Chapter 387: CJ Entertainment in Korea
Anne Hathaway was in Los Angeles promoting her action-comedy movie Get Smart, which grossed $38 million in North America over its opening weekend.
She planned to attend promotional events in Miami, New York, and other cities, so her stay in Los Angeles was brief.
After spending two days with Charles Capet, Anne Hathaway left with her legs somewhat wobbly.
In a beachfront villa on Colonial Avenue, Malibu Beach, this was a property Evelyn Capet acquired earlier this year.
Evelyn invited Charles over, and there was another guest, Miky Lee, the chairperson of South Korea's CJ Entertainment Group.
CJ Group, originally known as Samsung Sugar, was founded by the eldest granddaughter of Samsung's founder Lee Byung-chul, Miky Lee, the eldest daughter of Lee Myung-hee.
Due to internal strife within Samsung, the eldest son Lee Myung-hee, who couldn't get his act together, was ousted by his third brother, Lee Kun-hee, who then became the chairperson of Samsung Group.
Lee Myung-hee's family received Samsung Sugar, which was later renamed CJ Group. CJ Entertainment, a subsidiary of CJ Group, is now South Korea's largest entertainment group.
Samsung Group's key industries include Samsung Fire & Marine Insurance, Samsung Electronics, Samsung Fisheries, and Samsung Heavy Industries, among others.
After Samsung Sugar was rebranded as CJ Group, the business focus shifted to entertainment, with Miky Lee overseeing CJ Entertainment while her brother led CJ Group.
"Ms. Lee, you're very interested in the film and media sector, right?" Charles sat across from Miky Lee. CJ Group's complicated relationship with Samsung was evident.
Miky Lee, who was about fifty, short and stout, smiled and explained, "I've always been passionate about the entertainment fields, including movies, TV, and music. This time, through Evelyn's introduction, we'd like to explore collaboration between Capet Pictures and CJ Entertainment in the Korean market!"
Of course, Miky Lee understood that CJ Entertainment didn't have the credentials to form a deeper partnership with Capet Pictures.
"The Korean market?" Charles tapped the table. CJ Entertainment could undoubtedly dominate Korea, but in the international market, it was just a small fish.
"Has the DreamWorks investment ended?" Charles suddenly inquired.
In the 1990s, after David Geffen, Steven Spielberg, and Jeffrey Katzenberg formed DreamWorks, the largest investment they received was from Paul Allen, co-founder of Microsoft, and Miky Lee of CJ Entertainment.
Afterwards, DreamWorks' film distribution rights in Asia, except Japan, were given to CJ Entertainment.
"When Paramount acquired DreamWorks at the end of 2005, our collaboration ended, but due to our long-term partnership, we still handle the Korean distribution of DreamWorks' live-action films," Miky Lee candidly admitted.
Hollywood wasn't interested in Korean films but rather in Korean capital, which allowed CJ Entertainment to invest in DreamWorks back then.
Currently, Capet Pictures surpassed DreamWorks in film and television production and global distribution channels.
Miky Lee treated Capet Pictures with the same respect she had for the big six Hollywood studios.
"CJ Entertainment owns TV channels, theaters, and various media businesses, and they also have strong production capabilities. Korea is indeed an important market internationally, so we do have potential for collaboration," Charles noted.
Capet International Pictures had a distribution office in Korea, set up by Xu Xiaoling.
"At that time, you can discuss production, distribution, or other aspects with Capet International Pictures' Asia-Pacific region head," Charles added.
Miky Lee nodded. Meeting Charles Capet through Evelyn's introduction was already enough; she hadn't expected him to take special interest in the Korean film market.
"How did you connect with Korean capital?" Charles asked his mother after Miky Lee left.
"ETA and BIN, we need to control the new company's initiative. TPG Capital, CJ Entertainment, and Sequoia Capital were the investors we chose, and CJ Entertainment is significant in Asia. They have a talent agency managing many Korean artists!" Evelyn explained directly.
Charles nodded. "CJ's business scope in the Korean entertainment industry is broad, and being part of the Samsung system, their influence in Korea is immense."
"Your Capet International Pictures is expanding into overseas markets, right? Europe aside, Japan and China in Asia have their local films, but the Korean film market is now double that of China. Doesn't Capet International Pictures have any other plans?" Evelyn didn't believe her son would overlook one of the world's top ten international markets.
"No specific plans at the moment. We're still focusing on promoting Hollywood films, as developing local movies has a low success rate," Charles didn't want Capet Pictures to invest too much effort in local film development.
Evelyn nodded. "True, as long as you build a good international distribution network, you'll have continuous revenue!"
Introducing Miky Lee to Charles Capet was already a big step; Capet Pictures was now an international entertainment conglomerate!
Charles Capet was a major Hollywood mogul, not someone who could be met casually.
While the intense summer season in June captivated audiences, the executive changes at Time Warner Group also caught significant media attention.
Time Warner Group's first African American Chairman, Richard Parsons, resigned from his CEO position last year and recently stepped down as Chairman.
Jeff Bewkes, Chairman of Time Warner Entertainment and Network Division, succeeded Parsons as CEO and Chairman of the group.
Richard Parsons retained his position on the board of directors, and the executive changes at Time Warner Group drew substantial attention.
As the world's largest entertainment media conglomerate by market value, Time Warner's moves were highly scrutinized.
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