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Thread: Wanda & AMC

  1. #61
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    Catching the mouse

    Good luck with this, Mr. Wang. Mickey is stronger than you think.

    China’s richest man, Wanda Group CEO Wang Jianlin, has declared war on Disneyland


    Building his kingdom. (Reuters/Jason Lee)

    WRITTEN BY
    Echo Huang Yinyin
    OBSESSION

    China's Transition
    4 hours ago

    China’s richest man, Wang Jianlin, wants to make sure the Magic Kingdom doesn’t make any money in China.
    In an interview with Chinese talk show host Chen Luyu that aired on Aug. 26, the billionaire behind real estate giant Dalian Wanda Group showed off his Beijing headquarters, and shared a vision of destroying his best-known competition by outbuilding them.
    Wang said he hoped to make the mainland’s first Disneyland, which opened in Shanghai on June 16, “unprofitable in the coming two decades.” Wang, the world’s biggest commercial real estate developer, opened a rival amusement park complex that cost 22 billion yuan ($3.3 billion) (link in Chinese) in third-tier city Nanchang days after Disneyland’s China debut.
    Wang said Wanda plans to build 15 similar amusement park complexes in China and three to five abroad before 2020. His newest, in Hefei, northern China, cost over 35 billion yuan (link in Chinese) and will be welcoming guests from Sept. 24. Wang compared his strategy to playing mahjong, saying, “If Disney wants to win a hand, we will intercept it by building amusement parks.”
    Wanda’s theme park and Disney’s have already clashed: After characters that looked like Snow White and Captain America were spotted at the Wanda park, Disney said it would “take action” to protect its own intellectual property.
    Wang’s ultimate goal, he said during the recent interview, is to “change the world where rules are set by foreigners.” In other words, Chinese should make the final calls.
    He also criticized Chinese people who go to Disneyland, using an idiom that means “to be crazy about foreign things and obsequious to foreigners,” adding that “the once-glorified Disneyland is part of the past.”
    Wang embarked on a frantic acquisition spree four years ago and has not slowed down since. He is now worth $30 billion, after spending $2.6 billion for the world’s second-biggest theater group AMC in 2012, $52 million for a 20% stake in Spanish soccer team Atletico Madrid in January 2015, and $3.5 billion for Hollywood film studio Legendary Entertainment a year later, among other deals.
    Some of China’s netizens said they found Wang’s comments xenophobic (link in Chinese, registration required). “I am sorry, but what is Wanda?” wrote one. “People will spend money going to Disney in China no matter how expensive it is because it has a brand value… How can you just use a financial statement to downplay Disney’s cultural influence?”
    The first part of the interview is available on YouTube, but there are no subtitles in English:

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  2. #62
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    Hefei Wanda City

    Eager to see some images from this.

    Sat Sep 24, 2016 | 6:23am EDT
    China's Dalian Wanda opens $5.1 billion tourism park


    Wang Jianlin, chairman of the Wanda Group, poses for pictures after an interview in Beijing, China, August 23, 2016. REUTERS/Thomas Peter

    By Alexandra Harney | SHANGHAI
    Dalian Wanda Group, the Chinese entertainment giant owned by the country's richest man, opened the first phase of a sprawling 34 billion yuan ($5.1 billion) tourism park in the eastern city of Hefei on Saturday.

    Wanda is building similar projects around the country, betting that China's rising incomes will drive more domestic tourism. In an interview with Reuters last month, chairman Wang Jianlin said that Wanda would look to build at least 20 such complexes in China.

    The 160 hectare (1.6 square km) first phase of Hefei Wanda City includes a theme park, hotels and a shopping mall. The second phase will be an "indoor recreation project," according to a statement from the company. Wanda intends to extend the park into a third phase, which is still in the planning stages, it said.

    Wang has been open about his rivalry with Walt Disney Co, which opened a $5.5 billion resort in Shanghai in June. "At Wanda, I always say we want to ensure Disney is not profitable for 10-20 years in this business segment in China," he told state-run China Central Television (CCTV) in a May interview.

    China's slowing economy has taken a toll on some areas of consumer spending. Outbound tourism numbers - which rose 16 percent in 2015 - are set to flatline this year, according to China National Tourism Administration (CNTA) data. At Wanda Cinema Line Corp, Wanda's theater arm, box office sales rose 12.8 percent in the second quarter of this year, compared to a 61.4 percent jump in the first quarter.

    Wanda has been investing heavily as it seeks to triple revenues from its cultural division - which includes entertainment, sports and tourism - to 150 billion yuan ($22.5 billion) by 2020.

    On Friday, Wanda announced a partnership with Sony Pictures under which Wanda will market Sony Pictures' films and co-finance some upcoming movie releases of Sony Corp's film unit in China.

    In January, Wanda paid $3.5 billion for a controlling stake in U.S. film studio Legendary Entertainment. It has also acquired Swiss sports marketing firm Infront Sports & Media AG and World Triathlon Corp, owner of the "Ironman" franchise.

    Hefei Wanda City will host China's first Ironman triathlon, according to the statement. The race is scheduled for October 16, according to Ironman's website.

    (Reporting By Alexandra Harney; Editing by Sam Holmes)
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  3. #63
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    a two-fer today for Wanda

    China’s influence over Hollywood grows
    By Ana Swanson / The Washington Post
    Monday, September 26th, 2016 at 8:25am

    China has never been shy about its desire to acquire “soft power” – the kind of cultural and economic influence that can’t be wielded by military might. And Hollywood has often been a partner in its project.
    China’s bid for soft power was on show last week, as Sony Pictures Entertainment formed an alliance with Dalian Wanda, a Chinese company that has become one of the world’s largest media empires, in a deal announced Friday. While the partnership was smaller than some of Dalian Wanda’s previous acquisitions, it attracted attention as the Chinese company’s third major deal in Hollywood this year.

    These deals have sparked concern over whether China’s expanding influence in Hollywood could lead to more pro-Chinese propaganda in U.S. films. The Chinese government tightly controls media content, and Hollywood studios have been known to alter films to feature China or the Chinese government in a more flattering light to gain access to the country’s lucrative film market.

    For Hollywood, China provides the blockbuster combination of a huge movie market and cash-rich equity funds that are eager to invest in films and companies. The Chinese box office is on pace to soon surpass the U.S. as the world’s biggest market, perhaps next year.

    On Sept. 15, 16 members of Congress mentioned the Chinese company by name in a letter that called for greater scrutiny of foreign investments. The 14 Republicans and two Democrats said that Dalian Wanda’s acquisitions have raised concerns “about China’s efforts to censor topics and exert propaganda controls on American media.”

    The partnership — in which the Chinese company will help promote Sony films in China and co-finance some of Sony’s biggest China movie releases — comes on the heels of two major acquisitions. In January, Dalian Wanda announced the acquisition of Legendary Entertainment, the Hollywood production company behind such blockbusters as “Jurassic World” and “The Dark Knight.” In March, AMC Entertainment, a U.S. cinema chain previously acquired by Dalian Wanda, made a bid for Carmike Cinemas that would make Dalian Wanda Group the owner of the biggest cinema chain in the United States.

    The Chinese company is expanding elsewhere, acquiring cinema chains in Australia and Europe in steps toward its goal of controlling 20 percent of the global film market by 2020. It is also heavily investing in China’s domestic industry, including a 400-acre film studio slated to open in 2017 that will have 30 soundstages, an underwater stage, and a permanent set of a New York City street.

