Helen Fletcher looks at how Mexican jukebox manufacturer Arion Group is making ground on the international scene
Aiming to provide the amusement industry with quality content and software through its jukeboxes, the Arion Group, based in Mexico, is starting to really push forward with its penetration into markets outside of South America.
Born out of a strategic alliance between Advanced Technology Research, a company dedicated to the design and development of digital jukeboxes and Consorcio Global, a jukebox operator, Arion recently added distributors in Spain, Italy and Greece to its existing 50 regional distributors across Central and South America and is focused on increasing its presence and brand name internationally over the next 12 months and beyond.
The joint-venture formed by these two companies has allowed them to pool their resources and expertise while benefitting from each other’s experience - making them stronger and allowing each entity to develop its main activity in a more concentrated way.
ATR contributed with its line of Arion jukeboxes including the operating software, music encryption technology, control cards, satellite transmission and so on. Consorcio Global meanwhile, obtained the exclusive distribution rights of Arion jukeboxes and provided its expertise in commercial infrastructure and operation, which significantly increased Arion’s market reach.
The first digital jukebox to be developed by ATR was the Nyx, which integrated music in a CD quality digital format that could be updated through satellite. According to Arion, these digitalised jukeboxes not only revolutionised the market where mechanical systems, operated by records, were still in use, but also marketed the trend towards high-quality digitalised content equipment. Models to follow and complete the ATR line of jukeboxes under the Arion brand would include Calypso, Vektor and Viento - the Vektor II would follow in 2007 after 14 years of constant research efforts.
For ATR, as the problem of music rights continues to plague the jukebox industry, it has been essential its customers see the company for what it is - ethical and honest. With this in mind, it formed an agreement with Somexfon (Mexican Society of Phonograms, Videograms and Multimedia Producers) and representatives of record companies in Mexico, in which both parties negotiated the rights to use the titles in ATR’s jukeboxes, meaning the jukeboxes are sold with all the legal rights of the music, video and karaoke titles featured.
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Jukeboxes have changed dramatically over the years and for ATR this can be split into five areas: content, quality, administration, advertising and software. In the beginning jukeboxes offered purely music and this has now changed to include videos and karaoke options as well as the ability to display advertising and sell different digital product. The imagery and video content displayed on today’s jukeboxes are of superb quality. When it comes to the administration side of things - jukeboxes are actually able to give accurate reports of the incomings, music preferences of the users, statistics on the way the customers use the machines as well as a full sales history.
Another major difference with jukeboxes of today is the advertising opportunities available - they are being used more and more as a commercial communication channel because it is a great platform and gives direct access to a known target audience.
The software used for jukeboxes has also improved dramatically - moving to touchscreens and giving the user the sensation of complete control over the system and making it easy and quick to find the content they want.
While the digital era was the most revolutionary moment for the jukebox industry and a movement ATR feels it was instrumental in, as a whole for ATR it is essential it continues to develop new product in order to remain the leading South American company in the jukebox sector and it is, at present, integrating multimedia and social networking technologies to give its customers added value and increment their revenues. The manufacturer also has a new home orientated multimedia entertainment centre ready to launch - featuring all the characteristics of a jukebox as well as being able to store and reproduce multimedia content.
Looking forward, the Arion Group will continue to push forward with its quality innovative product into international markets and is convinced its name will soon become well-known and accepted across Europe as a product able to offer new functions that enables operators to make more money, while becoming one of the end-user’s preferred brands of jukebox.
First published June, 2010
