Phonomatic Group A.G.

Phonomatic was established by the controversial Wilhelm Friedrich Mittrich and registered in Switzerland in March 1984. The company bought over 30 wholesale companies in Germany, Italy, Norway, Spain, Switzerland, Netherlands, UK, Canada, and the United States. All companies were active in licensing, production, distribution, manufacturing and publishing. In the 1980s and 1990s, several of the companies (e.g. Astan Music, Point Productions, Sound Solutions, Tring International, Long Island Music, Boogaard, and a pressing plant near Hamburg, run by brother Harald Mittrich) were subjects of investigations, raids and lawsuits because of copyright infringements in Germany, the Netherlands and the UK. In 1993, the Dutch rights society STEMRA revoked their license deal with Phonomatic and ordered 11 Phonomatic companies to cease manufacturing and distribution due to unpaid royalties, and 3 Phonomatic companies were subsequently expelled from the MIDEM convention due to distributing unlicensed material. Phonomatic Group AG was declared bankcrupt and dissolved by a Swiss cantonal court in December 1993.