    In announcing the Sony Pictures deal, the Chinese company vowed to increase China’s influence. In a statement, Dalian Wanda said it would “strive to highlight the China element in the films in which it invests.” “The alliance will help strengthen Wanda’s power to influence the global film industry, and set a good precedent for Chinese film producers in their international investment,” the company said.

    The owner and founder of Dalian Wanda, Wang Jianlin, has been plain about his desire to expand China’s global media influence. Wang, who is China’s richest man, said in a Chinese television interview in August that he would like to “change the world where rules are set by foreigners.”

    As the owner of a nascent theme park chain, Wang also sparred with Disney, which opened its first park in mainland China in June. “They shouldn’t have entered China. We have a [saying]: one tiger is no match for a pack of wolves. Shanghai has one Disney, while Wanda, across the nation, will open 15 to 20,” Wang said, according to Fortune. “Disneyland is fully built on American culture. We place importance on local culture.”

    Wang’s statements about expanding soft power are likely an appeal to the Chinese government, which has crafted an explicit policy to export Chinese cultural content and increase the country’s soft power. On Jan, 1, 2014, China’s president, Xi Jinping, published an article in the state newspaper People’s Daily saying the country needed to promote its soft power and build its image abroad.

    “From a political standpoint, this is very much in line with Chinese media policy, and Wang Jianlin is closely aligned with these policymakers,” says Aynne Kokas, an assistant professor of media studies at the University of Virginia and the author of the forthcoming book “Hollywood Made in China.” So it’s a short leap to think Wang means to use his corporate power to expand China’s influence abroad, she says. “I think we should believe Wang Jianlin when he tells us what he plans to do.”

    Tensions are further complicated because, while the United States freely permits Chinese investment in its film sector, China tightly controls U.S. investment in films in China. In addition, an agreement between the United States and China that permits American companies to export a total of 34 films to China per year is set to expire in February. The need for U.S. investment in the Chinese film industry has declined in recent years, sparking speculation that China could further restrict the number of American films it allows into its market.

    Ironically, Sony sparked similar fears of foreign incursion in the U.S. market 27 years ago, when the Japanese company purchased Columbia Pictures Entertainment for $3.4 billion in cash. It was the largest acquisition to date by a Japanese firm. At the time, Sony pledged to keep the movie and TV studio “as independent as possible, as a full-fledged member of the U.S. film industry.”

    Wanda’s U.S. operations also came under scrutiny Thursday, the day before the Sony Pictures partnership was announced, for allegedly using foreign money to challenge a local ballot measure in Beverly Hills that would decide a conflict between Wanda and the Beverly Hilton over plans to develop a local parcel of land. A local labor union representing hotel workers filed a complaint Thursday that Wanda had used foreign money to influence the ballot measures, in contravention of U.S. law. Wanda denied the allegation.
    This thread would be remiss without a mention of the 'nation's husband'.
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  4. #64
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    **** Clark Productions

    Holy cats! Wang will be the global media king.

    There's a short vid if you follow the link.

    China's Wanda Group in talks to buy **** Clark Productions
    by Sandra Gonzalez @CNNMoney
    September 26, 2016: 8:29 PM ET

    Wang Jianlin in 84 Seconds
    China's richest man is making a move to buy yet another well known American entertainment property.
    Billionaire Wang Jianlin's Dalian Wanda Group is in talks to buy **** Clark Productions, a spokesperson for DCP's parent company, Eldridge Industries, tells CNN.
    "**** Clark Productions and Beijing Wanda Culture Industry Group Co., Ltd., have agreed to enter into exclusive talks with the shared goal of finalizing a mutually satisfactory transaction," Eldridge said a statement. "DCP is controlled by Eldridge Industries which announced last month that it was conducting a strategic review of its media holdings."
    **** Clark Productions produces the American Music Awards, Billboard Music Awards and Golden Globe awards, among others.
    The company, launched by late legendary broadcaster **** Clark in 1957, is reportedly valued at $1 billion.
    The deal would mark Wanda's latest in a string of deals that seek to expand the company's American entertainment footprint.
    Wanda Group kicked off 2016 by paying $3.5 billion to buy Legendary Entertainment, the studio behind "Jurassic World" and "Interstellar."
    Just last week, the conglomerate entered into a "mutually beneficial deal" with Sony Pictures that will among other things see Wanda wield new influence over certain big-budget films produced by the studio in an effort to maximize the appeal to Chinese moviegoers.
    Wanda said it plans to seek similar deals with other content companies.
    Wanda has owned cinema chain AMC since 2012.

    CNNMoney (Los Angeles)
    First published September 26, 2016: 8:29 PM ET
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  5. #65
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    Should've anticipated this

    Chinese Purchases of U.S. Companies Have Some in Congress Raising Eyebrows
    Sinosphere
    By EDWARD WONG SEPT. 30, 2016


    Wang Jianlin, chairman of the Wanda Group, hopes to buy at least a 50 percent stake in one of the “Big Six” Hollywood studios. Credit Thomas Peter/Reuters

    PRINCETON, N.J. — Movie theaters and studios are rarely the focus of geopolitical conflict.

    But 16 members of Congress are raising this question: Should foreign acquisition of these kinds of American companies be subject to special scrutiny?

    In a recent letter, those politicians cited the case of the Dalian Wanda Group, the Chinese conglomerate that in January bought Legendary Entertainment, one of Hollywood’s biggest production companies, for as much as $3.5 billion. In 2012, Wanda bought AMC Theaters, the large American chain, for $2.6 billion.

    “Should the definition of national security be broadened to address concerns about propaganda and control of the media and ‘soft power’ institutions?” the representatives said in the letter, which was dated Sept. 15 and addressed to Gene L. Dodaro, comptroller general.

    Mr. Dodaro is the head of the Government Accountability Office, and the aim of the letter was to urge that office to consider whether the government process to review foreign investment in the United States needs to be expanded. The process is overseen by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, or Cfius, an interagency group that is supervised by the Treasury Department.

    “As we prepare for the upcoming presidential transition, now is an opportune time for G.A.O. to review what has worked well, and where Cfius authorities may need to be expanded, especially given the rise in state-controlled enterprises from China and Russia, among other designated countries,” the letter said.

    Wanda is not a state-controlled enterprise, but the writers said that any Chinese company designated a “state champion” that benefits from “illegal subsidies” could pose a strategic, if not overt, national security threat. They said there have been “growing concerns about China’s efforts to censor topics and exert propaganda controls on American media.”

    The letter also pointed to the $43 billion purchase of Syngenta, a Swiss company specializing in seeds and farm chemicals, by the state-owned China National Chemical Corporation as another transaction that had raised “concern” in Congress. That deal was approved by the committee in August.

    In a list of nine questions at the end of the letter, the signers also asked whether the committee sufficiently reviews Chinese angel or venture capital funds being established in the United States, as well as Chinese investment in technology accelerators and regulators.

    In February, Steven Davidoff Solomon, a law professor at the University of California, Berkeley, wrote in The New York Times that some bids for foreign businesses by Chinese companies were canceled after scrutiny by the committee. While it approves most transactions, he wrote, we should “expect tensions to get worse” since Chinese companies are increasingly investing in foreign companies as a way of moving money out of China.

    “We are entering into a new phase with Chinese acquisitions,” Mr. Solomon wrote. “The United States’ national security service, never considered a transparent process, is going to have to grapple with how far it can allow these Chinese companies to go.”

    Among the signers of the Sept. 15 letter are some well-known critics of the Chinese Communist Party.

