By Matthew Miller and Shu Zhang
BEIJING
(Reuters) - Real estate and entertainment conglomerate Dalian Wanda
Group Co expects to seal two billion-dollar film-related deals in the
United States this year, chairman Wang Jianlin said on Tuesday, as
China's richest man steps up his push into Hollywood.
After
completing the acquisition of two non-production film companies - each
worth above $1 billion - Dalian Wanda's next target would be a so-called
"Big Six" movie studio, Wang told Reuters in an exclusive interview.
"My goal is to buy Hollywood companies and bring their technology and capability to China," Wang said.
He declined to elaborate on the two deals in the pipeline, which would further bolster Wanda's motion picture empire.
In
January, Wang splashed $3.5 billion to buy a controlling stake in U.S.
film studio Legendary Entertainment, behind hits such as "Jurassic
World", making Wanda the first Chinese firm to own a major Hollywood
studio.
Dalian
Wanda, which was added to the Fortune Global 500 list this year, aims
to triple revenue from its cultural division, led by entertainment,
sports and tourism, to 150 billion yuan ($22.6 billion) by 2020.
Reuters
reported last month that Wanda has held talks with Viacom Inc
<VIAB.O> about acquiring its stake in Paramount Pictures, one of
Hollywood's "Big Six" studios that also include Twentieth Century Fox
<FOXA.O>, Warner Brothers <TWX.N>, Walt Disney
<DIS.N>, Universal Pictures <CMCSA.O> and Columbia
<6758.T>.
"We
are interested not only in Paramount, but all of them. If one of the
Big Six would be willing to be sold to us, we would be interested," Wang
said.
"Only
the six are real global film companies, while the rest are not. If we
are to build a real movie empire, this is a necessary step."
Dalian
Wanda is leading a slew of Chinese firms that are investing in
Hollywood. They include Fosun International, which has invested in
Studio 8, a production company started by former Warner Brothers
executive Jeff Robinov, and Huayi Brothers Media Corp <300027.SZ>,
which is producing films with STX Entertainment, a studio invested in
by Chinese private equity company Hony Capital.
Dalian Wanda would also start co-investing in global blockbusters next year, Wang added.
A SCREEN NEAR YOU
The
Chinese conglomerate, which began as a property developer in the
northeastern city of Dalian, was also looking to extend the world's
biggest motion picture theater network, Wang said.
Following
the completion of its acquisitions of London-based Odeon & UCI
Cinemas Group and Carmike Cinemas Inc <CKEC.O> in the United
States, Dalian Wanda would control 15 percent of global box office
revenues, Wang said, and may reach its goal of controlling 20 percent
earlier than its target of 2020.
Wang,
who has also bought Swiss sports marketing firm Infront Sports &
Media AG and World Triathlon Corp, owner of the "Ironman" franchise,
said he was primarily interested in acquiring entertainment and sports
companies in the United States and Europe.
"If the target company fits our appetite, there is no upper limit for budgeting," he said.
But he cautioned that too many investors were rushing into the "hot" film market.
"Most of the money invested in China, and even the global film industry, is silly money. Only a little is smart money," he said.
"As
China's film industry growth slows to below 20 percent, or even 10
percent, 8 percent this year, some will be washed out. It's like Warren
Buffett said, 'you only find out who is swimming naked when the tide
goes out'."
IPO OR BACKDOOR LISTING
Separately,
Wang said that Dalian Wanda Commercial Properties Co <3699.HK>,
Wanda's real estate flagship, would re-list on the Shanghai stock
exchange either through an initial public offering (IPO) or a backdoor
listing.
Shareholders of the Hong Kong-listed firm last week approved a buy-out offer that would see the firm privatized.
The company said earlier this month it planned to de-list from the Hong Kong stock exchange on Sept. 20.
Wang
said both options were on the table for the planned Shanghai
re-listing. Approval for an IPO could take two or three years, while a
backdoor listing would require more than a year, he added.
Mainland-listed
firms typically command higher valuations than those traded in Hong
Kong, helped by a large pool of retail investors.
But
Wang said the "core problem" that triggered the de-listing plan was not
the low valuation of the company's Hong Kong shares, but the lack of
liquidity.
"We
only listed 14 percent of the company in Hong Kong, which means 86
percent of shares are neither liquid nor could be pledged as
collateral," Wang said. "That's not a real listed company."
($1 = 6.6533 Chinese yuan renminbi)
