Australia's Rajon Pacts With Sony Asia Sales And Distribution Deal Set To Substantially Boost Sales N EWSLINEMMN BY CHRISTIE ELIEZER there," Burwood says. Among the 12 months ago. RMG is distributed in Online music download service Vitaminic has confirmed its purchase SYDNEY -Having established a international catalogs handled by New Zealand through Zomba. of London -based rival Peoplesound.com (Billboard Bulletin, June 11). strong presence in Australia and New Rajon are K -Tel, Charly, Trojan, Pres- The Rajon Music Group emerged in As expected, Milan -based Vitaminic has agreed to issue 1.3 million Zealand with budget, mid -priced, and tige, and Creole, and the group's out- mid -2000 from the amalgamation of new shares to Peoplesound's shareholders, who will receive some 19% TV- marketed music albums, Australia's put ranges across the board from clas- three labels- Rajon, RedX Entertain- of the share capital in the enlarged company. Investors in Vitaminic Rajon Music Group (RMG) is looking sical to rock/pop and niche genres. ment, and Starlet Entertainment. Aus- have entered into a lock -up agreement, under which blocks of Vita - to make its mark in Asian territories. "Rajon has had a longtime distribution tralian retailers suggest that the corn - minic stock will be released at later dates. Under Italian regulatory Sydney -based Rajon signed a three - deal with Sony Music Australia," Bur- pany has changed local attitudes laws, the president of the court of Turin must appoint an independ- year sales and distribution deal with toward lower -priced repertoire with a ent appraiser to assess the deal. Final approval will then be voted on Sony Music Asia for its 3,000 -title cat- combination of quality packaging and by Vitaminic shareholders. LARS BRANDLE alog, effective Aug. 1. RMG and Sony aggressive marketing. will also joint-venture a number of TV "They lifted the bar on how budg- More than 30 consumers of pirated CDs and video games in Italy received and themed compilation projects. et titles are packaged," says John Lit- individual fines of 300,000 lire ($150) during June and July, as the RMG CEO Brendan Burwood predicts tle, owner and buyer for Carisma focus of the fight against counterfeiting is widened to include buyers- the move into Asia will be worth an Compact Discs in Circular Quay. as well as vendors -of illegal material. "These fines are the result of additional $15 million -$20 million "Consumers expect good quality, the application of the long- awaited law on piracy, which was passed Australian ($7.5 million -$10 million) whether it's $14.95 Australian [$7.50] last September," says Enzo Mazza, president of Italian anti -piracy fed- in sales for the company. or $28.50 Australian [$14.25], and eration FPM. Most of the fines were made at seaside resorts near Rome, In Asia, Sony will handle all Rajon's Rajon worked that idea that a budg- in Tuscany, and on the Adriatic Coast. Like much of the Italian popu- sales and marketing, distribution, and et record doesn't have to look like a lation, illegal vendors move from the cities to the beaches during the manufacturing. The deal covers India, budget record. Their covers are often summer months. FPM estimates that music piracy in Italy is worth Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, In- striking. Their advertising and choice 180 billion lire ($90 million). MARK WORDEN donesia, the Philippines, Hong Kong, wood notes. "The partnership worked of titles are sharp." Taiwan, and Korea. Separate negoti- so well [that] it was a logical step to go John McDonald, manager of Good Leading German retailers are, for the first time, being paid for the use ations have begun for Japan, report- with Sony Asia." Vibrations in Armidale, adds that of their sales data on the country's national charts, under a new agree- edly with Sony. Rajon set up an Asian RMG claims a market share in Aus- RMG's marketing brings a certain ment between trade group HAMM and chart supplier Media Control. office in Bangkok, Thailand last tralia of 4 % -5% and predicts sales of kind of consumer into his store. HAMM, formed in May 2000, claims that its members -including December; it is as yet undecided $30 million Australian ($15 million) "They're people who are intimidated World of Music, HMV, Amazon, aMM, alpha, and jpc-Schallplatten - whether that office's operations will from its Australian operations this fis- by loud music in music stores. They represent more than 55% of the German music -retail market. Major be shifted to Hong Kong, where Sony cal year, according to Burwood, with come in to buy something they've department -store chain Karstadt is an associate member. Under the Music Asia is headquartered. $2 million Australian -$3 million Aus- seen on TV, find there's nothing to be long -term agreement, HAMM has granted exclusive rights to Media "A couple of major labels in Asia tralian ($1 million-$1.5 million) from scared of, and come back more fre- Control to determine and compile charts from its