SANTA MONICA, CA (Universal
Music Enterprises) - When Universal
Music Enterprises (UMe), a unit of Universal
Music Group, the world's largest music company, releases its next wave of CDs in The
Millennium Collection series, spanning more than 60 renowned artists, the standard package (both sleeve and tray) will be completely paper-recyclable for the first time in the music industry. A major new step in providing environmentally friendly packaging, the initiative continues the company's long-standing commitment to being "green."
UMe is the first North American music company to replace the traditional jewel case with recycled paperboard sleeves and the plastic tray with trays made from PaperFoam, a new packaging technology from Shorewood Packaging, a business of International Paper, that is paper-recyclable and biodegradable. Shorewood Packaging is the first North American packaging supplier to produce disc trays from PaperFoam. In addition, while the CDs in The Millennium Collection, the best-selling single-artist "best of" series in music history, will feature a four-panel card, the typical eight-page booklet will be available only by download from the UMe site www.ilovethatsong.com/green. Newly packaged The Millennium Collection CDs will be exclusively available at Wal-Mart for three months before their release in 2007 to all retailers.
"Looking at the way today's consumers are storing their music, which is often without the jewel box, Wal-Mart and other retailer's focus on sustainability, the move to this packaging made total sense," said Michael Davis, Executive VP and General Manager, UMe. "The result is a completely repackaged CD that's good for the planet and good for the consumer."
Among the artists whose The Millennium Collection albums will be repackaged are Lynyrd Skynyrd, Eric Clapton, Toby Keith, The Who, Jimi Hendrix, Johnny Cash, KISS, Barry White, Four Tops, Buddy Holly, Cher, Smokey Robinson & The Miracles, Boyz II Men, George Strait, ABBA, Rod Stewart and Neil Diamond. The first new The Millennium Collection release to boast the new packaging, "The Best Of Rob Zombie," debuted on October 10, 2006.
PaperFoam was developed by PaperForm B.V., a Netherlands-based company, and is manufactured in a patented, one-step injection molded process using a starch-based fiber material. PaperFoam is available in various colors, can be embossed and printed and provides excellent dust-free, scratch-free product protection.
Universal Music Enterprises (UMe) is the centralized U.S. catalog and special markets entity for UMG. Working in concert with all of the company's record labels, UMe provides a frontline approach to catalog management, a concentration of resources, a greater emphasis on strategic marketing initiatives and opportunities in new technologies such as the Internet. UMe is comprised of several business units and record labels: Universal Chronicles, the unit that manages and markets UMG's extensive catalog through retail channels; UTV Records, the television marketing unit; Hip-O Records, its independent label that releases CDs and DVDs from outside sources; New Door Records, a label dedicated to producing new music from historically significant recording artists whose catalog is controlled by UMG labels; UMe Digital, the first all digital label from a major music company; Universal Music Media, a company that produces infomercials and long form music programming; Universal Music Special Markets; Universal Film & Television Music; and Universal Music Media, the industry's first company dedicated exclusively to the creation of infomercials as a vehicle to market music. UMe is also designed to aggressively develop a cohesive and strategic approach to maximizing catalog repertoire by initiating and implementing integrated marketing campaigns, direct to consumer programs, brand management initiatives and strategic partnerships.
Universal Music Group is the world's largest music company with wholly owned record operations or licensees in 75 countries. Its businesses also include the Universal Music Publishing Group, one of the industry's largest global music publishing operations. Universal Music Group consists of record labels Decca Music Group, Deutsche Grammophon, Interscope Geffen A&M Records, Geffen Records, Island Def Jam Music Group, Lost Highway Records, Machete Music, MCA Nashville, Mercury Nashville, Mercury Records, Philips, Polydor Records, Universal Music Latino, Universal Motown Records Group, and Verve Music Group as well as a multitude of record labels owned or distributed by its record company subsidiaries around the world. The Universal Music Group owns the most extensive catalog of music in the industry, which is marketed through two distinct divisions, Universal Music Enterprises (in the U.S.) and Universal Strategic Marketing (outside the U.S.). Universal Music Group also includes eLabs, a new media and technologies division, and Universal Music Mobile. Universal Music Group is a unit of Vivendi, a global media and communications company.
Shorewood Packaging (https://www.shorewoodpackaging.com) is a business of International Paper and a leading value-added provider of high quality printing, packaging and retail display products. Shorewood serves a diverse range of consumer products markets through multiple manufacturing facilities in North America, Europe and Asia. Headquartered in the United States, International Paper has been a leader in the forest products industry for more than 100 years. The company is currently transforming its operations to focus on its global uncoated papers and packaging businesses, which operate and serve customers in the U.S., Europe, South America and Asia. These businesses are complemented by an extensive North American merchant distribution system. International Paper is committed to environmental, economic and social sustainability, and has a long-standing policy of using no wood from endangered forests. To learn more, visit https://www.internationalpaper.com.
