U.k. Indie Distributors Group Formed

LONDON‹Nine of Britain's smaller independent video distributors have formed a new alliance "to protect the commercial, business, and legal interests of its members."
The British Independent Video Distributors Alliance (BIVDA) is described as "an informal grouping of modestly sized independent labels" and is intended to pool resources and information where appropriate.
BIVDA chairman Martin Nash, who heads Nouveaux Pictures, said the new body is not intended as a rival to the well-established British Video Assn., which represents most Hollywood majors in the U.K.
"The BIVDA is here to give the small, independent, sell-through labels a little bit more influence over the areas of the business which most affect us, and these are largely different from those which concern the mainstream video industry," he says.
Founders include Arena Films, Arrow Entertainment, Fabulous Films, Nouveaux, Sovereign Entertainment, Art House Productions, Connoisseur Video, guerrilla films, and Second Sight.
The main emphasis, Nash says, was in negotiating deals with suppliers of such services as sleeve printing, duplication, and advertising. The BIVDA would be representing a catalog of more than 800 titles representing sales of about 500,000 units a year.
But he added that just as important was the BIVDA's role as a mouthpiece to "safeguard our interests and to ensure our direct involvement in matters which affect us."
The indie distributors' move comes as U.K. independent video rental retailer body the Entertainment Software Retailers Alliance (ESRA) announced it would try to set up a buying group for smaller stores. The ESRA represents 50 chains with some 1,700 outlets. It is now keen to attract affiliated members from the mom-and-pop sector.
Director general Derek Mann says that while the U.K.'s video sector rose 15% to 1.4 billion pounds ($2.29 billion) in 1998, the smaller stores have not fared as well because they have been unable to negotiate the discounts available to the chains.
A buying group would offer a commercial benefit to smaller video retailers and so encourage them to join the ESRA. The plan would have one of the U.K.'s four national video wholesalers make the purchases, says Mann. "It could help to create the level playing field the independents need to survive and prosper."