Naxos Music Group acquires Opus Arte Label

Naxos Music Group acquires Opus Arte Label and signs long-term agreement with Royal Opera House.

Naxos is happy to announce its acquisition of the Opus Arte label from the Royal Opera House. The acquisition marks an important step in the company's expansion of its audiovisual activities, as video is gaining importance in the classical music industry.

The Naxos Music Group has been distributing the label worldwide almost since its launch in 1999. Opus Arte is one of the most important top-line international DVD and Blu-ray labels today, focused on opera, ballet and theatre. The acquisition includes an important catalogue of some 600 productions, many of which are also available for licensing for television and video on demand. While productions of the Royal Opera House are central to its activities, Opus Arte also regularly releases productions of its key partners, such as the Royal Shakespeare Company, The Globe and Glyndebourne.

With the addition of the Opus Arte catalogue, the Naxos Music Group holds rights to some 1,600 audiovisual programmes and is now a major player in the business of performing arts on screen. Along with the acquisition of Opus Arte, the Naxos Music Group signed a longterm cooperation agreement, giving Naxos the first option to distribute and market new and upcoming audiovisual recordings of opera and ballet performances from the Royal Opera House on DVD and Blu-ray, as well as to television, video on demand platforms and educational and other licensing partners.

Royal Opera House Chief Executive Alex Beard said: “We are delighted to hand over the reins to Naxos, the world’s leading classical music label. Naxos will take Opus Arte on to its next exciting phase, ensuring the multi-platform production and distribution company remains at the forefront of delivering high-quality opera, theatre and ballet to audiences worldwide.”

Klaus Heymann, the Founder and Chairman of the Naxos Music Group, expresses his delight at the new acquisition and with the future relationship: "Our group has been distributing Opus Arte for many years and I am familiar with the outstanding artistic and technical quality of the productions. I am happy that the distribution relationship has changed into ownership and one of close cooperation in future productions. We are delighted to advise that the experienced team that has run the label for many years will stay on board and develop and further expand the label, to maintain and strengthen its position in the market, now as part of the Naxos Music Group.”

About the Naxos Music Group
Since its inception in 1987, Naxos has evolved from its beginnings as a budget label to a leading classical music group. Headquartered in Hong Kong with distribution and marketing subsidiaries in 15 countries worldwide, the group distributes its Naxos, Naxos AudioBooks and Marco Polo labels and provides distribution and licensing services to more than 200 independent and major CD and DVD labels. The Naxos Group is also an industry leader in music education boasting a wide range of physical and digital educational products. The Naxos Group’s digital platforms include the Naxos Music Library, Naxos Spoken Word Library and Naxos Video Library subscription services. Please visit www.naxosmusicgroup.com.

About Opus Arte
Opus Arte is an award-winning provider of classical music and theatrical content, releasing around twenty-five titles per year on DVD, Blu-ray, CD, TV and online. Opus Arte is proud to be associated with many of the world’s finest arts organisations, including the Royal Opera House, Glyndebourne, Dutch National Opera & Ballet, Teatro Real, Shakespeare’s Globe, and the Royal Shakespeare Company. Founded as an independent label in 1999, Opus Arte is now part of the Naxos group, the world’s largest independent producer and distributor of Classical Music. Please visit www.opusarte.com.

About the Royal Opera House
The Royal Opera House’s aim is for many more people to enjoy and engage in exceptional ballet and opera. As The Royal Ballet, The Royal Opera and the Orchestra of the Royal Opera House, we bring together the world’s most extraordinary ballet and opera artists in more than 500 performances every year; live events that thrill, move and excite, and that transport people to other worlds through music, theatre and dance. Please visit www.roh.org.uk.