    Representative Dana Rohrabacher, Republican of California, introduced a bill in 2012 that called for the government to withhold visas for Chinese journalists if Beijing continued its policy of not issuing such documents to American journalists or news organizations that it deemed to be troublemakers. Representative Christopher H. Smith, Republican of New Jersey, speaks out regularly against human rights abuses in China.

    “Beijing is increasingly confident that its version of state authoritarianism can be exported, though the Communist Party’s efforts at ‘soft power’ outreach have little credibility or impact at this point,” Mr. Smith said in a written statement to The Times on Wednesday.

    “But the buying spree by Dalian Wanda Group and other Chinese investments in Hollywood, media and entertainment should raise questions that restrictions on creative freedom or media self-censorship will follow, particularly when Dalian Wanda’s C.E.O. is very clear that his goal is to subvert American pop culture’s influence and change the world where rules are set by foreigners,” he said.

    “Would any movies favorably portraying the Dalai Lama, Liu Xiaobo or Chen Guangcheng be greenlighted if they risked the loss of Chinese investment — I don’t think so,” he added, referring to three people deemed prominent political adversaries by the Communist Party.

    Wanda declined to comment on Friday.

    On Wednesday, Wang Jianlin, Wanda’s chairman and founder, told CNN that he thought the American lawmakers were “over-worried.” He also said he would continue to invest in companies in the United States and was interested in buying at least a 50 percent stake in one of the “Big Six” Hollywood studios.

    In a speech at Harvard Business School in October 2015, Mr. Wang, designated by Forbes as China’s richest man, emphasized that he ran a “privately owned corporation” whose “first objective is to make money.”

    An investigative article published by The Times in April 2015 showed that relatives of top Communist Party officials and their business associates were early investors in Wanda and held significant stakes in the company.

    At the Harvard speech, Mr. Wang, in reply to a question about that article, acknowledged that Qi Qiaoqiao, the sister of Xi Jinping, China’s president and the leader of the Communist Party, and Deng Jiagui, her husband, had held shares in Dalian Wanda Commercial Properties but sold them before an initial public offering. Mr. Wang said that meant the couple had missed out on making a “fortune” from capital gains.

    Follow Edward Wong on Twitter @comradewong.

    A version of this article appears in print on October 3, 2016, on page B3 of the New York edition with the headline: Chinese Deals for U.S. Media Have Some in Congress Raising Eyebrows
    Chicoms buying out U.S. capitalists?
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  6. #66
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    Never mind the congressional worries above....

    ...Wang Jianlin don't care.

    Wanda’s Wang Jianlin Announces Hollywood Visit
    1:13 AM PDT 10/3/2016 by THR Staff


    Getty Images

    China’s richest man will address a who’s who of industry heavyweights at LACMA on Oct. 17.

    Wang Jianlin, chairman of China’s Dalian Wanda Group, has revealed details about his highly anticipated visit to Hollywood.

    In an event that is expected to bring out a who’s who of L.A. A-listers ranging from studio heads, celebs and local politicians, China’s richest man is expected to discuss his massive Qingdao Movie Metropolis, currently under construction in eastern China, at LACMA’s Bing Theater on Oct. 17.

    Billed as a US-Sino Business Evening focusing on “navigating business in China,” the event will reportedly include talks by L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti and AMPAS president Cheryl Boone Isaacs.

    A rendering of Wanda's 15-story One Beverly Hills complex, a mix of hotel and residential units.

    The event, which will be followed by a ****tail reception and VIP dinner, comes at a particularly heady time for Wang, whose Wanda Group continues to make aggressive moves into Hollywood. In just the last week, Wanda, China’s largest theater operator, announced a strategic marketing and co-financing deal with Sony that will see the Beijing-based company promote the studio’s titles in the Middle Kingdom. That deal was followed by news that the company is holding preliminary talks to purchase **** Clark Productions, the company behind the Golden Globe Awards, American Music Awards and Billboard Music. The price tag for that deal is reportedly in the $1 billion range.

    The deals continue a flurry of activity this year that confirm Wang’s ambition to invest in Hollywood entities in an attempt to “bring their technology and capability to China," as he told Reuters in August. Earlier this year, Wanda paid a reported $3.5 billion to acquire Legendary Entertainment, Thomas Tull's studio behind Pacific Rim, Warcraft and the upcoming The Great Wall, starring Matt Damon.

    Wanda, which began as a real estate development company in China, already owns the AMC Entertainment theater chain in the U.S. and other chains around the world.
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  7. #67
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    ‘Propaganda’ Play

    And once again, fear of the "Yellow Peril" rises.

    Washington Post Warns That China’s Hollywood Invasion Is a ‘Propaganda’ Play
    Dalian Wanda Group has bought Legendary Pictures, set a strategic alliance with Sony Pictures and is in talks to buy **** Clark Productions
    Beatrice Verhoeven | October 6, 2016 @ 9:10 AM


    Dalian Wanda

    In the wake of a Hollywood spending spree by China’s Dalian Wanda Group, the Washington Post has published a deeply cautionary editorial, warning that “Beijing’s next propaganda outlet” could be the entertainment industry.

    The Chinese firm has purchased Legendary Entertainment and has a pending deal to buy **** Clark Productions, which produces the Golden Globes and American Music Awards, and the paper sees this as “a matter of national strategic importance.”

    “China already has imposed its censorious values on Hollywood studios, using access to its lucrative but strictly limited market (where Dalian Wanda also controls many theaters) as leverage,” the editorial says, adding that Wanda enjoys substantially greater freedom to conduct business in the U.S. than foreign firms are granted in China.

    “Not only does Beijing seek to impose its censor’s rules on American films, but it also refuses foreign investors the same access to Chinese media and entertainment industries that Dalian Wanda enjoys in the United States. It is not far-fetched to assume that China would seek to spread pro-regime propaganda via ownership of U.S. entertainment media.”

    Wanda, which bought Legendary for $3.5 billion and plans to target one of the “Big Six” Hollywood studios next, is in talks to buy **** Clark Productions at a $1 billion valuation.

    “Is its ownership also a matter of national strategic importance?” asked the article. “The answer, according to a growing number of U.S. officials and entertainment industry observers, is maybe. That’s because the would-be buyer is Dalian Wanda, a Chinese conglomerate whose chairman’s Communist Party membership and close ties to President Xi Jinping’s government in Beijing make it a private firm only in a nominal sense.”

    The editorial added, “If fully executed, this acquisition strategy could give Dalian Wanda, and by extension its patrons in Beijing, influence over not only the distribution of films but also their content.”

    The paper recalls when Japan spent billions of dollars to take over Columbia Pictures and Universal but were forced to retreat because they underwent financial losses. However, it said, there is a “fundamental difference” between China and Japan’s spending habits.

    “Japan is a strategic ally of the United States and a democracy committed to free expression,” it said. “China, by contrast, is adversarial and ruled by a dictator, Mr. Xi, who has openly declared a global propaganda agenda, based on the idea that ‘Chinese art will further develop only when we make foreign things serve China.’“

    The 28-year-old Wanda Group is on pace to spend more than $30 billion in deals this year, with almost half of that in sports and entertainment. The company that began as a residential real estate development firm in the northern port city of Dalian, China, has grown at a record pace. Two months ago, it announced plans to install 4,000 new RealD 3D screens and 150 new IMAX theaters — the largest-ever installation deals for each of those formats.

