Colin G. Pringle

Colin G. Pringle is a businessman in the international media and technology sectors. As a co-investor, CEO and corporate development specialist he has worked with major companies in music, film, broadcast, publishing and the web, focusing on digital products, IP licensing and new media business models.

PUBLISHING / INTERNET

From an initial career as a journalist and editor with Michael Heseltine's Haymarket Publishing, Pringle came to specialise in media development. After rising to become Associate Publisher, he moved to Link House Plc as Development Manager for their newly-formed Business and Professional magazine division. He worked on the acquisition, and was subsequently publisher, of 'Communicate', the UK's first tele/datacoms industry magazine. He later worked on the purchase and establishment of a New York-based media group that included 'Pro Sound News', 'Television Broadcast' and other B2B publications.

Colin also served as Corporate Development Director of United Business Media groups in the UK and USA, including: CMP Media, Electronics Weekly, PSN Publications, Musicplayernetwork.com, Music Week, EQ, Guitar Player, Bass Player, Gig. He developed business plans to equitise traditional media as a standalone e-business division for this FTSE 100 group.

TECHNOLOGY

Pringle was invited to join the board of directors of Solid State Logic (SSL), an Oxford-based designer and manufacturer of production equipment for music, film and broadcast sectors with around 300 staff worldwide. As Marketing Director he also took on product management and introduced several innovations, such as G Series, the Ultimation moving fader automation system, SL9000 J Series mixer and Scenaria, a digital post- production console that combined both digital audio and pictures. A survey by 'Billboard' showed that 80% of records in the Billboard Chart were produced using SSL audio consoles. Owners include Abbey Road, Record Plant, Sting, Stevie Wonder, Paul McCartney, George Michael and many national broadcasters.

HOLLYWOOD

Pringle co-founded Audio Processing Technology (APT) as a division of SSL, which licensed its audio data compression technology (apt-x) to DTS for use as DTS cinema surround sound.

Colin also worked with manufacturer AMS Neve. Here he focused on the film and post-production markets, and also digital television. He introduced the world's first digital film dubbing console to Hollywood with installations now at Disney, Lucasfilm, Warner Bros, Todd-AO and others. The company subsequently won a prestigious Technical Academy Award. For music, a new Neve VX analogue console was introduced and the classic Neve 1081 modules recommenced manufacture.

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Colin Pringle with mixer Bob Clearmountain

MUSIC

While starting his early publishing career, Pringle also wrote freelance articles about pop music for a range of publications. This led him to make his first visit to the USA, aged 20, at the suggestion of John Lennon's lover and PA May Pang. In consequence, Pringle was asked by Pang to meet with EMI's Bob Mercer and Apple Corp's Neil Aspinall to discuss issues surrounding the release of the single ‘Imagine’. During a lunch with Aspinall, after Lennon's death, Pringle proposed that the surviving Beatles complete one of John's unreleased song demos as a farewell.

While Aspinall was initially resistant (observing: "What would be the point? It wouldn't be a Beatles record!") the band went on to record and release ‘Free As A Bird’ and ‘Real Love’ as part of their Anthology project.

As Chairman of APT Pringle placed emphasis on licensing to wireless applications, where apt-x subsequently became a standard for high quality bluetooth audio in mobile phones and hi-fi equipment, leading to its acquisition by Qualcomm.

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Media and Technology