Sonopress (known as Arvato Entertainment from 2008 to 2015), is the
CD and
DVD replication business of
Bertelsmann. Founded in 1958 to supply
gramophone record for
Bertelsmann's music club and
music label businesses, Sonopress became the world's second biggest replicator of optical discs (CDs and DVDs). Much of that growth was overseen by long term
CEO Uwe Swientek, who was at the company's helm for almost 30 years. Sonopress has factories and sales offices on all five continents, and predominantly serves customers in the
music,
software, and
video game industry.
It was one of the four major units of Arvato AG, the
media and
communications services company that in turn is one of the six divisions of
Bertelsmann. Accordingly, Sonopress was occasionally referred to as Arvato Storage Media. In 2008, to celebrate 50 years in the business, the name Sonopress was dropped and replaced by Arvato Digital Services.[1]
In Jan 7, 2013, Arvato Digital Services North America spun off the replication business into Arvato Entertainment LLC.[2]
In 2015, Arvato Entertainment was re-organized and is now doing business under its former name (i.e. Sonopress) within the
Bertelsmann Printing Group division.
^
abjoint venture with Amperwelle Studio München Programmanbietergesellschaft,
Axel Springer AG, Burda, Studio Gong, m.b.t. Mediengesellschaft der bayerischen Tageszeitungen für Kabelkommunikation, Medienpool and Radio Bavaria Rundfunkprogrammgesellschaft.
^joint venture with Axel Springer, Heinrich Bauer Verlag, Lühmanndruck Harburger Zeitungsgesellschaft and Morgenpost Verlag.