    Its latest move was to set a strategic alliance with Sony Pictures Entertainment. Wanda will invest in key film franchises that will be announced within the coming weeks, one individual familiar with the deal said. In return, SPE will take advantage of the considerable marketing and release power that the investment group enjoys in China.

    And congress seems to be concerned by all of the activity. Earlier this week, the Government Accountability Office accepted a request from members of congress to review the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States and determine whether its legal powers have kept pace with the influx of international buyers targeting American companies — particularly the fire hose of Chinese investment in Hollywood.
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  8. #68
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    Profits over propaganda

    We Americans are too wrapped up in our own propaganda to be seduced by Chicom movie propaganda.


    PAPER TIGER.
    PHOTOGRAPHER: LIONEL BONAVENTURE/AFP/GETTY IMAGES


    China's Invading Hollywood! Now, Relax

    17 OCT 7, 2016 11:35 AM EDT
    By Adam Minter

    Wang Jianlin, China's richest man, has been on a Hollywood shopping spree. As chief executive of the Wanda Group, he's acquired Legendary Entertainment, producer of "Jurassic Park," and is in talks to pay $1 billion for **** Clark Productions, producer of the Golden Globes and other live television events. An earlier purchase, AMC Entertainment, recently announced plans to buy Carmike Cinema, which would create the world's biggest theater chain.

    When Wang arrives in Hollywood for a highly anticipated visit later this month, he'll have even bigger game in sight: one of the Big Six Hollywood studios that control as much as 85 percent of U.S. and Canadian box office revenue. If successful, he'll be the first Chinese national to own one.

    That's aroused worries that Wang and other aspiring Chinese movie moguls may restrict creative freedoms and spread Chinese propaganda in the U.S. and beyond. Last month, 16 members of Congress wrote to the Government Accountability Office asking it to reconsider how foreign investments in the U.S. are reviewed. Since then, the chairman of the House Intelligence Committee has added his signature to the letter. Wanda's entertainment acquisitions were on the list of worries: "Should the definition of national security be broadened to address concerns about propaganda and control of the media and ‘soft power’ institutions?" the group asked.

    At home, it's true, China operates one of the world's most formidable propaganda and censorship programs, and tycoons like Wang have succeeded in part because of their willingness to play by its rules. China's Communist Party has long embraced the idea that the role of art is to advance its interests. In October 2014, President Xi Jinping made that commitment explicit in a speech in which he called on Chinese painters, writers and filmmakers to "fully implement the Party's art policy."

    Every Chinese artist knows what red lines shouldn't be crossed; the idea of Tibetan or Taiwanese independence is off-limits, for instance, as are topics that call into question the canonical history of the Communist Party. More recently, the government has added a few specific bans, including one barring television programming that promotes "Western lifestyles."

    The idea that Wang might be able to export Communist dogma to Hollywood, however, seems fanciful. The most successful Chinese movies tend to be harmless melodramas and martial arts films. So far, this year's biggest box office success is a comedy about a mermaid assassin who falls in love with the greedy real estate developer she was sent to kill. On those rare occasions when Chinese filmmakers dabble in propaganda, the films have invariably failed (unless propped up by box office fraud).

    Indeed, even on their home turf, Chinese films are no competition for Hollywood, which accounted for nearly 40 percent of China's box office receipts in 2015 despite rampant piracy and strict limits on the number of foreign films. Wang has openly acknowledged that part of his goal is to obtain U.S. technology and know-how in order to improve Chinese filmmaking. He has little incentive to transform a U.S. studio into a facsimile of its Chinese peers.

    A bigger concern is self-censorship. In recent years, Hollywood studios have become adept at making -- or at least, editing -- films that can get past China's censors. Some have gone further and rewritten storylines that might raise hackles in Beijing, as when MGM decided to change Chinese villains into North Korean ones in a clumsy 2011 remake of "Red Dawn." A Chinese-owned studio would no doubt be at least as conscientious about the Party's sensitivities, if not more so.

    Fortunately, the impact would probably be limited. Since the 1940s, Hollywood's studio system has given way to a blossoming of independent production companies, distribution channels and exhibition formats that give an independent-minded filmmaker many options. A Wang-owned studio could still pass on controversial projects, of course. But shareholders and audiences would look askance if management repeatedly missed out on successful films, and at least some filmmakers and talents would look elsewhere if Wanda developed a reputation for asserting a political agenda. Meanwhile, the proliferation of production houses -- not just indies, but major companies such as Amazon and Netflix -- means that U.S. viewers aren't likely to be starved for choice.

    In theory, Wanda could use its power as the owner of AMC to ensure that large numbers of U.S. cinemas are stocked only with politically acceptable films. But the Justice Department's antitrust lawyers have required AMC to sell off theaters for competition reasons in the past, and the proposed Carmike acquisition - currently under investigation - may inspire them to do so again.

    Meanwhile, under a landmark Supreme Court antitrust ruling in 1948, Hollywood studios were required to divest themselves of their theater-chain holdings and stop forcing independent theaters to book their films. Even if Wanda acquires a major studio, that decision - and a zealous Justice Department - ensures that it won't be able to force propaganda down the throats of American audiences that are probably home watching American-owned Netflix, anyway.

    Americans have plenty of reasons to be wary of China's expanding influence. But at a time of expanding entertainment options, fear that China might be taking over the local multiplex is overheated and outdated. Taste, technology and ambition will ensure that there is always something else to watch.

    This column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the editorial board or Bloomberg LP and its owners.

    To contact the author of this story:
    Adam Minter at aminter@bloomberg.net

    To contact the editor responsible for this story:
    Timothy Lavin at tlavin1@bloomberg.net
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  9. #69
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    It's all about distribution...and profit.

    Why DC Started Caring About Dalian Wanda Group and China in Hollywood
    Aggressive posturing from China’s richest man — and Washington lobbying — is fueling a reaction
    Matt Pressberg | October 10, 2016 @ 5:32 PM


    Getty Images

    China’s Dalian Wanda Group made its first big splash in Hollywood back in 2012, when it acquired AMC Theaters. Since then, the real estate and media conglomerate has been on quite a shopping spree, including buying “Jurassic World” production company Legendary Entertainment for an aggressive $3.5 billion in January — which made Wanda the first Chinese company to own an American studio or production house.

    But it was only the past few days when D.C. really took notice — and began pushing back.

    The Washington Post published a strongly worded Oct. 5 editorial that raised red flags over the possibility of China’s ruling party using its entertainment assets to spread propaganda.

    Also last week, the Government Accountability Office agreed to a request from 16 members of Congress to review the legal powers of a foreign investment committee, and Rep. Jim Culberson sent a letter to the Department of Justice urging it to take another look at the Foreign Agents Registration Act, specifically mentioning Wanda’s entertainment purchases and their potential to be used for “propaganda purposes.”

    So why did Washington decide to start paying attention now?

    For one, Wanda — and other Chinese firms — are stepping up their investments in Hollywood. Co-financing deals between U.S. studios and Chinese partners have been booming for a couple years now, including arrangements such as Lionsgate’s deal with Hunan TV, STX’s with Huayi Bros. and Universal’s with Perfect World Pictures.

    This year, in addition to purchasing Legendary, Wanda was also a leading contender to buy a minority stake in Paramount Pictures — before that was taken off the table — and is also in talks to acquire **** Clark Productions for $1 billion.

