Sony BMG Music Entertainment

From the Audiovisual Identity Database, the motion graphics museum



Background

On July 20, 2004, Sony Music Entertainment and Bertelsmann Music Group merged their 50% of their music enterprise to form "Sony BMG Music Entertainment", which was approved by the European Union. On October 1, 2008, Bertelsmann AG agreed to sell the rest of the Sony BMG stake to Sony, renaming the enterprise back to Sony Music Entertainment as a wholly-owned subsidiary.



1st Logo (2004-2009)


Visuals: On a white background, there is a spinning red fuchsia and a blue treble clef. It slowly zooms out to the words "SONY" and "BMG" (in their corporate fonts) and the treble clef falls on the words. The background becomes faded, then a flash occurs and two lines that have above the words "MUSIC ENTERTAINMENT" in Trajan Pro fade in. The treble clef shines.

Variants:

  • An alternate version exists where the letters of "SONY BMG" flash randomly for split seconds, forming the text letter-by-letter on a clear white background, then the lines slide in from both sides and the treble clef and "MUSIC ENTERTAINMENT" fade in. The whole logo then zooms in and blurs away.
  • On the 2006 DVD of Transformers the Movie, the words "HOME ENTERTAINMENT" appear by a light effect a few seconds later.
  • On movies from the company, after the main logo is finished, it zooms out towards the top and the large word "FILM" appears by a light effect.

Technique: CGI.

Audio: Wind sounds, followed by a loud synth chord and some twinkling sounds.

Audio Variants:

  • The alternate version features subtle pounding and a swoosh.
  • The home entertainment and film variants have an additional whoosh for the respective texts.

Availability:

  • It appeared on many music DVDs and DualDisc releases such as Michael Jackson: Thriller 25, Beyoncé B-Day, and R. Kelly's infamous Trapped in the Closet series of music videos.
  • The "HOME ENTERTAINMENT" version appeared on the 2006 DVD of Transformers The Movie: 20th Anniversary Edition.
  • The "FILM" version appeared on the films Ghosts of Cité Soleil and Feel the Noise. It was also seen on the trailer for Joe Strummer: The Future Is Unwritten.

2nd Logo (Mid 2000's)


Visuals: Unknown.

Technique: Unknown.

Audio: Unknown.

Availability: Unknown. [Examples?]

Sony Music Entertainment Inc.
Sony BMG Music Entertainment
Sony Music Entertainment