Movie Moguls Buy Research Agency

ZelnickMedia, a media and entertainment partnership owned by leading execs from journalism, media agencies and TV & movie studios, has announced its first MR acquisition, that of online market research service OTX, founded in 2000 by research industry veteran Shelley Zalis.

Three year-old ZelnickMedia owns and manages enterprises in recorded music, catalogue and online retailing, CD manufacturing, online games, and media-related software in the US, Europe and Asia. Among the partners are Strauss Zelnick, former CEO of BMG Entertainment and president/COO of 20th Century Fox and Scott Siegler, former president of Tri-Star Television, Columbia Pictures Television and Granada Entertainment USA.

Los Angeles-based OTX, currently owned by IFILM Corporation, specializes in both consumer brand and entertainment industry market research, and applies online testing for quantitative and qualitative research. The company has over 70 full time employees and offices in New York, Cincinnati, and San Antonio, as well as strategic affiliates in Australia, Japan, and the UK. Clients include major film studios as well as leading Fortune 500 packaged goods marketers.

OTX will now have ZZ at the Top: Zalis, a former executive at ASI and VNU, will continue as CEO with Strauss Zelnick as Chairman of the Board. The other key executives at OTX will remain in their current positions - these include Bruce Friend, most recently senior vice president of Research for Columbia TriStar Worldwide Marketing Group, heading the OTX entertainment division; Kevin Goetz, who joined the company from NRG, heading OTX's screening division; former IPSOS/ASI North America CEO and president Roger Fleschig, heading the consumer brand division; and OTX Co-founder, Kristin Luck, executive vice president of operations.

Zalis says she is delighted with the acquisition: 'ZelnickMedia will provide OTX with both the strategic partnership and the financial resources to maximize our ability to serve our customers'. Zelnick says his company plan to 'work with OTX to aggressively expand its business both organically and by acquisition'.

According to Siegler, ZelnickMedia aims to 'invest in and manage companies that help make the media and entertainment marketplace more efficient... we believe that OTX has built a better mouse trap, and that on-line data collection and testing is faster, more accurate, and less expensive than off-line alternatives'.

OTX's Web site is at www.otxresearch.com

All articles 2006-23 written and edited by Mel Crowther and/or Nick Thomas unless otherwise stated.