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Wanda Group's Billion Dollar Bid For Dick Clark Productions Is Now Officially Dead
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China's Dalian Wanda Group has dropped its billion-dollar bid for Dick Clark Productions. The potential deal was announced in November, and Eldridge Industries, who owns a controlling stake in DCP, confirmed on March 10 that the deal had been scrapped.
“Eldridge’s affiliate terminated the agreement this week after Wanda failed to honor its contractual obligations,” Eldridge said in a statement, reports the Los Angeles Times. “Eldridge’s affiliate also has filed with the Delaware Chancery Court to compel release of the balance of escrowed funds to which it is contractually entitled given Wanda’s failure to consummate the sale.”
Wanda has yet to comment on the deal's demise, but a source has told Deadline that “Every company in China is having a hard time getting money offshore right now. A tightening of controls has definitely happened.”
In an effort to curb the flight of Chinese capital, the China’s Commerce Ministry imposed limits on overseas deals topping $1 billion.
The Wanda Group has been on a buying binge recently, with a $3.5 billion acquisition of Legendary Entertainment in 2016, purchase of a controlling share in AMC theaters, and several billion more spent on various international movie theater chains.
However, an industry exec told Deadline, “Wanda is simply backing out of a deal they don’t want to do.”
Dick Clark Productions owns the production rights to the Golden Globes, the Billboard Music Awards, the American Music Awards, Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve With Ryan Seacrest, and others. According to the Times, DCP was purchased by a group of investors less than five years ago for $380 million.
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