September 06, 2001 - CrossOff to protect sports memorabilia for leading Canadian authenticators
(Halifax, Nova Scotia) - CrossOff Incorporated (TSE:OFF), creator of a next generation authentication and registration system, announced today that it has entered into an agreement to allow Channel Sports Marketing and Jordana Sports International, both of Toronto Ont., to distribute the CrossOff security solution for sports memorabilia. The two operations will register autographed sports memorabilia they distribute in the CrossOff Registry for protection and tracking.
The sports memorabilia market is estimated by Card Trade magazine to be worth over $2 billion per year. It is an industry inundated with fake merchandise and without authenticity standards. In an effort to deter the sale of counterfeit sports collectibles and memorabilia, CrossOff has been developing relationships with leaders in the sports industry who are concerned with the production of fraudulent sports merchandise.
The selection of Channel Sports Marketing (CSM) and Jordana Sports International (JSI) as distribution partners is due to their dominant position in the Canadian sports memorabilia market. They offer Canada’s largest selection of high-end sports related signed and limited edition products and act as distributors of signature merchandise for star athletes. CSM distributes products for many high profile companies including Wayne Gretzky Authentic and Great North Road (Bobby Orr). They are the exclusive suppliers to TSN’s (The Sports Network) The Collectors Show. They are also one of three exclusive memorabilia suppliers to NHL auctions, and have supplied memorabilia to The Shopping Channel for over 10 years. JSI is quickly becoming the leading source for hockey signature product. In addition to a strong sports collector following, they have on-going relationships with athletes like Curtis Joseph, Chris Pronger, and Wendel Clark and numerous leading athletes in other sports.
“We selected Channel and Jordana as master distributors because of their business strategy”, said Donnie Snow, CEO of CrossOff Incorporated. “They produce large volumes of sports memorabilia, bring established relationships with athletes, and most importantly operate a credible distribution network.”
“We recognize the great value of the CrossOff Registry for protecting our product offering,” said Jeff Shier, Founder and President of Channel Sports Marketing. “Together with CrossOff, we can protect our brand and our athletes from counterfeiting, and assure our customers receive authentic signature products.”
Every signed item will be tagged with an anti-counterfeiting device and registered in the CrossOff Registry. Consumers will receive the CrossOff protected items along with a Registration Certificate that they can use to register the item online at www.crossoff.com.
The agreement provides that CrossOff will receive a fee for each item of sports memorabilia to be sold with the CrossOff security solution by each of Channel Sports Marketing and Jordana Sports International. Sales by the two operations using the CrossOff security solution are expected to begin this month.
About Channel Sports Marketing
Channel Sports Marketing is Canada’s largest supplier of quality, high-end sports-related memorabilia and collectibles. Their reputation in the sports memorabilia business is well established. Over the past fifteen years they have developed close ties with North America's leading sports memorabilia manufactures. Channel offers Canada's largest selection of high-end sports related signed and limited edition products, rare and game used superstar products, custom orders, and one-of-a-kind collectibles, featuring current and past sport legends. They are the exclusive suppliers to TSN’s (The Sports Network) The Collectors Show. They are also one of three exclusive memorabilia suppliers to NHL auctions. www.nhl.com, have supplied memorabilia to The Shopping Channel www.tsc.ca for over 10 years, and have recently began supplying product to www.inthecrease.com. Channel Sports Marketing is the master distributor for Wayne Gretzky Authentic, Jordana Sports International Inc, Great North Road (Bobby Orr), and Sports Rep Marketing. Founded in 1991, Channel Sports Marketing Inc. is a privately held wholly owned Canadian company. More information can be found on the company’s website at www.channelsportsmarketing.com.
About Jordana Sports International
Jordana Sports International is a distributor of signature merchandise for high profile athletes. JSI conducts private signings and creates signature product for the memorabilia market. Jordana Sports International is quickly becoming the number one source for hockey signature with athletes like Curtis Joseph (Toronto Maple Leafs), Chris Pronger (St. Louis Blues & 2000-MVP/Norris trophy winner), Wendel Clark (Toronto Maple Leafs) Gary Roberts (Toronto Maple Leafs), Evgeni Nabokov (San Jose Sharks & 2001 Rookie of the year), Nik Antropov (Toronto Maple Leafs), Jason Arnott (New Jersey Devils) Hayley Wickenheiser (Team Canada- Hockey and Softball- Canada's only two sport Olympian). Also, in Wrestling JSI have completed signings with Trish Stratus, Lance Storm, Chris Benoit, and Perry Saturn.
About CrossOff
CrossOff Incorporated is a Canadian based high tech company and is traded on the Toronto Stock Exchange as OFF. CrossOff is a diversified technology company with operating units focused in the areas of registry & database management services, technology training, software development & consulting, and property management. More information is available on the company’s website at www.crossoff.com.
For further information, please contact:
Heather Smith-Dacey
Marketing Director
(902) 496-6421
media@crossoff.com
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