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Sony Home Ent. Takes Over Sony Wonder

Sony Pictures Home Ent. will be taking over control of Sony Wonder from its sister company, Sony BMG Music Ent., reports VARIETY. Sony Wonder vp of development Steve Okin will have the title of vp of family entertainment. His duties will be to develop and acquire non-feature family programming.

Moving from SONY BMG, Olga Economou will become exec director of Sony Wonder sales.

The move gives Sony Pictures Home Ent. such properties as HOLLY HOBBY, HAROLD AND THE PURPLE CRAYON and THE BERENSTAIN BEARS. It plans to release DRAGON TALES, STUART LITTLE and IT'S A BIG, BIG WORLD under the Sony Wonder name.

Recently, Sony BMG has been selling off many of its home entertainment assets. The Weinstein Co.'s Genius Products gained the DVD distribution rights to SESAME STREET, VEGGIETALES and World Wrestling Ent. while Universal Music Group Distribution's Vivendi Visual Ent. obtained DVD rights to Shout! Factory products.

"We believe that there still is brand recognition in the marketplace," Sony home entertainment president David Bishop said to the trade paper. "Those titles didn't come over with Sony Wonder. But this is an opportunity to build a new Sony Wonder with fresher properties that will eventually carve out a significant market share."

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