Shares of one of Europe’s largest optical disc manufacturing and distribution company, Entertainment Distribution Company (EDC), were sold to new owner AEGIS GmbH on Wednesday.

The German, Hannover-based company was previously owned by Entertainment Distribution Company Netherlands Holdings B.V, a subsidiary of New York-based EDC LLC.

AEGIS is a newly-established company in which the three managing directors of EDC GmbH – John Fitzgerald, Yorck Köhn and Harald Liebich – have together a controlling interest.

The objective of the new EDC owners are to enlarge the customer base and strengthen the existing relationships with the company’s current customers. Furthermore, the management says it wants to keep pursuing a diversification strategy of the manufacturing and logistics operations “in order to provide a long-term perspective for the company and its employees.”

With a dedicated 792,000 square foot plant in Hannover, EDC currently employs a staff of 650. The company, under previous US control, consolidated its operations in December 2009 by closing down its Blackburn, UK operations. Fitzgerald was appointed Managing Director and CEO in January 2010.

EDC was recognised at the recent annual German Amazon Vendor Days, where it was instrumental in helping two of its clients – games supplier ActivisionBlizzard and Universal Music Germany – win the coveted Golden Pallet for logistics services.

Story filed 02.12.11