Anil Ambani Closes $825M Deal With Spielberg’s DreamWorks

After a year of negotiations, Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group’s (ADAG) Reliance Big Entertainment and renowned film maker Steven Spielberg's Dreamworks SKG have finally closed the deal.  Reliance Big has agreed to invest $825 million (Rs4,018 crore) in Dreamworks, and both the partners will hold a 50% stake each in the firm. The studio will make five to six films every year. According to reports, Anil Ambani would be putting $325 million in the venture as equity while The Walt Disney will be investing another $150 million. The rest will be raised as a syndication of debt from US banks like JPMorgan Chase, CityNational and Bank of America. Walt Disney has entered into a marketing and distribution agreement for Dreamworks’ films globally, except for India, where Reliance Big Entertainment will be the distributor. The deal between DreamWorks and Reliance comes after the former's partnership with Paramount fell apart last year. Spielberg is the director of legendary Hollywood movies like Jaws, E.T., Jurrassic Park, Saving Private Ryan, Schindlers List, among others. DreamWorks is in talks with the likes of Clint Eastwood to direct films for the studio. The company will have a four member board which would comprise of Amitabh Jhunjhunwala, vice-chairman of Reliance Capital, Alan Levine, entertainment advisor of JPMorgan who will represent Reliance Big, Stacey Snider, CEO, DreamWorks, and Speilberg. This is not Anil Ambani's first venture in Hollywood. Last year Reliance Big announced that it would invest $1 billion in several Hollywood projects which include stars like Jim Carrey, George Clooney, Tom Hanks and Brad Pitt. Reliance Big IPO on Cards? Anil Ambani  told PTI that all options regarding listing of Reliance Big Entertainment are open. "We are making a beginning now. All options are open. We will evaluate the options as we go along," Anil Ambani has reportedly said when asked about listing Reliance Big on the backdrop of deal with DreamWorks. The firm could be India's biggest entertainment companies. In February last year George Soros picked up a 3% stake in Reliance Big Entertainment for $100 million, valuing the firm at $3 billion. The firms has presence in three mainlines - internet and new media, film entertainment and TV broadcasting.

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Shortly after announcing a major investment in Hollywood, billionaire Anil Ambani said “all options are open” when asked if he was looking at listing Reliance Big Entertainment (RBE), PTI reports. “We are making a beginning now. All options are open. We will evaluate the options as we go along,” Ambani told reporters during a conference call announcing the deal.  Reliance Big Entertainment is part of the $81 billion Reliance Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group, which has interests in telecom, energy, infrastructure and financial services. If and when the company lists, it will likely become India’s largest listed media firm. Zee Entertainment (current market cap: Rs7,111 crore ) and Sun TV Network (current market cap: Rs8,845 crore) are considered the large cap stocks in India’s media sector. Both stocks are down about 30% from the levels of February last year, when it was reported that investor George Soros has picked up a 3% stake in Reliance Big Entertainment for $100 million, valuing the firm at $3 billion, or Rs12,000 crore as per the conversion rate then.

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Anil Ambani Provides $825 Million Funding To Spielberg’s DreamWorks; Picks Up 50% Stake

In what ranks as the biggest deal out of India in the media and entertainment space, billionaire Anil Dhirubhai Ambani has announced an $825 million funding for director Steven Spielberg’s Dreamworks SKG in a part-equity, part-debt deal. Ambani will now own a 50% stake in Dreamworks, the studio behind such films as Shrek, Transformers, Saving Private Ryan, Over The Hedge and Kung Fu Panda. For initial round of funding includes an equity investment from Ambani’s Reliance Big Entertainment (RBE), debt funding from banks and funding from Disney (NYSE: DIS), the Mumbai-headquartered company said in a release. Dreamworks will now make five to six films a year and Disney will distribute the films the world over, while RBE will distribute the films in India. Reliance Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group is among India’s major business houses with interests in telecom, financial services and entertainment.