聯合睿康將控股好萊塢千禧年影業

Recon Group, the Chinese owner of Aston Villa football club, is taking a $100m controlling stake in Millennium Films, the Hollywood producer of one of the Rambo films and The Expendables franchise.

中國企業聯合睿康集團(Recon Group)將斥資1億美元獲得好萊塢製片公司千禧年影業(Millennium Films)的控股權。聯合睿康是英國足球俱樂部阿斯頓維拉(Aston Villa)的所有者，千禧年影業製作過一部《第一滴血》(Rambo)，以及《敢死隊》(The Expendables)系列。

The conglomerate controlled by Tony Xia is the latest Chinese investor to pour money into the US entertainment industry, as China’s domestic film market booms. The deals give Chinese groups exposure to Hollywood’s cinematic acumen, while US studios get capital and better access to China’s tightly controlled film market.

聯合睿康集團的控制人是夏建統(Tony Xia)，隨着中國國內電影市場日趨繁榮，該公司成爲新一個投資美國娛樂產業的中國投資者。這些交易讓中國企業接觸到好萊塢電影智慧，同時也讓美國電影企業獲得資金，以及更順暢地進入中國嚴格控制的電影市場。

Dalian Wanda, the world’s largest cinema owner-operator, has been among the most aggressive, snapping up Dick Clark Productions for $1bn and Legendary Entertainment for $3.5bn last year, buying AMC movie theatres in 2012, and partnering with Sony Pictures Entertainment and IMAX to invest in film production and cinemas, respectively. Shanghai Film Group and Huahua Media recently struck a $1bn deal to co-finance Paramount Pictures’ slate of films for the next three years.

全球最大的影院所有者及經營者大連萬達(Dalian Wanda)是其中最積極的一家，該公司去年以10億美元收購迪克克拉克製片公司(Dick Clark Productions)、以35億美元收購傳奇娛樂(Legendary Entertainment)，2012年買下AMC電影院線，而且分別與索尼影視娛樂(Sony Pictures Entertainment)和IMAX合作，投資電影和影院。上海電影集團(Shanghai Film Group)和華樺傳媒(Huahua Media)最近敲定了一筆10億美元的協議，未來三年將聯合爲派拉蒙影業(Paramount Pictures)製作的電影提供資金。

Recon said on Thursday that its Recon Holding subsidiary was acquiring a 51 per cent stake in Millennium, an independent film producer founded in 1996 by Avi Lerner and Trevor Short. The deal is expected to close in the second quarter and includes Millennium’s library of nearly 300 films, such as London Has Fallen, the 2011 version of Conan the Barbarian and the upcoming The Hitman’s Bodyguard.

聯合睿康在週四表示，其子公司睿康股份(Recon Holding)將收購千禧年影業51%的股權。千禧年影業是阿維?勒納(Avi Lerner)和特雷弗?肖特(Trevor Short)於1996年成立的一家獨立電影製作公司。預計該交易將於第二季度完成，其中包括千禧年影業近300部電影的片庫，如《倫敦陷落》(London Has Fallen)，2011版的《王者之劍》(Conan the Barbarian)，以及即將上映的《殺手的保鏢》(Hitman’s Bodyguard)。

Recon will have the opportunity to buy the remaining 49 per cent of the company in the future. Mr Xia will become chairman of the company, with Mr Lerner serving as chief executive and Mr Short becoming chief operating officer.

睿康股份將有機會在未來收購千禧年影業剩餘49%股權。夏建統將出任千禧年影業董事會主席，勒納將擔任首席執行官，肖特將成爲首席運營官。

“China is emerging as the world’s largest market for premium filmed entertainment and we see enormous value in placing the Chinese market at the forefront of our global strategy,” Mr Lerner and Mr Short said.

勒納和肖特表示：“中國正逐漸成爲全球最大的優質電影娛樂市場，將中國市場列爲我們全球戰略的重心，讓我們看到了巨大的價值。”

“Our films have experienced considerable success in China and in other markets around the world, and we feel there is significant value in partnering with an astute, experienced and well-connected partner to help us execute our long-term strategy of making commercial movies for the global marketplace.”

“我們的電影在中國及全球其他市場都取得了相當大的成功，我們認爲與一家精明、經驗豐富且有良好人脈關係的夥伴合作具有重要價值，這有助於我們實施爲全球市場製作商業電影的長期戰略。”

Mr Xia said the deal was “an incredible opportunity for us to build upon Millennium’s premium brand by accessing a film market in China that continues to experience a period of unprecedented growth”.

夏建統表示這筆交易“對我們而言是一個極好的機會，讓我們能夠在處於空前增長期的中國電影市場打造千禧年影業這個優質品牌”。

Millennium produces five to eight films a year. It says it has generated more than $1.2bn in global box office revenues since 2011.

千禧年影業每年製作5到8部電影，該公司表示自2011年以來其全球票房收入超過12億美元。