Ida Mae Astute/ABCBefore his death in April, Dick Clark, right, appeared at the most recent New Year’s Eve celebration with Ryan Seacrest.
Dick Clark Productions, the company that produces the Golden Globe Awards show and the New Year’s Eve broadcast hosted for nearly 40 years by its late founder, was sold to Guggenheim Partners and a group of investors on Tuesday.
Guggenheim, a private Wall Street firm, teamed up with a pair of multimedia investors to buy the production company for an undisclosed sum. A person briefed on the matter said the deal was worth about $370 million, more than double it sale price in 2007.
That year, RedZone Capital Management bought Dick Clark Productions from another investment group for $175 million. RedZone is a private equity firm run by the Washington Redskins owner, Daniel M. Snyder.
Mr. Clark, the legendary broadcaster who died in April at the age of 82, had no ownership role in the company.
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Documents: The news release“We’re thrilled about the transaction with Guggenheim Partners,” Mark Shapiro, chief executive of Dick Clark Productions, said in a statement, adding that “Dick Clark and his legacy will surely be in good hands.”
The deal also involved Mandalay Entertainment and Mosaic Media Investment Partners, a collection of investment partners that has ties to Dick Clark Productions. Mosaic is led by Allen Shapiro, former chief executive of Dick Clark Productions and current chairman of TV Guide Network and TVGuide.com. The chief executive of Mandalay, Peter Guber, was the largest shareholder in Dick Clark Productions before its 2007 sale to RedZone Capital Management.
The latest deal was in the works for months. Dick Clark Productions, a 55-year-old company that also produces several other TV shows including “So You Think You Can Dance” and the American Music Awards, put itself on the market in June.
In response to an expression of interest from a Chinese media company, it hired the Raine Group, a boutique investment bank, to run the sales process. At the time, likely bidders also included several private equity firms. Ryan Seacrest, who co-hosted recent “New Year’s Rockin’ Eve” shows with Mr. Clark, was among the private-equity backed bidders.
But after weeks of negotiation, Guggenheim Partners emerged as the likely winner. It was the second major deal for the firm this year, after it become majority owner of the Los Angeles Dodgers in March.
“We look forward to continuing D.C.P.’s production of branded entertainment that has become a part of the American lexicon,” Todd Boehly, president of Guggenheim Partners, said in a statement.
The deal comes after a significant court victory, in which a federal judge ruled the company could keep the Golden Globes show airing on NBC through 2018. The company had clashed with the sponsor of the awards, the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, which claimed that Dick Clark Productions should have consulted with it before reaching the NBC deal.
In the statement, Mr. Boehly promised to “work closely with the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, the Academy of Country Music and all of the network partners and sponsors to ensure” the company’s “long-term growth and success.”
The deal, which the new owners expect to complete “expeditiously,” must still receive regulatory approval.
Guggenheim Securities was the sole financial adviser to the investors, while legal counsel was provided by Weil, Gotshal Manges.
Article source: http://dealbook.nytimes.com/2012/09/04/dick-clark-productions-sold-to-guggenheim-partners/?partner=rss&emc=rss