Last checked at 30 Oct 2012 08:00
30 October 2012
Parallel Media Group PLC
("PMG" or the "Company")
PMG Launches K-pop Division With New Sponsorship Deal With AIA
Subsequent to this morning's announcement, which confirmed that PMG had acquired the remaining 50% stake in Parallel Smart Media Asia Alpha Entertainment Pte Limited, PMG, the AIM quoted sports marketing, entertainment and digital media agency, announces the creation of a K-pop division with operations in Seoul and Singapore, headed up by Sonia Hong, President of Parallel Media Korea.
The division's first signing is an innovative sponsorship deal with the Asian listed insurance group AIA which links AIA with K-pop through the creation of the AIA K-pop Tour. The K-pop Tour kicks off on January 5th in Hong Kong with a concert featuring the six member band Beast, A Pink and 4Minute at the EXPO Arena. Further concerts will be announced in due course.
PMG has also signed an extension to its current sponsorship representation agreement with SKARF the Singapore based K-pop group.
PSMAA staged its first concert in June 2012 for the six-piece South Korean boy band Shinwha after entering into an agreement with leading Korean media and entertainment company CJ E&M in April 2012 to bring K-pop to Singapore. This was followed by a further concert by the Wonder Girls which was also held in Singapore during September 2012. Giant, TC Connections and Yes Asia sponsored the event.
Gordon Watson, Regional Chief Executive of AIA said: "As a company that maintains an exclusive focus on Asia, and that has a leading presence in this region, we are very excited by the opportunity to support the K-pop phenomenon. We look forward to welcoming the AIA K-pop tour to Hong Kong, where AIA is proud to be headquartered. "
Sonia Hong, President of PMG's K-pop division said:
"I am delighted that we have concluded the deal with AIA, which I believe is the first time that a major brand has linked itself to K-pop. Our K-pop franchise is growing and the recent global success of PSY has illustrated the global interest in this genre."
-End-
For further information, please contact:
Parallel Media Group plc 020 7225 2000
Amelia Wix
Northland Capital Partners Limited 020 7796 8800
Luke Cairns, Edward Hutton
Bishopsgate Communications 020 7562 3350
Nick Rome, Sam Allen
pmg@bishopsgatecommunications.com
Notes to Editors:
About PMG and PMGA
Parallel Media Group plc (PMG) is a leading sports marketing, media and event management company, which has been involved in a diverse range of projects from sports to music. Parallel Smart Media, PMG's digital arm, which is 75% owned by PMG, brings innovative digital solutions to the sport and entertainment world. Parallel Media Group Asia Limited (PMGA) is 51% owned by PMG and operates from PMG's new office in Singapore. PMGA has a focus on sponsorship rights, out of home advertising sales as well as entertainment and art projects.
About K-pop
Korean Pop (K-pop) is a musical genre consisting of pop, dance, electropop, hip hop, rock, R&B, electronic music, and has become one of South Korea's most notable exports in recent years. Its audience is largely female, from early teens through to late 20s. It has been making inroads into Europe, an expansion that has been noticed by the big corporations, such as iTunes, which started selling K-pop to European audiences early in 2010, and Google which is planning to set up a K-pop channel.
About AIA
The business that is now AIA was first established in Shanghai over 90 years ago. It is a market leader in the Asia Pacific region (ex-Japan) based on life insurance premiums, and holds leading positions across the majority of its markets. It had total assets of US$119,494 million as of 31 May 2012.
The AIA Group meets the savings and protection needs of individuals by offering a comprehensive suite of products and services including retirement planning, life insurance and accident and health insurance. The Group also provides employee benefits, credit life and pension services to corporate clients. Through an extensive network of agents and employees across Asia Pacific, AIA serves the holders of more than 24 million individual policies and over 10 million participating members of group schemes.
The AIA Group is a market leader in the Asia Pacific region based on life insurance premiums, and holds number one positions in six of its geographical markets. Due to its historical roots in Asia, the AIA Group has built a network of mainly wholly-owned businesses operating as branches or subsidiaries. Only in India, where legislation restricts foreign ownership of insurance companies to 26%, is the Group's main operating unit a joint venture.
AIA is listed on the Main Board of The Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited under the stock code "1299" with American Depositary Receipts (Level 1) being traded on the OTC market (ticker symbol: "AAGIY").