The publisher of Oscar-winning film Focus will be acquired by a China background company

Tang Wei said that Tang Media Partners 'acquisition of Open Road will not be affected by the China government's control of overseas investment, because Tang Media Partners is headquartered in Los Angeles, USA, and all the acquisition funds come from the United States.

Due to poor performance, Open Road Films, the distribution company of the Oscar-winning Best Picture "Focus", has been seeking buyers for several months. According to the Wall Street Journal's news on August 3, Tang Media Partners, which has a financial background from China companies, is close to reaching an agreement to acquire Open Road.

The amount and detailed terms of the transaction were not disclosed and are expected to be completed this week, although failure cannot be ruled out. Tang Media Partners said the acquisition of Open Road is one step in a $500 million expansion plan.

Tang Media Partners was established in July 2015. It is a fund company co-founded by Tencent, Sequoia Capital founder Shen Nanpeng and former Bear Stearns Global Vice Chairman Tang Wei, who serves as the fund's managing partner. The investors behind Tang Media Partners include Tencent and Chinese Culture.

Tang Media Partners has continued to invest and acquire Hollywood film and television assets since its establishment. In June 2016, Tang Media Partners acquired IM Global, a film financing, production and overseas sales company. IM Global was responsible for the overseas distribution of "Mermaid". News at the time also reported that IM Global would cooperate with Tencent to form a joint venture TV company. The total value of the two transactions is approximately US$200 million.

In February this year, Tang Media Partners acquired Chaotic Good Studios, which partnered with the brand to develop derivatives.

OpenRoad allows Tang Media Partners to have more film distribution channels in the United States. Open Road was established in 2011 by AMC Entertainment and Regal Entertainment, the first two theaters in the United States. Open Road focuses on distribution and supplements production, hoping to find a viable opportunity for medium-budget films on the screen dominated by commercial blockbusters. The company releases about six to seven works every year, and the pace of film production is generally one per year. Although word-of-mouth works such as "Focus" have been released, there is nothing else to mention. 2011-2016 In 2008, Open Road caused nearly $50 million in losses to both AMC and Regal.

Tang Wei expressed his hope to establish a film studio that takes into account the tastes of the Chinese and American film markets. China's theaters have the opportunity to introduce more Open Road films. China's films can also use external channels to sell distribution rights around the world. Movies in the United States can naturally be distributed through Open Road.

For OpenRoad, Tang Media Partners can inject more money into it and produce higher-budget films. Tom Ortenberg, CEO of Open Road, said that the number of films released each year will exceed the current 7-8.

Tang Wei also said that Tang Media Partners 'acquisition of Open Road will not be affected by the China government's control of overseas investment, because Tang Media Partners is headquartered in Los Angeles, USA, and all the acquisition funds come from the United States.

Editor: Xiongwei