GAYLORD ENTERTAINMENT ACQUIRES CONTROL OF MUSICFORCE.COM AND LIGHTSOURCE.COM, CREATES GETdigitalmedia AS NEW INTERNET DIVISION
Gaylord Entertainment has purchased 51% of GBRJ Music, LLC, d/b/a Musicforce.com, for $15 million in cash, and the parties have entered into option agreements regarding the additional interests. A portion of the investment was used by Musicforce.com to acquire 100% of Lightsource.com from the KMA Companies.
Musicforce.com is an established online e-commerce community that concentrates on contemporary Christian music, and Lightsource.com is the Christian content provider for the spiritual channel of broadcast.com (www.broadcast.com), now part of the Yahoo!â network. Lightsource.com was founded in 1996; Musicforce.com was begun in 1998.
Musicforce.com and Lightsource.com are the base of GETdigitalmedia, which is headed by Gaylord Entertainment executive Brian Payne as vice president and general manager. It is part of the Gaylord Entertainment Communications Group, directed by Communications Group president Carl Kornmeyer. The core of the management team for GETdigitalmedia will be drawn from Gaylord Entertainment, Musicforce.com and Lightsource.com and will include Musicforce.com founders Randy McCabe and Joe Stradinger.
“Musicforce.com and Lightsource.com bring immediate Internet commerce and broadcasting capabilities to our new division, and we anticipate that the combined operations will generate revenues of approximately $20 million in the next year,” London said. “Musicforce.com provides a commerce engine that can be used by all our brands and new ventures, and Lightsource.com provides exciting Internet broadcasting opportunities through its agreement with Yahoo! for Yahoo! Broadcast Services.”
“Additionally,” Kornmeyer said, “we are bringing in excellent management talent from Musicforce.com and Lightsource.com who will help us focus on the growth and development of GETdigitalmedia. The staff is one of the most important elements of this transaction, and we see our new employees as the foundation of the GETdigitalmedia team.”
McCabe, who was involved in the founding of both Musicforce.com and Lightsource.com, said, “We looked at a number of opportunities to accelerate the growth of our ideas, and we found that Gaylord Entertainment shares our vision. We saw an immediate union of ideas and great strength in Gaylord Entertainment’s brands. When you consider the potential of Christian music, country music and the hotel/convention business—three of Gaylord Entertainment’s prime areas of interest—we have a great future.”
“Musicforce.com and Lightsource.com together generated more than 20 million pageviews in the first half of 1999,” Stradinger added. “When we combine the extensive synergies of the various Gaylord Entertainment brands with the commitment the company is making, we believe we will be a great team.”
"At the KMA Companies, we are thrilled by the growth potential and extended outreach for Lightsource.com,” said Tom McCabe, chairman of the KMA Companies. “The combination of vision, management savvy and resources offered by GETdigitalmedia will bring a whole new dimension to Internet commerce and services.”
"Gaylord Entertainment’s brands reach three broad categories of consumers‑‑people who are attracted to country music, people who enjoy contemporary Christian music and people involved in meetings and conventions,” London said. “Our goal is to be the No. 1 sites on the Internet for Christian music, country music and the convention industry. As you watch development of the Internet, its commercial opportunities gain momentum every day.”
“Our Internet strategy is two-fold,” London said. “First, we will use GETdigitalmedia to enhance the operations, the reach and the customer service of existing components of Gaylord Entertainment. Second, we will create new Internet businesses to build community, deliver content and engage in e-commerce.”
Gaylord Entertainment's existing components include brands known literally around the world--such as the Grand Ole Opry--and brands that are prominent in their own industries, such as Word Entertainment in contemporary Christian music, the Opryland Hotel in the meetings and conventions industry and Country Music Television International and Z Music Television in cable television.
Gaylord Entertainment, headquartered in Nashville, operates in three industry segments: hospitality and attractions, broadcasting and music, and cable networks. In addition to the Opry, the Opryland Hotel, CMT International, Z Music Television and Word Entertainment, the company also encompasses WSM/WWTN Radio, Acuff-Rose Music Publishing, the Ryman Auditorium, the Wildhorse Saloon, Cornerstone Sports, Pandora Films and other entities.
Note: Certain matters discussed herein are forward looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties, including the growth in the popularity of country music and contemporary Christian music, the growth of the hotel/convention business, and the expansion of opportunities available on the Internet. These risks and uncertainties are detailed from time to time in the company's SEC reports, including the report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended March 31, 1999.