Koch Entertainment was a music, film and television distribution company. It was purchased by E1 Entertainment in 2005 and now operates under the name E1 Entertainment.

History

The company began in 1975 as Koch International. Founded by Franz Koch, Koch International was an independent Austrian record label and music distribution company that specialized in German and classical music

Classical music

Classical music is the art music produced in, or rooted in, the traditions of Western liturgical and secular music, encompassing a broad period from roughly the 11th century to present times...

 recordings.

For over 20 years, the company operated under the name Koch Entertainment, a music, film, and television distribution company that was started in 1987 by Franz's son Michael.

By 1991, Koch had become one of the first national independent distributors of domestic labels in the U.S. by offering an alternative to the traditional system of regional independent distribution or national major label distribution. In 1992, Koch was ranked #315 on Inc. Magazine’s list of America’s 500 fastest-growing private companies, and has since grown into an entertainment conglomerate.

Koch expanded into the Canadian market in 1995 by forming the Toronto

Toronto

Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...

-based Koch Entertainment Canada

Koch Entertainment Canada

E1 Entertainment Canada , a division of E1 Entertainment, is one of the largest music and video distribution companies in Canada.-History:...

. It was announced in 2005 that Koch was acquired by Canadian company Entertainment One (formerly ROW Entertainment for a purchase price of approximately $80 million dollars. As of January 2009, Koch has been rebranded under the name E1 Entertainment.