In the month when CJ Group Chairman Lee Jae-hyun announced the conglomerate’s bold investment plans, its affiliate CJ ENM disclosed the acquisition of a Hollywood studio named Endeavor Content. Photo courtesy of CJ Group

Korean entertainment giant set to tap into global market

South Korea’s media giant CJ ENM recently said that it had agreed to acquire Endeavor Content, a Hollywood studio that produced such global hits as La La Land.

The Seoul-based outfit said that it would spend $850 million to gobble up an 80 percent stake in Endeavor Content, the affiliate of Endeavor Group Holdings.

Under the deal, which will close early, current Endeavor Content chiefs of Grahan Taylor and Chris Rice will continue to lead the studio.

The contract was announced just after CJ Group Chairman Lee Jae-hyun disclosed the conglomerate’s plan to spend $9 billion won through 2023 to generate its future cash cows.

Hence, the group is expected to purchase more companies outside of the country down the road.

“We are confident that this deal will create synergy between both companies, globally acknowledged for their production capabilities and list of hit intellectual properties,” CJ ENM CEO Kang Ho-sung said.

“At the end of the day, CJ ENM strives to become a major global studio that encompasses content that appeals to a global audience – like this deal with Endeavor Content, we will continue to expand our presence in the global market.”

Endeavor CEO Ariel Emanuel said that the studio has grown into a quality producer in just four years after its establishment.

“Graham Taylor, Chris Rice, and the entire Endeavor Content team delivered on that promise, and this transaction further underscores the enduring value of talent and premium content,” he said.

“I’m confident that CJ ENM will be excellent stewards of the studio, accelerating and amplifying its projects on a global stage.”

Observers point out that CJ ENM will be able to tap into the global markets in a full-fledged manner based on the acquisition of Endeavor Content.

“CJ ENM is an established player in Asia. But it’s still a minnow player in the global scene. The addition of Endeavor Content would change that once and for all,” Hyundai Motor Investment & Securities analyst Kim Hyun-yong said.

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