Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment (TCFHE) will distribute Hopscotch/Entertainment One’s DVD and Blu-ray products in Australia and New Zealand from next February.
The deal ends Hopscotch’s six-year partnership with Roadshow Entertainment and follows the Australian-based distributor’s sale to eOne in May. That deal has helped Hopscotch/eOne ramp up its local operations: in June it signed a multi-year output deal with Lakeshore Entertainment and in October it signed a three-year output agreement with Summit Entertainment.
“The Hopscotch product schedule reflects an exciting growth phase with a broad range of commercial theatrical releases, big brand TV franchises and quality independent and straight to DVD releases that will complement the Fox product portfolio, and give us a tremendous foundation for business success,” TCFHE senior vice president Northern Europe and Asia Pacific, Steven Leighton, said in a statement.
Hopscotch/eOne’s new release TV and catalogue products include Midnight in Paris, starring Owen Wilson and Rachel McAdams, and We Need to Talk About Kevin, starring Academy Award-winning actress Tilda Swinton.
Meanwhile, eOne recently released further information the Hopscotch acquisition.
It said Hopscotch generated £6.3 million revenue and £900,000 profit before tax in the period between acquisition (May 13) and September 30.
In the six-month period ended September 30, parent eOne company generated £204.6 million revenue and £9.8 million profit before tax.
The £12.6 million net price that eOne paid for Hopscotch included £6.3 million in net cash.
Contact this reporter at bswift@www.if.com.au or on Twitter at @bcswift.