Back to press releasesNewark, N.J., March 16, 2004 – IDT Entertainment today announced that it has acquired DKP Effects, Inc., a 3-D animation, and special effects production company, based in Toronto, Canada, well known for its innovative work for movies and television. IDT Entertainment is a subsidiary of IDT Corporation (NYSE:IDT, IDT.C), a multinational carrier, telephone and technology company.
Established in 1985 by Dan Krech and Jackie Lynette, DKP Effects, Inc. has gained an international reputation for excellence for the high-end, digital visual effects it has produced for feature films, television, video features and commercials. DKP has completed special effects for some of Hollywood’s top studios, including 20th Century Fox, Paramount Pictures, Universal Pictures, Warner Bros. and New Line/Alliance Films. The company is also responsible for effects and animation for over 3000 commercials, including award winning spots for such clients as Suzuki, Ford, Pepsi, GMC, Polaroid, Michelin, Bose, PlayStation and Fisher Price. DKP recently completed 6 episodes of “Game Over,” a new prime time computer generated (CG) animated series for UPN that depicts the humorous daily activities of a regular suburban family living inside a video game world.
“This acquisition brings that extra measure of pizzazz to the animation magic created by IDT Entertainment,” said Jim Courter, IDT’s CEO. “By adding DKP’s cutting edge technology to its own world class computer generated animation capabilities, IDT Entertainment moves further ahead of the competition.”
DKP provides IDT Entertainment with another production hub in its growing integrated global animation network that includes key facilities in Newark, Los Angeles, Vancouver, and Israel. In addition, DKP’s powerful production tool, the Graphic Realtime Information Display (theGRID™) will add depth to IDT Entertainment’s considerable production capability. TheGRID, which DKP utilized on “Game Over,” speeds up and simplifies the management and completion of complex animation projects by connecting all elements of production and accelerating real time changes. Recently, DKP completed a “VeggieTales” episode entitled “Snoodles” and 3-2-1 Penguins! for Big Idea Productions, as well as the ground-breaking DVD interactive movie, “Scourge of Worlds, A Dungeons & Dragons Adventure™.”
“DKP shares our passion for high quality production that is both innovative and efficient,” said Morris Berger, IDT Entertainment’s CEO. “This acquisition provides IDT Entertainment with additional production options and additional premium properties. By adding DKP’s work on ‘GameOver’ to the IDT production roster that includes “The Simpsons” and “King of the Hill,” IDT Entertainment becomes the largest and only production facility producing 2-D and 3-D primetime broadcast programming.”
“We are thrilled to join the exceptionally talented group of companies at IDT Entertainment,” said Dan Krech, President of DKP Effects, Inc. “Collaboration with this elite global team of industry icons provides DKP with infinite opportunities to develop and produce ground-breaking original animation.”
In March 2003, Digital Production Solutions (DPS), now a unit of IDT Entertainment, acquired rights to Starpoint Academy and Char, both Gene Roddenberry creations. Starpoint Academy is presently in production. In May 2003, IDT Entertainment acquired a controlling interest in Film Roman, Inc., the animation company well known for its production work on The Simpsons, King of the Hill, and other popular broadcast television programs. In July 2003, IDT Entertainment acquired a minority equity interest in Vanguard Animation, LLC. Under the terms of the Vanguard Animation investment, IDT Entertainment was granted a first look right to provide production services on future Vanguard Animation projects. IDT and Vanguard Animation also entered into a joint venture agreement to jointly develop, produce, finance and arrange distribution of computer generated (CG) animation entertainment. In December 2003, IDT Entertainment acquired a controlling interest in Mainframe Entertainment Inc., a Vancouver, Canada based entertainment company well known for producing CG animation for films, television, videogames and the direct-to-consumer market. In December 2003, IDT Entertainment acquired Anchor Bay Entertainment Group from Handleman Company. In January 2004, IDT Entertainment acquired a five percent (5%) equity interest in Archie Comics Entertainment, LLC.
IDT Corporation, through its IDT Telecom subsidiary, is a facilities-based, multinational carrier that provides a broad range of telecommunications services to retail and wholesale customers worldwide. IDT Telecom, by means of its own national telecommunications backbone and fiber optic network infrastructure, provides its customers with integrated and competitively priced international and domestic long distance and domestic all-distance telephony and prepaid calling cards. IDT Entertainment is the IDT subsidiary focused on developing, acquiring, producing and distributing computer-generated and traditionally animated productions and other productions for the film, broadcast and direct-to-consumer markets. IDT Media is the IDT subsidiary principally responsible for the Company’s initiatives in radio broadcasting, brochure distribution and new video technologies. Winstar Holdings, LLC, which provides service under the IDT Solutions brand, is the IDT subsidiary focused on providing broadband and telephony services to commercial and governmental customers through a fixed-wireless and fiber infrastructure. Net2Phone, Inc., a subsidiary of IDT Corporation, is a leading provider of high-quality global retail Voice over IP services and offers a fully outsourced cable telephony service to cable operators allowing cable operators to provide residential phone service to their subscribers.
IDT Corporation’s Class B Common Stock and Common Stock trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbols IDT and IDT.C, respectively.
Important Note: In this press release, all statements that are not purely about historical facts, including, but not limited to, those in which the words “believe,” “anticipate,” “expect,” “plan,” “intend,” “estimate, “target” and similar expressions, are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. While these forward-looking statements represent IDT’s current judgment of what may happen in the future, actual results may differ materially from the results expressed or implied by these statements due to numerous important factors, including, but not limited to, those described in IDT’s most recent report on SEC Form 10-K (under the heading “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations”), which may be revised or supplemented in subsequent reports on SEC Forms 10-Q and 8-K and other filings IDT may make with the SEC.