    Wanda isn’t a typical entertainment company, either. Its founder and CEO, Wang Jianlin, is China’s richest man and close to the ruling party. Several individuals with ties to government officials have significant economic interests in Wanda’s businesses. Wang has made no secret of his desire to spread “Chinese values” around the world via entertainment, making that point — and criticizing U.S. rivals like Disney — in a blustery fashion that can rub people the wrong way.

    But as members of Congress have plenty of issues to occupy their minds and public pronouncements aside from Chinese investments in entertainment companies, one instrumental factor in the recent string of fusillades from Capitol Hill has been a campaign by Richard Berman, the president of D.C. lobbying firm Berman & Co.

    Berman started paying attention to the fire hose of Chinese money flowing into Hollywood this summer and had one of his staffers do more research, realizing it was bigger than he thought. He then began reaching out to sympathetic legislators.

    “We reached out to some people on the Hill that we knew already had an agenda,” Berman told TheWrap. “There are people who are predisposed to being suspicious [of China] because of some other issues. And a lot of those people have committee assignments that overlap [with Chinese investment in Hollywood].”

    Berman said last week’s events were the culmination of that work, and that someone on his staff had been in touch with Culberson.

    “My fingerprints are all over this,” he said.

    Berman acknowledged that studios tailoring their product to appease the China’s gatekeepers — don’t expect to see a Chinese villain in the next James Bond film — is primarily a business decision driven by the desire to get into the world’s second-biggest and one of its fastest growing movie markets, but he’s more focused on China’s ownership of distribution outlets.

    “The issue of censorship in China is not my concern,” he said. “People changing their movies so they can be shown in China is not my concern. The thing that really triggered my interest is the distribution issue. If you control distribution, you control what the retail market sees.”

    To that end, Berman pointed out Wanda’s ownership of AMC Theaters, which is currently in talks to acquire Carmike Cinemas — making it America’s biggest theatrical exhibitor. He said he had conversations with AMC personnel that didn’t give him great comfort that the theater chain would be free to show movies that the Chinese government didn’t like.

    “Wang has been pretty blatant that AMC is owned by the Chinese,” he said.

    Berman said he’s doing this “just to make people aware,” adding that he’s satisfied with last week’s Washington Post editorial and the correspondence between members of Congress and the GAO and DOJ.

    “I’m not trying to make this a McCarthy-ite type issue; but as far as I’m concerned, it needed to have more light shown on it,” he said.
    We've been tracking this since Good to know DC has caught up.
    Gene Ching
    Publisher www.KungFuMagazine.com
    Author of Shaolin Trips
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  10. #70
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    It's all about distribution...and profit.

    Why DC Started Caring About Dalian Wanda Group and China in Hollywood
    Aggressive posturing from China’s richest man — and Washington lobbying — is fueling a reaction
    Matt Pressberg | October 10, 2016 @ 5:32 PM


    Getty Images

    China’s Dalian Wanda Group made its first big splash in Hollywood back in 2012, when it acquired AMC Theaters. Since then, the real estate and media conglomerate has been on quite a shopping spree, including buying “Jurassic World” production company Legendary Entertainment for an aggressive $3.5 billion in January — which made Wanda the first Chinese company to own an American studio or production house.

    But it was only the past few days when D.C. really took notice — and began pushing back.

    The Washington Post published a strongly worded Oct. 5 editorial that raised red flags over the possibility of China’s ruling party using its entertainment assets to spread propaganda.

    Also last week, the Government Accountability Office agreed to a request from 16 members of Congress to review the legal powers of a foreign investment committee, and Rep. Jim Culberson sent a letter to the Department of Justice urging it to take another look at the Foreign Agents Registration Act, specifically mentioning Wanda’s entertainment purchases and their potential to be used for “propaganda purposes.”

    So why did Washington decide to start paying attention now?

    For one, Wanda — and other Chinese firms — are stepping up their investments in Hollywood. Co-financing deals between U.S. studios and Chinese partners have been booming for a couple years now, including arrangements such as Lionsgate’s deal with Hunan TV, STX’s with Huayi Bros. and Universal’s with Perfect World Pictures.

    This year, in addition to purchasing Legendary, Wanda was also a leading contender to buy a minority stake in Paramount Pictures — before that was taken off the table — and is also in talks to acquire **** Clark Productions for $1 billion.

    Wanda isn’t a typical entertainment company, either. Its founder and CEO, Wang Jianlin, is China’s richest man and close to the ruling party. Several individuals with ties to government officials have significant economic interests in Wanda’s businesses. Wang has made no secret of his desire to spread “Chinese values” around the world via entertainment, making that point — and criticizing U.S. rivals like Disney — in a blustery fashion that can rub people the wrong way.

    But as members of Congress have plenty of issues to occupy their minds and public pronouncements aside from Chinese investments in entertainment companies, one instrumental factor in the recent string of fusillades from Capitol Hill has been a campaign by Richard Berman, the president of D.C. lobbying firm Berman & Co.

    Berman started paying attention to the fire hose of Chinese money flowing into Hollywood this summer and had one of his staffers do more research, realizing it was bigger than he thought. He then began reaching out to sympathetic legislators.

    “We reached out to some people on the Hill that we knew already had an agenda,” Berman told TheWrap. “There are people who are predisposed to being suspicious [of China] because of some other issues. And a lot of those people have committee assignments that overlap [with Chinese investment in Hollywood].”

    Berman said last week’s events were the culmination of that work, and that someone on his staff had been in touch with Culberson.

    “My fingerprints are all over this,” he said.

    Berman acknowledged that studios tailoring their product to appease the China’s gatekeepers — don’t expect to see a Chinese villain in the next James Bond film — is primarily a business decision driven by the desire to get into the world’s second-biggest and one of its fastest growing movie markets, but he’s more focused on China’s ownership of distribution outlets.

    “The issue of censorship in China is not my concern,” he said. “People changing their movies so they can be shown in China is not my concern. The thing that really triggered my interest is the distribution issue. If you control distribution, you control what the retail market sees.”

    To that end, Berman pointed out Wanda’s ownership of AMC Theaters, which is currently in talks to acquire Carmike Cinemas — making it America’s biggest theatrical exhibitor. He said he had conversations with AMC personnel that didn’t give him great comfort that the theater chain would be free to show movies that the Chinese government didn’t like.

    “Wang has been pretty blatant that AMC is owned by the Chinese,” he said.

    Berman said he’s doing this “just to make people aware,” adding that he’s satisfied with last week’s Washington Post editorial and the correspondence between members of Congress and the GAO and DOJ.

    “I’m not trying to make this a McCarthy-ite type issue; but as far as I’m concerned, it needed to have more light shown on it,” he said.
    We've been tracking this since 2010. Good to know DC has caught up.
    Gene Ching
    Publisher www.KungFuMagazine.com
    Author of Shaolin Trips
    Support our forum by getting your gear at MartialArtSmart

  11. #71
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    Wang Jianlin got bank

    BUSINESS NEWS | Thu Oct 13, 2016 | 2:21am EDT
    Wanda's Wang defends top spot in China rich list


    Wang Jianlin, chairman of the Wanda Group, speaks during an interview in Beijing, China, August 23, 2016. REUTERS/Thomas Peter/File Photo

    By Jackie Cai and Adam Jourdan | SHANGHAI

    Chinese property magnate Wang Jianlin has defended his crown as the country's richest man, according to the annual Hurun rich list, fending off Alibaba Group Holding Ltd (BABA.N) founder Jack Ma and new players on the block like Baoneng's Yao Zhenhua.

