Sony 1997 Annual Report Download - page 28

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Sony Corporation Annual Report 1997
Martin (Mexico), Meja (Sweden), CoCo Lee,
Mindy Quah, and Harlem Yu (Taiwan), and
Jamiroquai (UK).
A worldwide licensing and distribution
agreement was signed with the new UK label
Independiente, and SMI’s expansion into new
territories continued with the start-up of wholly
owned subsidiaries in India and Indonesia and
the further development of subsidiaries in the
Philippines, Poland, and South Africa.
Classical Movements
Sony Classical became the top classical label
in the United States, led by the success of its
Summon the Heroes , Appalachia Waltz ,
Under the Spanish Sky , In Gabriel’s Garden ,
and
The Mozart Ses-
sions
projects. It
launched the Master-
works Heritage series,
featuring remastered
landmark recordings,
and signed to exclusive
contracts composer
Tan Dun, conductor
Andrew Parrott, pianist
Arcadi Volodos,
singers Susan Graham
and Angelika
Kirchschlager, and
violinists Joshua Bell,
Hilary Hahn, and Mark
O’Connor.
Music Publishing
Sony/ATV Music Publishing achieved strong
results, signing exclusive, worldwide adminis-
tration agreements with Children’s Television
Workshop, New Line Cinema, Sunbow
Productions, and the RKO, Hyperion Films,
and Shooting Gallery film studios. Worldwide
administration deals were signed with top pop
songwriters Martin Page and Charles Fox, and
co-publishing agreements were struck with
Cheap Trick and Chucky Thompson.
Collin Raye’s “On the Verge” single from his
third album,
I Think About You , is the fast-
est rising single in Epic Nashville’s history.
Sony Classical composer John Williams wrote, recorded and
performed “Summon the Heroes,” the official Centennial Theme
of the 1996 Olympic Games.
Sony Music Entertainment (Japan) Inc.
(SMEJ)
SMEJ implemented a new internal organization
during the year to respond to the challenges
posed by a rapidly changing marketplace. The
main objective was to speed decision-making
by creating a flatter organization and giving
more opportunities to younger staff members.
To foster the long-term development of new
artists, SMEJ revised its policy for releasing
new titles. This reduced the number of new
releases considerably, resulting in generally
weak record sales for the year. The year was
highlighted by smash albums from JUDY AND
MARY and Dreams Come True, along with
highly successful releases from Puffy, one of
SMEJ’s new artists.
THE POWER SOURCE
by JUDY AND MARY and amiyumi by Puffy achieved
strong sales in Japan.