Warner Music Group: Difference between revisions

In 1990, Atlantic Video changed its name to '''A*Vision Entertainment''' after hiring Stuart Hersch as president. In 1991, WMG launched a subsidiary, '''Warner Music Vision''' to produce music videos. The first of the general entertainment videos with Atlantic's branding were the ''NASCAR Video'' magazine series. A*Vision secured the distribution rights to Penthouse Video's releases for the mass-market starting in 1991. The following year, the company acquired home video rights to the ''Shining Time Station'' series, as well as taking the ''Jane Fonda'' franchise from [[Warner Bros. Home Entertainment|Warner Home Video]]. In mid 1992, WEA had secured the distribution rights to Live Home Video's titles from Uni Distribution Corporation.

In late 1992, the A*Vision group was split. The A*Vision name was used for general entertainment releases, Penthouse and Jane Fonda titles, the KidVision name for children's releases, and the NightVision name was used for erotic releases. In 1993, it began co-marketing the Rhino Home Video librarylabel with Rhino Home Video's corporate parent Rhino Records. That year, A*Vision picked up the rights to the Kathy Smith workout videos from [[Media Home Entertainment]] and started the '''BodyVision''' label for workout releases. Additionally, the company launched the film label '''Atlantic Group Films''' for feature films. In 1994, the company begin distributing titles from Saban Home Entertainment and Libra Home Entertainment, outbidding [[PolyGram Video]], such as ''Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers''. Also that year, the company purchased The Maier Group, who produced the ''Buns of Steel'' videos.

In 1995, the company was shifted to Warner Bros. Records and it was renamed to '''WarnerVision Entertainment''' to reflect the move. Also, the film unit changed its name to '''WarnerVision Films'''. Also that year, the company picked up the sell-through distribution rights to Coliseum Video's titles. Shortly afterwards, the '''Atlantic Video''' label was quickly reinstated. Following the move, the company picked up the ''Kidsongs'' license from View-Master Video and former mass-market distributor Warner Reprise Video. Also, WarnerVision picked up the rights to the Dualstar Video titles from the defunct BMG Kidz, as well as Lightyear Entertainment from [[Bertelsmann Music Group|BMG Video]].

Later that year, Time Warner Entertainment announced its plan to spin-off the company to president Stuart Hersch, who is planning on to revert to the '''A*Vision Entertainment''' name. The following year, the plans were cancelled, and distribution of WMG's general entertainment titles, including the WarnerVision library, and its contracts with Rhino Home Video and Lightyear Entertainment, moved from Warner-Elektra-Atlantic Corporation to Warner Home Video, and laid off staff.

WarnerVision would soon lose its contracts of the Coliseum titles to GoodTimes Home Video and the Saban titles to 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment in late 1996, the ''Kidsongs'' titles to [[Sony Music Entertainment]] in 1997, and the Penthouse titles to Image Entertainment in 1999. The company became an in-name only unit of WMG in order to continue producing ''Real Wheels'' and ''The Magic School Bus'' videos. The company shifted its focus on only doing music titles again. In 2002, WMG purchased Word Entertainment, and as a result, for two years, before Big Idea was sold to Classic Media, WEA and Warner Home Video shared distribution of Big Idea's titles, which reunited WEA with WHV since the latter parted ways with the former in the mid-1990s.