    Wang, the chairman of Dalian Wanda Group, took the top spot with a personal fortune of $32.1 billion, the report said, despite Ma, the founder of e-commerce giant Alibaba, seeing his wealth surge 41 percent from 2015.

    The annual rich list of China's movers and shakers gives a temperature check on where money is flowing in China, and underlines the growing financial muscle of the country's super-rich - a trend that has been fuelling a boom in global deals.

    Yao Zhenhua, the chairman of Baoneng Group and the biggest riser since 2015, saw his wealth shoot up 820 percent to $17.2 billion, elevating him to fourth in the overall list. Yao has been at the center of a hostile takeover battle for China's largest real estate developer China Vanke Co Ltd (000002.SZ).

    Hurun founder Rupert Hoogewerf said Yao represented a new wave of wealthy Chinese, those whose money came from playing the financial markets as opposed to more traditional routes like trade or manufacturing.

    "There's a new type of wealth creation coming out," he told Reuters, adding China was having to adapt as the wider economy was "very materially slowing down".

    "Today it is about using the capital markets for financial investment," he said.

    Baoneng, a financial conglomerate that had been a relative unknown, rose to prominence over the last year by becoming the largest shareholder in Vanke, though drew criticism from Vanke's own chairman over where it was getting its funds.

    The report said there were now 594 dollar billionaires in China, putting China ahead of the United States' 535. However, none of China's super-rich make it into the global top 20.

    Other risers included online gaming tycoon Ding Lei of Netease, appliance maker Midea Group's (000333.SZ) He Xiangjian and property magnate Xu Jiayin of Evergrande (3333.HK). However, smartphone maker Xiaomi [XTC.UL] saw founder Lei Jun fall out of the top 10 as competition in China's smartphone market rose.

    (Reporting by Jackie Cai and Adam Jourdan; Editing by Stephen Coates)
    We see what they want us to see, but I can't but wonder how this plays out in Communist China.
    Gene Ching
    Publisher www.KungFuMagazine.com
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  12. #72
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    Poaching the mouse

    HEY MICKEY
    China’s Wanda Group has hired the ex-head of Hong Kong Disneyland to help it crush Disney
    Hong Kong Disneyland Managing Director Andrew Kam (C) attends a news conference in Hong Kong February 18, 2013. Hong Kong Disneyland on Monday reported a net profit of HK$109 million (13.97 million) for the financial year that ended on September 29, 2012, the first annual profit since the resort opened in September 2005.


    Andrew Kam, now making magic at Wanda. (Reuters/Bobby Yip)

    WRITTEN BY Zheping Huang
    OBSESSION China's Transition
    October 17, 2016

    One of China’s richest men, Wang Jianlin—who presides over an entertainment empire that includes cinemas in the US and theme parks—recently threw down the gauntlet and declared war on Disneyland. To do that, he’s hired the former boss of Hong Kong Disneyland to run its theme park business.
    Andrew Kam, former managing director of Hong Kong Disneyland, will join Wang’s conglomerate Wanda Group, state-run digital publication the Paper reported (link in Chinese) on Oct. 17, citing unidentified sources. Quartz confirmed Kam’s appointment with two sources familiar with the matter. Wanda representatives declined to comment on the news.
    Disney is facing an uphill battle with its biggest theme-park rival in China, which plans to build 15 amusement park complexes in China before 2020. Wang said in a recent TV interview that he’ll make mainland China’s first Disneyland, which opened in Shanghai in June, “unprofitable in the coming two decades.”
    Kam headed Hong Kong Disneyland for eight years, before he resigned in March “for personal reasons.” Under his stewardship, the decade-old theme park turned a profit for the first time in 2012, but fell into the red again in 2015 due to a drop in mainland Chinese visitors.
    Wanda has so far opened two theme park complexes in China, the first in the southeastern city of Nanchang and the other in Hefei in the east. Both cities are within a four-hour train ride of Shanghai.
    Theme parks are such a telling barometer of a nation's growth.
    Gene Ching
    Publisher www.KungFuMagazine.com
    Author of Shaolin Trips
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  13. #73
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    The return of the RED MENACE

    Red Star Over Hollywood: ‘Dr. Evil’ Says China Wants Movies
    Anousha Sakoui
    David McLaughlin

    October 16, 2016 — 2:00 PM PDT Updated on October 17, 2016 — 4:53 AM PDT

    The billboard towers over Sunset Boulevard, a marionettist’s hand, a la “The Godfather” posters of decades ago, pulling the strings in Hollywood. It poses an unsettling question: “China’s Red Puppet?”
    The sign is the work of Rick Berman, a lobbyist on a mission against -- as he has framed it -- “the communist takeover of our movies.” The target, in this instance, is Dalian Wanda Group Co., owner of the second-biggest U.S. cinema chain and Legendary Entertainment, co-producer of “The Hangover.” And whose founder, billionaire Wang Jianlin, will be in Los Angeles Monday to host an event in a city whose best-known industry has embraced him.


    China owned U.S. billboard. Photographer: Patrick T. Fallon/Bloomberg

    The entertainment business may welcome the invasion of money from Wanda and other Chinese companies, but Berman sees danger. These investors are gaining power that, in his view, will be wielded to influence public opinion and tailor films to the liking of the rulers of the world’s most populous nation.
    “If everything continues on the current trajectory, you will never see a Chinese villain in the movies,” he said by phone from his public affairs firm Berman & Co. in Washington. He’s known there for his hardball tactics on behalf of the food, alcohol, tobacco and energy industries, and earned the nickname Dr. Evil for his lobbying work against labor unions.
    Berman’s campaign to heighten government scrutiny of the security risks of Chinese stakes in the entertainment business has captured the attention of some in Congress. It’s creating buzz and a bit of alarm in an industry that is keen for access to China’s massive box-office market and increasingly reliant on backing from its companies.

    ‘Very Naive’

    “China is the biggest external investor, probably with the exception of Wall Street, that Hollywood has ever seen,” said Robert Cain, a consultant and partner at Pacific Bridge Pictures.
    A rarity in the business, Cain said there is something to worry about in China’s grab for the so-called soft power of cultural and economic influence. “I’ve been a beneficiary of Chinese investment myself and have been very happy with the investors I’ve worked with,” but as for those who believe the Chinese are just interested in making money, “that is a very naive and even a dangerous attitude.”
    Others dismiss Berman as a fear-mongerer. Janet Yang, a producer whose credits include “The People vs. Larry Flynt,” said it seemed less than coincidental that the issue was being raised in an election year in which Donald Trump has attacked China in particular and globalization in general.

    Big Money

    “We are not making widgets,” said Yang, whose parents were born in China. “We are making things that require incredibly deft and nuanced storytelling, and audiences are not going to put up with anything that reeks of propaganda.”
    Studio executives either declined to comment or didn’t respond to calls and e-mails. The Motion Picture Association of America and Wanda declined to comment.
    The Chinese have been spreading big money around the industry since 2012, when Wanda bought cinema operator AMC Entertainment Holdings Inc. Several recent blockbusters -- including “Mission Impossible -- Rogue Nation” and “Terminator Genisys” -- were partly financed by Chinese companies.
    “AMC Theatres is an American company run entirely by its American management team from its headquarters near Kansas City, where AMC has been located for all of its nearly 100-year history,” AMC said in a statement. “Wanda does not participate in any of the day-to-day running of AMC, nor does Wanda make any decisions related to which films play in AMC Theatres. Wanda has been a terrific shareholder for AMC, providing capital support necessary to enable AMC to dramatically renovate our movie theaters around the country.”
    One of the newest studios, 2-year-old STX Entertainment, got its start with help from the Chinese private-equity firm Hony Capital and has raised millions in deals with Huayi Brothers Media Corp. and Tencent Holdings Ltd. Last week, Alibaba Pictures Group Ltd. said it was buying a stake in Amblin Partners, the production outfit backed by Steven Spielberg.

