At Cannes Lions 2008, the 55^th International Advertising Festival, Corbis announced the separation of its rights-services division into a separate business entity. Rebranded as GreenLight, the company is also adding a talent-negotiation service that will help advertisers secure sports, film, television, music and other celebrities for promotional activities.

According to the company, the move is part of a strategy to create a network of brands. In particular, Corbis wanted to separate rights services from its image licensing business. CEO Gary Shenk said there is phenomenal growth in advertising's use of music and other iconic content. GreenLight aims to capitalize on this growth.

Though GreenLight is a new entity, its past work as part of Corbis makes it one of the most experienced global rights-services firms, said Mark Sherman, senior vice president and head of the new business. The rights-services team handles thousands of clearances annually. In addition, GreenLight takes over the management of the names, image and likeness rights of Corbis-represented celebrities, who include Albert Einstein, The Wright Brothers and Steve McQueen.

GreenLight is headquartered in Los Angeles and sports a new logo and Web site. It will service clients through 15 offices in North America, Europe, Asia and Australia.