Tannen Media Ventures, Inc. has interests in two television and film companies:
Screen Media Ventures, LLC was formed in April 1999 by Joe Kovacs to acquire television and feature motion pictures for distribution to television, cable, satellite and home video markets in the United States and throughout the world.
The Company has in excess of 600 feature film titles in active distribution throughout the world. It has launched and licensed 7 syndication packages to broadcast television stations throughout the United States, including stations owned or affiliated with Disney, Paramount and Scripps-Howard. The Company has also concluded licenses with virtually every pay and basic cable television broadcaster, including Showtime Networks, HBO, Turner Networks, USA Networks, and Lifetime Television. In the international markets, the Company has closed television and video licenses in virtually every territory of the world. The Company exhibits at many of the industry's trade shows, including NATPE, AFM, MIP-TV, MIPCOM, MIFED, DISCOP, and the Asian Television Forum.
The Company's 600 plus title film library is comprised of titles produced in the 1990's through 2001 by such companies as Behaviour Worldwide, Image Organization, Showtime Networks, Nu Image, Promark Entertainment, Blockbuster Entertainment, Kushner-Locke, Motion International, Crystal Sky, MPCA, plus a variety of independent producers. Virtually every title is highly promotable and has stars such as Keanu Reeves, Antonio Banderas, Christopher Lambert, Melanie Griffith, Shirley MacLaine, Gary Sinise, Daryl Hannah, Dolph Lundgren, Rutger Hauer, Rob Lowe, Joe Mantegna, Christopher Walken, Ewan MacGregor, Matthew Modine, Dennis Hopper, James Spader, Holly Hunter, Kiefer Sutherland, Brad Pitt, Marlon Brando, Donald Sutherland, Jean-Claude van Damme, Rosanna Arquette, Tim Roth, Timothy Hutton, Richard Dreyfus, William Hurt and Jamie Lee Curtis.
Joseph E. Kovacs is President of Screen Media Ventures. An industry executive with over 25 years of experience, Mr. Kovacs formed and founded MTG Media Properties, Ltd., a division of the Swedish media conglomerate Industriforvaltnings AB Kinnevik and Modern Times Group MTG AB. Prior to forming MTG, Mr. Kovacs served as President of All American Television, a publicly traded entertainment company he helped found.
Primary financiers of Screen Media Ventures are BCI Partners, Inc., Tannen Media Investment Fund, Alta Communications and Cahn Capital. BCI Partners has financed over 75 companies in the broadcasting and communications area. Tannen Media is headed by Mike Tannen, a prominent music, entertainment, and new media executive. Alta Communications invests in information technology, communications, and healthcare/technology companies. It currently has $1.5 billion of capital under management.
Expo TV is a branded destination for video marketing and advertising programming. Expo is building a multi-platform offering with a dedicated cable network, a cable video-on-demand (VOD) offering and an internet offering. Expo seeks out the best long form advertising and direct response programming available and creates a consumer destination by adding its own proprietary programming, "wrapper" content, navigation, and marketing support.
Expo launched in October 2004 on video on demand (VOD) and on the internet, with the full time channel still under development. Expo serves the interests of consumers and advertisers:
- Expo respects the way
viewers watch and learn from video programming. The multiple platforms, two of
which are on-demand (VOD and broadband), allow viewers to gravitate to the format
they find most compelling and convenient while still enjoying benefits of the Expo brand.
- Expo creates a unique
consumer friendly environment for the viewer. The single largest barrier to consumers
buying products of interest from direct response programming is a lack of trust of
the seller. Expo expects to build a trusted relationship with consumers through a
suite of targeted services.
- Expo offers advertisers
a new direct-to-consumer marketing outlet, helping address questions about the
effectiveness of traditional advertising. Marketers will be able to own and control
messaging that both educates and entertains. At the same time, Expo's brand and
destination will provide marketer content with the benefits of a pre-existing,
interested audience. It will deliver on the new demands by advertisers toward
measurable results, lead generation and consumer feedback loops.
- Expo will exploit the internet to provide a 360 degree consumer product information experience. The compelling nature of video product demonstration will be complemented by online information and services to support the network's community.
Expo is led by co-founders Daphne Kwon, CEO, and Bill Hildebolt, President. Daphne was previously CFO of Oxygen Media and brings with her 10 years of media experience. Bill was previously at General Atlantic Partners, a venture capital firm, and Morgan Stanley. The affiliate relations team is run by Peter Gochis, formerly head of affiliate relations at Tech TV, and Gordon Jones, formerly of HBO, Bloomberg and Wisdom TV. The Board of Directors includes Dick Beahrs (former President of Court TV), and Lisa Hall (President and COO of Oxygen Media).
All content © 2005 Tannen Media Ventures, Inc.