Sony and Dalian to Market Films in China
September 23 2016 - 12:00AM
Dow Jones News
Sony Pictures Entertainment Inc. is teaming up with Dalian Wanda
Group to help market its films in China, a move that could help
Sony boost box-office returns and strengthen Dalian Wanda's profile
in the movie business.
Under the deal, Wanda would tap its massive ticketing platform,
entertainment plazas and theme parks to help market future Sony
films to Chinese moviegoers. Wanda might buy a small stake in some
of these films if both companies agree, according to a person
familiar with the arrangement.
The partnership is the latest foray by Wanda and billionaire
founder Wang Jianlin into the global entertainment industry.
Earlier this year, Wanda purchased Legendary Entertainment, a
producer of summer blockbusters, for about $3.5 billion. Wanda is
the largest cinema owner in China and owns the U.S. theater chain
AMC Entertainment. Its pending acquisition of Georgia-based Carmike
Cinemas Inc. would also make it the largest theater operator in the
U.S.
The new deal will move Wanda beyond exhibiting and co-financing
U.S. films and into the critical area of marketing, building its
expertise in the Hollywood studio trade.
Wanda said its goal was to ultimately work with the so-called
"Big Six" Hollywood studios—which include Fox, Paramount,
Universal, Warner and Disney. "Wanda will strive to highlight the
China element in the films in which it invests," the company said
in a statement. 21st Century Fox and The Wall Street Journal-owner
News Corp were part of the same company until mid-2013.
For Sony, which has struggled at the box office, the partnership
will help it market films in a country that is becoming
increasingly important to the bottom line of studios, and which is
expected to surpass the U.S. as the world's largest box office
within two years.
Wanda's knack for helping Hollywood films become successful in
China was on full display earlier this year, when it helped
Legendary's "Warcraft" rack up more than $220 million from Chinese
audiences, according to Box Office Mojo. The push helped turn the
film into a hit despite lousy box office results in the U.S.
Write to Wayne Ma at wayne.ma@wsj.com and Erich Schwartzel at
erich.schwartzel@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
September 22, 2016 23:45 ET (03:45 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2016 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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