Sony Pictures Home Entertainment

**Sony Pictures Home Entertainment** (abbreviated as **SPHE**) is the home video distribution division of Sony Pictures Entertainment, a subsidiary of Japanese conglomerate Sony Corporation.

## Background

SPHE is responsible for the distribution of the Sony Pictures library for home entertainment, mainly releases from the Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group (Columbia Pictures, TriStar Pictures, Sony Pictures Classics, and Screen Gems) as well as releases from Sony Pictures Worldwide Acquisitions (Triumph Films, Destination Films, Stage 6 Films and Affirm Films). SPHE also releases and distributes products from Revolution Studios and The Criterion Collection. Since June 20, 2007, SPHE has handled distribution of children's content formerly handled by Sony BMG's Sony Wonder label.

SPHE is also responsible for distribution of television shows from the Sony Pictures Television library, including those produced by Screen Gems, Columbia Pictures Television, TriStar Television, Tandem Productions, TOY Productions, ELP Communications (shows include from T.A.T. Communications to ELP Communications), Four D Productions, Columbia TriStar Television and Sony Pictures Television. On some occasions, the company has distributed television titles not owned by Sony, such as Scholastic Productions' Animorphs, Rovio Entertainment's Angry Birds Toons, Angry Birds Stella and Piggy Tales, and The Jim Henson Company's Fraggle Rock and Emmet Otter's Jug-Band Christmas.

Even though Sony Pictures Television acquired a 95% stake in Funimation back in 2017, SPHE will not distribute any anime films or television shows or live-action Japanese/Asian films licensed by Funimation until Funimation's current multi-year home video distribution service deal with Universal Pictures Home Entertainment (which was formed two years prior) expires.

In Canada, Columbia TriStar Home Video helped distribute tapes from Astral Video in the 1990s. It also has an Australian deal with Hoyts.

## History

### Early history

Sony Pictures Home Entertainment was established in June 1978 as Columbia Pictures Home Entertainment, and released 20 titles in November 1979.

In March 1981, Columbia Pictures established a joint venture with RCA, RCA/Columbia Pictures International Video, to distribute tapes in overseas markets. The partnership expanded to North America as RCA/Columbia Pictures Home Video the following year. The venture distributed NBC titles, as it was a subsidiary of RCA at the time. When Tri-Star Pictures was formed in 1984, R/CPHV became one of the three primary distributors of Tri-Star product for home video (the other two being CBS/Fox Video and Thorn-EMI/HBO Video {later renamed to HBO/Cannon Video and then simply HBO Video}, as CBS and HBO originally held stakes in Tri-Star), and fully assumed distribution of TriStar titles in the early 1990s. They also distributed titles from various other film companies unrelated to Columbia, including most of New Line Cinema's theatrical releases (though not all, as Media Home Entertainment and Family Home Entertainment distributed several NLC films during the Columbia deal). New Line formed their own video label in 1990 (the result of acquiring Nelson Entertainment, which had previously been Embassy Home Entertainment, ironic considering EHE had been owned by Columbia for a brief period of time before being spun off), but continued to go through RCA/Columbia Pictures (as well as SVS-Triumph and then Columbia TriStar Home Video) for distribution until 1994, when Turner Broadcasting acquired NLC and Turner Home Entertainment assumed distribution functions.

In March 1990, NBC filed a lawsuit against Columbia and its then-new parent company Sony under the perception that the latter two parties were violating their joint pact. Columbia purchased the foreign video rights to Orion Pictures titles a month earlier. NBC alleged that they were unaware of this transaction and had become convinced that Columbia was forming their own video unit in strict defiance of the joint venture, which was set to expire in 1992. Sony/Columbia denied NBC's claims. As the lawsuit continued into 1991, General Electric, the parent of NBC and RCA, announced that it was divesting its interest in RCA/Columbia. In August 1991, General Electric sold its 50% share of the company to Sony Corporation, and the litigation officially ended with Sony renaming the company as Columbia TriStar Home Video. It was named Columbia TriStar Home Entertainment from April 2001 until a name change to Sony Pictures Home Entertainment in November 2004.

SPHE had a three-year deal with Starz's Anchor Bay Entertainment for worldwide DVD releases, with the exceptions of North America, Canada, Australia, and the United Kingdom.

### Recent history

On February 21, 2010, The Weinstein Company made a home video distribution deal with SPHE through Sony Pictures Worldwide Acquisitions. On August 31, 2010, SPHE partnered with Image Entertainment in a multi-year agreement, marketing and distributing DVDs and Blu-rays by Image. Image retains its own sales and marketing.

On April 23, 2012, Mill Creek announced that they had signed a home video distribution deal with SPHE, acquiring the rights to distribute 250 films from the Sony Pictures catalog on DVD and Blu-ray. On August 27, 2013, Mill Creek Entertainment signed a deal with SPHE to distribute 665 SPE films and 54 television series on DVD.

Anime News Network reported in February 2013 that Sony Pictures Home Entertainment's Australian joint venture with Universal Pictures Home Entertainment licensed anime television series from NBCUniversal Entertainment Japan for distribution in Australia, with its initial titles, A Certain Magical Index, Shakugan no Shana and Armitage III, scheduled for release on April 24, 2013. From 2017 to 2018, Funimation began directly distributing a select number of its anime titles in Australia and New Zealand through Sony Pictures Home Entertainment's Australian joint venture with Universal Pictures Home Entertainment. In September 2018, Funimation transferred distribution to Madman Entertainment, with Madman handling distribution and classification within the region.

On December 18, 2013, SPHE president David Bishop, who had served since 2006, announced he would leave when his contract expired in March 2014. It was announced that Man Jit Singh would replace Bishop.

On July 22, 2015, SPHE and Transmission Films reached a multi-year distribution pact to release the Transmission Films library in Australia (through Universal Sony Pictures Home Entertainment Australia Pty Limited) and in New Zealand. On November 20, 2015, SPHE announced that it would release Ultra HD Blu-ray releases.

On March 15, 2016, SPHE partnered with eOne to distribute films Momentum Pictures across the globe except for Canada on physical and digital home entertainment platforms. In January 2017, SPHE expanded its distribution deal with Genius Brands to include all properties and acquired an equity stake in company.

On February 6, 2018, Man Jit Singh stepped down as president of SPHE and was replaced by Keith LeGoy.

## External links

http://www.sonypictures.com/movies/discanddigital

https://www.imdb.com/search/title/?companies=co0137851