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MillimeterAscent Media Group Acquires Cinetech
Oct 21, 2004 12:47 PM
Santa Monica, Calif.--Ascent Media Group announced the acquisition of Cinetech, the market leader in motion picture restoration, protection, and preservation services from Westar Capital, a Costa Mesa, Calif.-based private equity firm. Since its founding in 1990 by president Sean Coughlin, Cinetech has built a reputation for excellence in service and technical innovation working with the leading creators and owners of filmed content. Through this acquisition, and in combination with its existing laboratory facilities in Burbank, California and London, England, AMG is positioned as a worldwide leader in preservation and restoration services.
"AMG continues to be the global leader in providing end-to-end service solutions to the media and entertainment industry, including seamless creation, management and distribution of content for our clients," says Ken Williams, president and CEO, Ascent Media Group. "Through its world-class reputation, patented workflows, and technologies, the acquisition of Cinetech enhances Ascent Media's position as the leading global provider of traditional and next generation services to the media and entertainment industry."
Cinetech's reputation for quality has led the company to work on content from every major film library in the world--more than 8,500 titles including many of the most important films of the 20th century, such as The Wizard of Oz, Easy Rider, On the Waterfront, In the Heat of the Night, and Lost Horizon. Based in Valencia, Calif., the company has received numerous accolades including the 2002 Scientific and Engineering Award from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for the engineering and development of the RCI-Color Film Restoration Process.
"We are delighted to be joining the team at AMG," adds Coughlin. "Ascent Media's global reach and market position, combined with Cinetech's expertise and reputation, creates a powerhouse of restoration and preservation services for the feature film, television and home entertainment industry."
In his new role, Coughlin continues to manage Cinetech and also assumes overall leadership of Ascent Media's Burbank lab operations. As part of the acquisition, Cinetech operations located in Valencia will focus on photo-chemical and digital restoration and asset protection, while traditional film processing, dailies and lab services will be handled by AMG's Burbank laboratory.
"After 30 years of working in the lab industry and watching it evolve through many incarnations, it is exciting to see the combination of these two great facilities under Sean Coughlin's leadership," states Don Nikkinen, vice president of Ascent Media's Burbank lab services. "I am looking forward to working with Sean on this transition."
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