Heron Communications#Assets

{{more citations needed|date=May 2012}}

{{Infobox company

| name = Heron Communications Inc.

| logo =

| fate = Ceased operations

| foundation = {{Start date and age|1984}}

| defunct = {{End date and age|1993}}

| type = Subsidiary

| industry = Production and Distributionhttps://www.imdb.com/company/co0052823/ {{User-generated source|certain=yes|date=March 2022}}

| subsid = Heron Home Video
Media Home Entertainment
Hi-Tops Video
Fox Hills Video
The Nostalgia Merchant

| parent = Heron International

}}

Heron Communications was a production company, distributor and a subsidiary of Gerald Ronson's Heron International.

It owned various home video companies, including Heron Home Entertainment (formerly Videoform Pictures), which had a joint venture with PolyGram Video, Channel 5 Video.{{Cite news|date=1986-01-01|title=Heron, PolyGram Set Joint Venture With Low Pricing|page=25|work=Variety}}{{Cite web |date=11 July 1987 |title=Channel Five Moves Into Music & Kid Vid |url=https://www.worldradiohistory.com/hd2/IDX-Business/Music/Billboard-Index/IDX/1987/1987-07-11-Billboard-Page-0058.pdf |access-date=5 May 2024 |website=World Radio History}}

In 1984, it bought out the American home video company Media Home Entertainment, also including The Nostalgia Merchant. In 1986, Heron expanded in the US with two new labels; children's-oriented Hi-Tops Video,{{Cite news|date=1986-07-09|title=Heron Establishes Kidvid Label; Moss, Steingard Aboard|page=31|work=Variety}} and sell-through oriented label Fox Hills Video (with The Nostalgia Merchant now part of Fox Hills).{{Cite news|date=1986-08-27|title=Heron Sets Name, Product & Execs Of New Vid Branch|page=30|work=Variety}}

In 1987, Heron Communications teamed up with fledging film distributor Troma Entertainment to distribute nine films on videocassette through the Media label, and also became involved with Cox Video and executive producer Alan Landsburg to produce direct-to-video documentaries for the Fox Hills Video label.{{Cite news |date=1987-07-22 |title=Heron Obtains 9 Troma Films For HV And Inks With Cox For Madefors |page=44 |work=Variety}}

That October, it entered into an agreement with NFL Films that would make Fox Hills the exclusive distributor for NFL Films Video titles.{{Cite news |last=Bierbaum |first=Tom |date=1987-10-21 |title=Fox Hills To Carry Ball For NFL; Called Biggest Sportsdeal Yet |page=510 |work=Variety}} Elsewhere, Heron filed a lawsuit against American film producer/distributor The Vista Organization, charging that Vista, along with its chairman and president, with fraud and breach of contract involving Vista's then-recent merger with Carolco and subsequent transfer of video rights to Vista titles to International Video Entertainment (then partially-owned by Carolco), including Maid to Order, Fright Night Part II, and Dudes.{{Cite news |date=1987-10-28 |title=Heron Sues Vista Citing Contract Breach, Fraud |page=40 |work=Variety}}

Heron ultimately began to sell or close their video operations in the early 1990s, a side-effect of the fraud cases that took down their parent company, Heron International. Hi-Tops Video was sold to Western Publishing and integrated into their Golden Book Video label;{{Cite web |last=Lichtman |first=Irv |date=20 July 1991 |title=Inside Track |url=https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Billboard/90s/1991/BB-1991-07-20.pdf |access-date=26 July 2023}}{{Cite web |last=McCullaugh |first=Jim |date=8 August 1991 |title=Western Publishing On The Fast Track With Hi-Tops Slate |url=https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Billboard/90s/1991/BB-1991-08-03.pdf |access-date=26 July 2023 |website=World Radio History}} Media continued operations into 1993, with their final releases being distributed by FoxVideo.{{Cite web |last=McCullaugh |first=Jim |date=30 March 1991 |title=Parent Wants To Sell Media Home Entertainment |url=https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Billboard/90s/1991/BB-1991-03-30.pdf |access-date=5 May 2024 |website=World Radio History}} {{Cite web |last=Goldstein |first=Seth |date=12 December 1992 |title=Picture This |url=https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Billboard/90s/1992/Billboard-1992-12-12.pdf |access-date=5 May 2024 |website=World Radio History}}{{Cite web |last=Goldstein |first=Seth |date=30 January 1993 |title=Video Treasures Polishes Up; Stevens To Focus On Acquisitions |url=https://www.worldradiohistory.com/hd2/IDX-Business/Music/Billboard-Index/IDX/1993/1993-01-30-Billboard-Page-0121.pdf |access-date=5 May 2024 |website=World Radio History}} Other Media and Hi-Tops titles were licensed to Video Treasures for a period in the early-to-mid 1990s.{{Cite web |last=Holley |first=Debbie |date=16 November 1991 |title=Suppliers Step Out Of Superstar-Vid Routine & Into New Territory |url=https://www.worldradiohistory.com/hd2/IDX-Business/Music/Billboard-Index/IDX/1991/1991-11-16-Billboard-Page-0070.pdf |url-status= |access-date=5 May 2024 |website=World Radio History}}{{Cite web |last=Jeffrey |first=Don |date=13 March 1993 |title=GTS Links With Video Treasures; Distrib Pact To Bolster Tesh Label's Reach |url=https://www.worldradiohistory.com/hd2/IDX-Business/Music/Billboard-Index/IDX/1993/1993-03-13-Billboard-Page-0171.pdf |access-date=5 May 2024 |website=World Radio History}}