Screen Daily
13th July 2006
Arts Alliance takes stake in La Banque Audiovisuelle
By Tom Brooks
UK-based digital film services company Arts Alliance Media (AAM) has announced an investment in Paris-based La Banque Audiovisuelle, managers of French video-on-demand (VOD) portal VODEO.TV.
AAM also has the option to acquire the company within the next 12 months.The deal will allow both companies to further their work in VOD, download-to-own and digital cinema. The acquisition of La Banque Audiovisuelle would add to AAM’s growing reach in Europe, after its acquisition of Swedish online DVD rental company Boxman and Denmark’s Digitarian A/S and its digital cinema rollout in the UK and Norway. La Banque Audiovisuelle’s portal offers documentaries and TV programmes through loading, streaming or DVD on request. It offers more than 2,200 programmes currently, but the deal with AAM will allow the company to expand into feature film offerings.
“La Banque Audiovisuelle is happy to welcome AAM as a leading investor and strategic partner,” La Banque Audiovisuelle president Frederic Pie said. “We share the same vision for the future of film distribution and audio-visual programs and will share our know-how to develop an even broader and more attractive offer for our customers.”