TORONTO – North American distributor Entertainment One is set to buy Benelux distributor RCV Entertainment from Finnish-based SanomaWSOY Group, as it continues to extend its international reach in filmed entertainment.

Terms of the deal were not disclosed, but the agreement hands Toronto-based Entertainment One rights to around 1,900 movie titles.

The deal follows Entertainment One ‘s acquisition of U.K.-based Contender Entertainment Group last June, and its purchase of Montreal-based theatrical movie distributor Seville Pictures in August. Most recently comes a story in The Globe and Mail that the hungry company is eyeing the domestic assets of ThinkFilm, sold last year to U.S. businessman David Bergstein.

‘[The RCV deal] is an important move into a territory in Europe, which is our focus now,’ Patrice Théroux, president and CEO of Entertainment One’s filmed entertainment division, tells Playback Daily. He did not dispute a report that Entertainment One paid 41.4 million euros for RCV.

He adds that RCV, which is based in Hilversum in the Netherlands, has a ‘rich library,’ and a major presence in the Benelux market. Entertainment One also recently struck a multi-territory distribution agreement with Summit Entertainment.

Jan Kouwenhoven, RCV CEO, and Joke Wartenbergh, the company COO, will remain with the Benelux distributor after signing long-term employment contracts.

The Dutch distributor, which has 46 employees, was sold via a formal auction conducted by Dutch bank ING.

The Canadian distributor’s buying binge and international expansion follows British hedge fund Marwyn Investment Management buying the Toronto-based specialty distributor in March for $168 million before delisting the company from the Toronto Stock Exchange as an income fund and re-floating it on the London-based AIM market.

RCV was founded in 1979 and releases movies in the Netherlands, as well as in the French- and Flemish-speaking regions of Belgium and Luxemburg. The company handles titles in all media, including theatrical, home entertainment, broadcast and new media.

RCV distributed 37 new theatrical features in 2007, including Resident Evil: Extinction, Run, Fat Boy, Run, Hairspray and The Golden Compass.

Movies in its upcoming slate include the Nicholas Cage-starrer Bangkok Dangerous and The Eye, starring Jessica Alba.