ownership rights associated with its activities, including toys, books, book publishing, home video, CD-ROM, motion
picture and television animation.
''We are also actively seeking joint venture partners, acquisition rights to programming, development, packaging and
co-production projects that will, in turn be licensed directly to broadcast networks and the net.
''The goal of these endeavors is to build a library of diverse multi-media properties in which MSH will either own or have a
substantial equity interest.
This news release includes certain statements that may be considered forward looking under the Private Securities Litigation
Reform Act of 1995. These statements are subject to a number of important risks and uncertainties that could cause the
contemplated transactions not to occur.
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