    ‘Different Agenda’

    Wanda has been the busiest. Founded by Wang -- a former officer in the People’s Liberation Army -- the conglomerate bought Legendary in January and has a deal to make movies with Sony Corp.’s film unit. AMC plans to purchase Carmike Cinemas Inc. Wanda’s in talks to acquire a controlling stake in **** Clark Productions. And Wang has said he’d like to control one of Hollywood’s six major studios.
    He’ll be promoting his company’s Qingdao Movie Metropolis, a complex under construction on China’s eastern coast, at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art Monday. The invitation-only event is billed as a U.S.-Sino Business Evening.
    “I don’t think that Wanda is buying all these movie interests because they are trying to corner the buttered popcorn market,” Berman said. “These guys have a different agenda.”

    Needing Access

    Berman runs his save-Hollywood mission out of a nonprofit called the Center for American Security with a budget of $400,000, some of it his own money and some from donors he declined to identify, describing them as “national security hawks.” He set up a website -- chinaownsus.com -- to showcase his arguments. “My goal is to expose to the general public a point of view that they are not getting,” he said.


    Richard Berman Photographer: Daniel Rosenbaum/The New York Times via Redux Pictures

    One video on the site shows the scene from “A Clockwork Orange” where Malcolm McDowell is forced to watch films with his eyes painfully propped open, to suggest Beijing could decide what movies U.S. audiences see. Another intimates that the script for “The Martian” was altered to include a pro-Chinese storyline. The Matt Damon film, it turns out, was true to the novel, in which the Chinese space program helped rescue a stranded American astronaut.
    U.S. studios frankly need Chinese access as much as they do Chinese money, and rely on partnerships to distribute in that country, where regulations put sharp restrictions on foreign films. Because the market in China has such potential, Hollywood self-censors, no prodding needed, said Stanley Rosen, a University of Southern California professor who studies the relationship between China and the U.S. industry.

    Dalai Lama?

    “When they make a film, they will make sure it has friendly China elements, and certainly no unfriendly elements,” he said. “It doesn’t matter who owns the company.”
    Studios sometimes make different versions of movies for theaters in China, where anything for public consumption has to pass the tough muster of the Film Bureau, an arm of the State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television. “Cloud Atlas” from Warner Bros. went to cinemas there without sex scenes in 2013. Walt Disney Co. put out a special “Iron Man 3” that year with Chinese actors and bonus footage.
    Pacific Bridge’s Cain, who consults for U.S. studios on how to do business in China, said it will be the absence of certain kinds of films that will be evidence of the detrimental effect of Chinese investments in Hollywood. “Who wants to be the person who got themselves blacklisted in China because they made a film about the Dalai Lama?” he said, referring to the spiritual leader of the Tibetan people who has lived in exile since China annexed Tibet.



    Entertainment is hardly the only U.S. industry attracting Chinese capital. There was more than $18 billion in direct investment from that country in the first half of 2016, according to Rhodium Group, more than the total for all of 2015.
    U.S. companies with China-based parents run the gamut, from Smithfield Foods Inc. to New York’s landmark Waldorf Astoria Hotel. Those were both examined by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, a panel known as CFIUS that reviews foreign acquisitions of U.S. companies.
    Now, thanks to Berman, the Government Accountability Office is looking into whether the scope of CFIUS should be formally expanded, in light of what 18 members of Congress called the “serious security questions” raised by Wanda’s shopping spree. The lawmakers in a Sept. 15 letter asked the GAO to study whether CFIUS’s examinations should include a focus on propaganda and control of media and other soft-power institutions.
    Wang told CNN on Sept. 28 that the two Democrats and 16 Republicans who signed the letter were “over-worried.”
    Lawyers at Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld cautioned clients in a note last month that the GAO review indicated the panel may increase its study of entertainment deals. “You can’t ignore it as a potential problem,” said John Burke, head of the firm’s entertainment practice.
    It may be just a matter of time, and money, said Nova Daly, a senior policy adviser at Wiley Rein in Washington. “There could in theory be a point where enough investment by companies from only one country like China in the industry starts to raise eyebrows.”
    Ironically, this is more about Chinese capitalism than communism.
    Gene Ching
    Publisher www.KungFuMagazine.com
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  14. #74
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    The plot thickens

    It's never simple these days, is it?

    Anti-Wanda Organization Has Past Link to Regal’s Philip Anschutz (EXCLUSIVE)
    By Gene Maddaus, Brent Lang


    OCTOBER 17, 2016 | 02:19PM PT
    Over footage of the Tiananmen Square massacre, a gravel-voiced narrator warns: “When a government controls the media, they can control what you see… and what you don’t see.”

    The video was produced by China Owns Us, an organization formed to warn of a wave of Chinese acquisitions in the U.S. entertainment industry. The campaign’s chief target is the Dalian Wanda Group, which owns AMC Theaters and Legendary Entertainment, and has announced plans to acquire Carmike Cinemas. The merger would make the combined company the largest cinema operator in the world.

    “Would an American movie that told the story of Tiananmen Square get made today if the producers knew that the Chinese could refuse to show that movie on their 8,000-plus American movie screens, never mind movie screens in China?” another video asks.

    A disclaimer at the bottom of the website states that China Owns Us is a project of the Center for American Security, which is itself affiliated with the Enterprise Freedom Action Committee. The whole thing is run by Richard Berman, a notorious D.C. figure known for stealth campaigns against unions, animal rights activists, and environmentalists.

    Berman operates numerous non-profit groups that do not disclose their donors. In 2014, the New York Times received leaked audio in which Berman bragged that he could help corporate donors advance their agendas in total secrecy.

    “There is total anonymity,” he said. “People don’t know who supports us.”

    It is not clear who is financing Berman’s campaign against Wanda. He claims that he is funding most of the materials and that he was inspired to get involved in the issue out of alarm over the increasing amount of Chinese involvement in the entertainment industry. He is concerned that China would be able to censor speech and ideas if it continues to buy up theater chains, production entities, and get involved in slate financing deals.

    “I don’t like repressive governments,” said Berman. “My goal is to shine a light on what Wanda is doing.”

    But Berman does have a relationship with Philip Anschutz, the Colorado billionaire who owns a controlling stake in Regal Entertainment Group. Regal is currently the largest cinema chain in the U.S., but would be displaced if the AMC/Carmike merger is approved.

    Tax records show that the Anschutz Foundation contributed $270,000 over three years to the Center for Union Facts, another Berman group. The foundation contributed $45,000 in 2012, $200,000 in 2011, and $25,000 in 2009. The Center for Union Facts campaigned against the Employee Free Choice Act, federal legislation which would have made it easier to form unions. It also campaigned against teachers’ unions. Anschutz is a major contributor to charter schools and education reform efforts.

    Anschutz is famously press shy. His representatives did not return multiple calls seeking comment about China Owns Us and Berman.

    “I certainly do know Phil, but he is not one of my funders,” said Berman.

    He added, “I never disclose donors to my campaigns and there’s always speculation about who is funding them. I’m always amazed by how much curiosity there is. It doesn’t matter who is giving the money, it only matters if what I’m saying is accurate.”