sales data for CDs, approached us about distributing us New Zealand, where it set up an office quently. It adds to my business." DVDs, videos, and games. In the past, HAMM's members offered the information on an individual basis without remuneration. Financial details of the contract are not available. LARS BRANDLE Richard Clayderman Investigates China Syndrome Borders (U.K.) Ltd will open its 12th British store, in Kingston -upon- BY WINNIE CHUNG The album, featuring the 100 -piece our physical borders and let the West Thames, Surrey, this November. The 28,000- square -foot store will BEIJING -French pianist Richard China Broadcasting Chinese Orchestra know more about us. occupy three floors of a new building in the Charter Quay residential, Clayderman has inked a deal with a (CBCO), will be produced by longtime "We felt that one of the best chan- shopping, and leisure development and will employ around 40 full - leading Chinese ethnic music orches- Clayderman associate Olivier Toussaint. nels through which to achieve this time staff. The addition of Kingston- upon- Thames will give the com- tra to jointly record an album of ethnic Along with an accompanying video shot was a collaboration such as this. The pany a total of more than 350,000 square feet of retail space under the songs from northwestern China. in the region, it will be released world- music of both Mr. Clayderman and Borders Books Music Café name. A new 22,000- square -foot store is The album is part of a push by wide in mid -2002 through licensees of the orchestra possesses different tex- also due to open next summer in Islington, north London. A subsidiary Chinese authorities to introduce eth- Toussaint's Delphine label, for which tures, and we will be able to merge of Borders Group, Borders (U.K.) Ltd. also operates 32 outlets under nic Chinese music to the West. The Clayderman records. In China, the the East and the West through hard the Books Etc. banner. TOM FERGUSON light -classical pianist, who has sold album will be released by the Great Wall work and artistic creativity." more than 75 million albums in his Art & Culture label. The CBCO, led by conductor Peng career to date, notes that the project According to Jiao Hongfen, deputy Jiapeng, is the longest -established eth- "will be my first experience combin- head of the China Broadcasting Per- nic orchestra in the country. It uses a ing my piano playing with ethnic forming Arts Troupe -to which the number of rare and unusual instru- Chinese music. I hope this will bring orchestra belongs, "China is very rich ments, including the rangqin, the more opportunities to meld Chinese in ethnic music and culture. The ruanxian, and the paigu. Founded in melodies with the piano." orchestra would like to break out of 1953, the orchestra comes under the RECORD COMPANIES: Jeremy Lascelles is promoted to CEO of the patronage of the State Administration Chrysalis Music Division in the U.K. London -based Lascelles was man- of Radio, Film, and Television of aging director of Chrysalis Music U.K. and the company's Echo label. China, the administrator of the media Charles Caldas is named managing director of Australian independ- industry in China. ent label Shock Records and its publishing company, Hello Mr. Wilson. The as -yet- unnamed album will Melbourne -based Caldas remains CEO of Shock Music Group. contain ethnic melodies from the Sam Clarke is promoted to GM of sales, marketing, and promotions region, which includes the pro- for Shock Records. He was sales director. Also vinces of Xinjiang and Shaanxi. Tou- at Shock, Sarah Downes is promoted to ssaint suggests that the project will national sales manager. She was national enable the pianist to "do a 180 - accounts manager. degree turn in his musical direction, Annie Roseberry is named A &R consultant as well as lead the orchestra into and independent executive producer of select uncharted musical waters." crossover projects for Sony Classical in Europe. Toussaint is in the process of col- Roseberry, based in London, retains an A &R lecting suitable songs for the album, consultancy role at Sony Music Europe's and he expects work on it to start in regional office. September, when he and Clayder- man plan to visit northwestern PUBLISHERS: Oliver Schwenzer is named GM China to absorb local culture. at Hamburg -based Peermusic Germany, effec- 'Stilelibero' Sprouts Brussels Accolade. Eros Ramazzotti, performing at three Recording with the orchestra will tive Oct. 1. He is currently business and legal sold -out dates in Brussels recently, was presented with a platinum award (30,000 take place during November in affairs manager for the German divisions of Universal Records and Uni- units) for Belgian sales of his BMG album Stilelibero. Ramazzotti, right, is pic- China, with mixing to be versal Classics, Jazz, and Family Entertainment. tured with the managing director of BMG Belgium, Thierry Thielemans. subsequent done in France.

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