Orchard Enterprises NY, Inc.,[1]doing business asThe Orchard (also known asThe Orchard Music), is an American music and entertainment company, specializing in media distribution.[2][3] It is a division ofSony Music Entertainment, based inNew York City.[4] In 2019, the company sold off its film and television division, which was renamed1091 Media.[5][6]
In early 2003, the Orchard was bought by Dimensional Associates. Danny Stein, the CEO of Dimensional Associates, was appointed Executive Chairman,[8] and Greg Scholl left management consulting firm McKinsey & Company to become The Orchard's CEO,[9] changing its strategy and operating model and building a new management team. In 2009, Scholl accepted a position as president, Local Integrated Media atNBCUniversal[10] and Brad Navin was appointed CEO.[11]
In 2012,Sony acquired a majority stake of 51% in the company in a cash and equity deal with an estimated total valuation of $100 million.[12] In 2015, the remaining equity in the company was acquired bySony Music Entertainment for over $200 million.[12]
IODA (Independent Online Distribution Alliance) was a global sales, marketing and distribution company with majority stake owned bySony. The subsidiary serviced independent artists, labels, filmmakers and other content providers on digital and mobile outlets, including making copyright claims on online content.[13] IODA had relationships with major mobile and online download retailers includingiTunes,eMusic,Rhapsody, andAmazon.com.[citation needed]
On July 1, 2009,Sony Music Entertainment and IODA announced their global strategic partnership to leverage combined worldwide online retail distribution networks and complementary technologies to support independent labels and music rightsholders.[14][15][16]
On March 5, 2012, Sony acquired the remaining stake of IODA. The company's operations were merged with the Orchard.[17][18]
The Orchard's YouTubemulti-channel network has more than 1,000 channels across the globe and uses technology, built in-house, called B.A.C.O.N. (Bulk Automated Claiming on The Orchard Network) to crawl, claim and track YouTube videos to monetize for their clients.[19] It was ranked 7th in the U.S. in July 2014.[20]
BalconyTV is an online music channel launched in June 2006, featuring acoustic performances on balconies around the world. In 2007, it won Best Music Website at the Irish Digital Media Awards,[28] and was nominated for Best Viral Video Content at theWebby Awards in 2008.[29][30] Since then, the channel has expanded to hosting over 12,000 shows in over 50 cities, and more than 25 countries.
The channel was acquired by The Orchard in 2014.[31]