    There have also been rumors that Carmike investors, angry over the sale to AMC, are backing the campaign. Berman denied that they are playing a role.

    “I have been contacted by some of them, but I’m not getting any money from Carmike shareholders,” said Berman.

    Wanda has been on a buying spree of late, but it’s not the only Chinese conglomerate with business interests in Hollywood. China’s Alibaba took a minority stake in Amblin Pictures, Hony Capital and TPG Growth have invested in STX Entertainment, and Fosun is backing Studio 8, among other high-profile deals.

    Berman’s campaign appears to be resonating in Washington, D.C. A bipartisan group of lawmakers have asked government agencies to examine whether or not they need to more deeply review Chinese investments.

    Whatever the case, Berman does seem to be a familiar presence in Anschutz’s orbit. His 2014 speech, in which he bragged about keeping corporate contributions secret, was held at the palatial Broadmoor Hotel in Colorado Springs.

    The owner of the hotel? Phil Anschutz.
    Gene Ching
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    Money talks...

    ...propaganda walks? That's some serious incentive...

    Dalian Wanda $8 Billion Mega-Studio Lures Hollywood With Huge Rebate, $750 Million in Incentives
    Wanda CEO Wang Jianlin also confirmed that “Pacific Rim 2” and “Godzilla” would headline slate of Hollywood films shooting in China
    Matt Pressberg | October 17, 2016 @ 6:13 PM


    Getty Images

    Dalian Wanda, the Chinese conglomerate, unveiled plans for an $8 billion “movie metropolis” in Qingdao at an extraordinary event in the heart of Hollywood on Monday night, surrounded by a who’s who of Hollywood luminaries.

    Wanda founder and CEO Wang Jianlin, possibly the most talked-about man in entertainment today, announced the latest steps in his plan for world domination, telling the crowd: “This is an opportunity for Hollywood. This is not a competition for Hollywood.”

    The crowd filing into the “U.S.-Sino Business Evening” at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art’s Bing Theater — which included the likes of Screening Room founder Sean Parker, Lionsgate co-chair Patrick Wachsberger, MGM CEO Gary Barber, Marvel Studios chairman Avi Arad — was greeted with a video montage featuring a dramatic classical music score highlighting Dalian Wanda Group’s of mega-malls, skyscrapers, theme parks and financial milestones.

    It also laid out some of the Chinese conglomerate’s ambitions, including reaching $100 billion in revenue and $10 billion in profit by 2020, and — mindful of its Hollywood audience — underlined its green building credentials. And soon after, Wang — who sat next to Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti — took the stage to present the next chapter in Wanda’s plans to become a global force in entertainment.

    Wang announced a 40 percent rebate — jointly funded by Wanda along with certain Chinese regional governments — intended to lure Hollywood production to China. More specifically, to Wanda’s under-construction Qingdao Movie Metropolis, a 408-acre studio that will include the world’s largest indoor sound stage. He noted that the incentives will total $750 million over the course of five years.

    Wanda also announced the first batch of projects that will take advantage of the offering and shoot in Qingdao. “Pacific Rim 2,” produced by Wanda-owned Legendary Entertainment will be the first movie to shoot at the park when cameras roll later this month. Legendary’s “Godzilla” will also be shot there.

    Lionsgate, along with China Media Capital-backed Infinity Pictures, Arad Productions, Arclight Films, Kylin Pictures, Base Media, Beijing Dirty Monkey Culture Industry Development and Juben Pictures have also agreed to shoot upcoming films at the $8.2 billion studio complex.

    Wang repeatedly framed Qingdao Movie Metropolis as something that would complement Hollywood, not take business away from it.

    He also provided details on the 40 percent rebate plan, which would be one of the world’s most generous. It’s being underwritten by the Qingdao regional governments in partnership with Wanda — the first time a private company has directly bankrolled an incentive plan like this.

    Wanda has had an eventful 2016, beginning with its $3.5 billion purchase of Legendary Entertainment, a bout of theme park brinkmanship with Disney in June, and ongoing talks to acquire **** Clark Productions for $1 billion. Wanda’s AMC Theaters is also in discussions to acquire Carmike Cinemas, making it North America’s largest exhibitor.

    The conglomerate is on pace to spend $30 billion on deals this year — half in sports and entertainment. And last month, Wang confirmed his long-rumored desire to buy a major studio, telling CNN he’s interested in buying at least 50 percent of one of the “Big Six.”

    And while Wanda has been scooping up entertainment assets since buying AMC Theaters back in 2012, Washington has recently taken notice. In a three-day span earlier this month, two separate government agencies were asked to take a closer look at Wanda’s entertainment dealings, and the Washington Post published an acerbic editorial warning that “China could seek to spread pro-regime propaganda via ownership of U.S. entertainment media.”

    With that backdrop, Wang decided to tone down his trademark bombast — he’s previously boasted about Wanda’s theme parks and said Disney “really shouldn’t have come to China” on state-run TV. On Monday, he adopted a more conciliatory tone, viewing Hollywood as partners, not opponents to be vanquished. However, he did state that adding Chinese cultural elements in movies makes good business sense, as China is on pace to have the world’s largest box office as soon as next year.

    “From a business perspective, just look at the best way to make money,” Wang advised. “Don’t make it a political issue.”

    Wang said the best way for Hollywood to capitalize on that under-tapped market is to add “Chinese cultural elements” to blockbusters. “How do you add those elements?” he asked. “You can figure it out.”

    Wang was preceded on stage by Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences President Cheryl Boone Isaacs and Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti. Boone Isaacs said Hollywood benefits from “cross-pollination” between American filmmakers and international partners.

    “We’re not growing if we aren’t gaining new perspective,” she said. “And China is a wonderful land in which to explore new horizons.”

    Boone Isaacs also announced the naming of the Wanda Library at the Academy’s museum, currently under construction.

    “Simply put, Wanda has the potential to create an unprecedented bridge between the American and Chinese movie communities,” she said, citing its ability to help U.S. filmmakers wade through “political and cultural challenges” in China.

    Garcetti took the stage next — to the “Indiana Jones” theme. “Dalian Wanda has been an exceptional friend to Los Angeles,” the mayor said, mentioning the company’s significant local real estate developments — such as a condominium and hotel project in Beverly Hills — and “the investments you are now making in our signature industry, the entertainment industry.”

    Garcetti said he wanted to welcome companies like Wanda — even as Wang comes to town to explicitly try to recruit filming elsewhere.

    Wang argued that the Qingdao park wouldn’t directly pull production from Hollywood, but from other foreign destinations that have recently become popular filming spots, such as Australia. And while Garcetti reiterated that he would be “strong in promoting Los Angeles as a place to film.”

    Despite all the talk about working together, Wang couldn’t resist needling Hollywood a little bit, such as when he talked about the behind-the-camera jobs his new studio will create.

    “Qingdao Movie Metropolis will increase a lot of employment opportunities for technical people in Hollywood,” Wang said. “They might even make more money at Qingdao Movie Metropolis.”

    He also took a bit of a shot at what he perceived is the over-reliance of blockbusters on special effects rather than storytelling.

    “From a Chinese perspective, Hollywood is the professor and Chinese filmmakers are the students,” he said. “How do you tell the teacher to increase their quality?”
    Gene Ching
    Publisher www.KungFuMagazine.com
    Author of Shaolin Trips
    Support our forum by getting your gear at MartialArtSmart

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