Canadian consolidation

It's summer, it's hot and Canadians are busy hooking up. In the steamy months usually reserved for cottage retreats and midday cocktails, four of Canada's most significant production and distribution players inked a marriage with fellow domestic Entertainment One that promises the parties involved better odds at seducing international funds and opportunities. Among the lusty bunch are Toronto tv prodcos Blueprint Entertainment and Barna-Alper Productions, as well as neighboring distributors Oasis International and Maximum Films. The merger hopes to fill a gap created when Alliance Atlantis' sales arm was purchased by us firm Goldman Sachs, which many feel left domestic producers without a globally strong, locally based distribution partner. But it's unlikely this will be a singular event. Most industry insiders see such activity as only the beginning of a trend towards consolidation in Canada, one widely recognized as inevitable, necessary and beneficial. It's also a trend that is already changing the domestic landscape and its relationship with potential partners in the us and overseas.