Published: May 07, 2007
IMG to Acquire Licensing Partners International
Represents the PGA TOUR, Canadian Football League, Churchill Downs and the Canadian Hockey League; Further Expands IMG's Worldwide Licensing Portfolio

One week after completing its acquisition of
Collegiate Licensing Company (CLC), IMG, the world's premier sports,
entertainment and media company, today announced the acquisition of CLC
sister company, Licensing Partners International (LPI). Terms of the
agreement were not disclosed.
Founded in 2002, Florida-based LPI develops and manages custom trademark
licensing programs, including brand protection, management and promotion,
for some of the world's leading sports, recreation and corporate brands.
LPI revenue has grown more than 300 percent in the four years since its
founding.
LPI's current clients include: the PGA TOUR, the Canadian Football League,
Churchill Downs, Petty Enterprises, the Canadian Hockey League, The
President's Cup and the World Golf Hall of Fame, among others.
In making the announcement, George Pyne, President of IMG's Sports and
Entertainment Group, said, "LPI and its outstanding roster of sports and
recreation brands is a perfect addition to IMG which is committed to
growing our worldwide licensing business and offering clients in sports,
entertainment and media the widest portfolio of licensing services."
Under the agreement, LPI will be fully integrated into IMG's Sports and
Entertainment Group. LPI President, Wesley Haynes, will become Senior Vice
President, Sports Licensing at IMG. LPI will maintain offices in Florida,
Atlanta, Kentucky and Toronto.
Wesley Haynes added, "We are excited about the countless opportunities we
will have to grow our clients' brands through the extensive resources of
IMG. This new alliance will greatly enhance the services and marketing
expertise we have been able to provide our clients to date and is an
opportunity to really take these brands to a higher level."
Further Expands IMG's Worldwide Licensing Portfolio
Already a leader in the multibillion-dollar international licensing and
marketing arena, IMG generates licensing and marketing opportunities for
some of sports and entertainment's best-known brands and personalities
including Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week, The Nobel Foundation, Major League
Baseball, Wimbledon, The United States Golf Association, Cesar Millan,
Tiger Woods, Arnold Palmer, Hilary Duff, Drew Barrymore and Gisele
Bündchen, among many others.
Since Ted Forstmann acquired IMG in 2004, the company has made a series of
strategic acquisitions, starting with Tiger Aspect Productions, the
U.K.-based independent producer of award-winning programs in comedy ("Mr.
Bean"), drama, entertainment, factual, animation ("Charlie and Lola"),
wildlife and features; Darlow Smithson Productions, a worldwide producer of
docudramas, series and documentaries for theatrical release; and Tigress
Production Limited, an adventure productions company specializing in
wildlife, science and documentary projects. These acquisitions have made
IMG one of the world's largest producers and distributors of TV
programming.
Today's announcement follows a series of more recent acquisition activity
by IMG, including its purchase of BSI Speedway, owner of the promoting
rights of the FIM World Individual Speedway Grand Prix Series and FIM
Speedway World Cup; Quintus, the U.K.-based sports marketing company with
an outstanding portfolio of events including the BlackRock Masters Tennis,
the Michelob ULTRA London Triathlon and the Microsoft UK Challenge; CSI
Sports, with a portfolio of clients including English football's governing
body, the Football Association, Football League (including the Carling
Cup), the England and Wales Cricket Board, Cricket Australia; Art +
Commerce, a leading management agency with an impressive client roster of
photographers, stylists, creative directors, and hair and make-up artists;
and Germany-based Nunet, a leading provider of mobile media solutions for
network operators.
About LPI
Licensing Partners International LLC (LPI) specializes in the development
and management of trademark licensing programs for some of the world's
premier sports, recreation and corporate brands. Through a systematic and
targeted approach focused on the individual needs of each client, LPI
develops custom licensing strategies supported with specialized services.
For more information on LPI, visit: www.licensingpartnersintl.com.
About IMG
IMG is the world's premier Sports, Entertainment and Media Company. IMG is
a diversified global business with two major business segments: IMG Sports
& Entertainment, and IMG Media. IMG employs more than 2,600 people in 30
countries. Forstmann Little & Co. purchased IMG in 2004.
IMG Sports & Entertainment includes: consulting services; event ownership
and management; fashion events and models representation; licensing; golf
course design; and client representation in golf, tennis, broadcasting,
speakers, European football, rugby, cricket, motor sports, coaching,
Olympic sports, and action sports. In addition, IMG Academies are the
world's largest and most advanced, state-of-the-art, multi-sport training
and educational facilities, delivering world-class sports training
experiences to over 12,000 junior, collegiate, adult, and professional
athletes each year.
IMG Media, which includes our content production subsidiaries TWI, Darlow
Smithson Productions (DSP), and Tiger Aspect Productions (TAP), is
recognized as a global leader in the delivery of traditional and new media
content and services, with Internet, broadband, and mobile expertise,
transforming how audiences access and interact with content.
IMG Media produces and distributes over 11,000 hours of sports,
documentary, drama, comedy, entertainment, popular factual, and children's
content annually, over multiple platforms across 220 countries, including
award-winning television and radio programming. It also represents the
broadcast rights to many of the world's premier sporting events and has the
world's biggest sports archive with more than 250,000 hours of footage.
More information about IMG is available at www.imgworld.com.
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