Tencent Pictures says it will acquire Hollywood companies to compete for China's $10.4 billion box office market

Tencent Pictures is looking for acquisition targets to speed up his plan to make a blockbuster, Bloomberg reported on Dec. 12.

original title: Wanda and Ali are buying overseas, and Tencent Pictures can't sit still.

Tencent Pictures is looking for acquisition targets to speed up his plan to make a blockbuster film, Bloomberg reported on December 12. Tencent Pictures CEO Cheng Wu said in an interview that potential acquisition targets include companies in Hollywood, as well as companies in the field of film creation and production. He did not elaborate, saying only that Tencent Pictures's main concern was whether the acquired company could supplement Tencent's own capabilities and resources.

"there are many ways to promote business growth, and investment is one of them," Cheng said. "We will accelerate business development through appropriate mergers and acquisitions. If this can help our business grow at the right time, then we are also very willing. "

is Tencent Pictures's idea of buying overseas influenced by competitors Ali Pictures and Wanda?

strong > buying by Ali and Wanda / strong >

according to market research companies IHS Markit and PricewaterhouseCoopers, China will become the highest-grossing country in the world next year, with the box office expected to grow 22% to $10.4 billion, and box office revenue is expected to grow 22% to $10.4 billion.

in order to compete for China's huge film market, Alibaba Pictures invested in Mission impossible: mysterious Nation and took a stake in Spielberg Film Company Amblin Partners.

not to mention Wanda. In 2012, Wanda acquired the AMC cinema chain for $2.6 billion, making it the largest cinema operator in the world. In January, he bought Legendary Entertainment for $3.5 billion and began to make a foray into film production. Two months later, AMC bought Carmichael Cinema for $1.1 billion, making Wang Jianlin the largest film projector in the United States and the world.

Wanda also spent $1 billion to acquire Dick Clark Productions, the producer of awards ceremonies such as the Golden Globes, which is releasing the blockbuster Great Wall, which will be released this month.

"We will work with Hollywood in the future, and they have professional skills that can help us better explore the global market." "We will also actively look for opportunities," Cheng said. "

Billy Leung, a Hong Kong analyst at Haitong International Securities, said that from Hollywood studios to computer animation companies, they may all be potential acquisition targets for Tencent Pictures. All Chinese players, including Chinese companies such as Alibaba and Tencent, are trying to speed up the production of homemade content. It's just a matter of who burns more money. "

however, frequent Chinese acquisitions abroad have caused panic in American politics. On the one hand, they think that American companies have to go through layers of scrutiny to acquire Chinese companies, but it is so simple for Chinese companies to acquire American companies, which is very unfair. At the same time, they are also worried about the national security of the United States, and perhaps China will control the American media and acquire core technology through frequent transactions.

strong > the actions of Tencent Pictures / strong >

in these companies, of course, there is no lack of Tencent. Tencent has participated in mergers and acquisitions and investments totaling $20.8 billion this year, according to Bloomberg. Among them, Tencent Pictures, his business unit, is most famous for investing in the film Warcraft and the upcoming King Kong: skull Island.

in September this year, Tencent Pictures also released 21 film and television projects at the annual press conference, and announced that he would explore the artist brokerage business with Hu Haiquan (Beijing Yuandu Spring Orange Culture and Media Co., Ltd.). Signed Niu Chengze and other backbone forces to establish strategic cooperation satellite studio. They also say they want to incorporate more Chinese elements into movies and TV series.

"We will invest more when working with Hollywood partners." Cheng Wu said. "many elements of Chinese culture can make movies, and they face audiences all over the world, not just Chinese audiences."

in order to achieve its goal of making its own blockbuster, Tencent is in talks with David S.Goyer, the screenwriter of the Dark Knight and Iron Man films. According to Box Office Mojo, his films grossed $4.88 billion at the global box office.

Cheng Wu believes that these films, adapted from science fiction, comics and adventure stories, are very suitable for Tencent Pictures and Chinese moviegoers. The company has purchased the rights to more than 300 Japanese anime works and has begun to incubate itself at home, attracting users to read, watch videos and play games on its platform.

at the above press conference, Tencent Pictures also announced that he had won the right to adapt the TV series and mobile games of the novel "Tibetan Code" by Super IP. This is one of Tencent Pictures's key projects. Tencent Pictures also hopes to adapt the novel into a film.

Animation DreamWorks announced in 2013 that it would work with several state-owned film companies to adapt the Tibetan Code into an animated film, but the plan was aborted. This year, Alibaba adapted the work into an online drama.

"We think that" Tibetan place Code "has the potential to become a favorite movie for audiences all over the world." Cheng Wu said that this work is about Xizang, it is mysterious, and it is about treasure hunting. "it's about Xizang, mystery and treasure hunting. it's a bit like China's Treasure Raiders. "

Cheng Wu understands that it is not easy to gain a foothold in the film market. He says he has met with dozens of film studios and companies in China and Hollywood to study business, and he is also studying at the University of Southern California.

at the same time, in order to attract more talents, Tencent Pictures promised producers and directors a higher profit share, but Cheng Wu did not disclose the proportion. But he believes that Tencent's own huge distribution capacity will attract many creators to join.

Hollywood also hopes to strengthen its cooperation with us. " "although we have a lot to learn from Hollywood, we can also make our own contributions," Cheng said. "

Edit: nancy