Sony Pictures Entertainment

Sony Pictures Entertainment, Inc.

Monochrome Sony Pictures logo
Type	Subsidiary of Sony[1]
Industry	Entertainment
Founded	1987 as Columbia Pictures Entertainment, Inc.,[2] renamed Sony Pictures Entertainment, Inc. on August 7, 1991
Headquarters	10202 West Washington Blvd., Culver City, California, United States
Key people	Michael Lynton (Chairman and CEO) Amy Pascal (Co-Chairman) Jeff Blake (Vice Chairman)
Products	Motion pictures Television Production Television Syndication Online games Mobile Entertainment Video on demand Digital distribution
Revenue	US$ 7.3 billion (FY2010)[3]
Operating income	US$ 300 million (FY2010)[3]
Owner(s)	Sony Corporation
Parent	Sony
Website	http://www.sonypictures.com

Sony Pictures Entertainment, Inc. (SPE) is the television and film production/distribution unit of Japanese multinational technology and media conglomerate Sony. Its group sales in 2010 has been reported to be of $7.2 billion.^[3][4]

History

On September 28, 1989, Sony Corporation obtained an option to purchase all of The Coca-Cola Company's stake (49%) in Columbia Pictures Entertainment, Inc. (CPE; Columbia Pictures, Tri-Star Pictures, etc.) for $27 per share. The next day, Sony also announced that it reached an agreement with Guber-Peters Entertainment Company, Inc. (NASDAQ: GPEC; formerly Barris Industries, Inc.) to acquire the company for $200 million when Sony hired Peter Guber and Jon Peters to head CPE. It was all led by Norio Ohga, who was the president and CEO of Sony during that time. On October 31, 1989, Sony completed a friendly takeover bid for the rest of shares (51%) of CPE, which was a public company listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: KPE), and acquired 99.3% of the common stocks of the company. On November 8, 1989, Sony completed the acquisition by a "short-form" merger of its wholly owned subsidiary Sony Columbia Acquisition Corporation into CPE under Delaware law. Sony also completed a tender offer for shares of common stock of the GPEC on November 6, 1989 and acquired the company on November 9, 1989. The acquisition cost Sony $4.9 billion ($3.55 billion for shares and $1.4 billion of long-term debt) and was backed (financed) by 5 major Japanese banks Mitsui, Tokyo, Fuji, Mitsubishi and Industrial Bank of Japan.^[5][6][7] The company was renamed Sony Pictures Entertainment on August 7, 1991.^[8]

Sony has since created numerous other film production and distribution units, such as creating Sony Pictures Classics for art-house fare, by forming Columbia TriStar Pictures (also known as the Columbia TriStar Motion Picture Group) by merging Columbia Pictures and TriStar Pictures in 1998, revitalizing Columbia's former television division Screen Gems, and expanded its growth on April 8, 2005, when a consortium led by Sony and its equity partners acquired the legendary Hollywood studio Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer in a deal worth nearly US$5 billion.^[9]

On June 4, 2008, SPE's wholly owned group 2JS Productions B.V. acquired Dutch production company 2waytraffic N.V., famous for Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? and You Are What You Eat for £114.3 million ($223.2 million in US dollars).

On June 3, 2011, SonyPictures.com was hacked, resulting in over a million passwords and e-mail addresses being stolen.^[10][11]

Sony Pictures franchises

This is a list of franchises by Sony Pictures Entertainment.

• I Dream of Jeannie: Based on the television series by Screen Gems with the cartoon series Jeannie in 1973.
• Bewitched: Based on the television series by Screen Gems with a cartoon special Tabitha and Adam and the Clown Family in 1972, a spin-off series Tabitha in 1978, and a movie sequel in 2005.
• The Karate Kid: Five films; one in 1984, 1986, 1989, 1994, and the 2010 remake including the television series The Karate Kid: The Animated Series.
• Spider-Man: Beginning with the 2002 film with two sequels in 2004 and 2007 and a upcoming reboot of the franchise in 2012 including two produced series Spider-Man: The New Animated Series and The Spectacular Spider-Man in conjunction with Marvel Entertainment.
• Stuart Little: Beginning with the 1999 film with two sequels in 2002 and 2006 and one television series Stuart Little: The Animated Series. Based on the novel by E. B. White.
• Wheel of Fortune: Created by Merv Griffin in 1975 and syndicated in September 1983 by King World (now CBS Television Distribution). Including spin-off Wheel 2000. Acquired in 1986 after acquiring Merv Griffin Enterprises.
• Jeopardy!: Created by Merv Griffin in 1964. Including spin-offs (Super Jeopardy!, Rock & Roll Jeopardy!, and Jep!). First piloted in September 1983 with a second pilot on January 1, 1984, until officially premiered in September 1984 all syndicated by King World (now CBS Television Distribution). Acquired in 1986 after acquiring Merv Griffin Enterprises.
• Men in Black: Starting with the 1997 film with a 2002 sequel, and an upcoming third sequel will hit theaters on May 25, 2012. Including the cartoon Men in Black: The Series. Based on the Malibu comic created by Lowell Cunningham.
• Ghostbusters: Began with the successful 1984 blockbuster, followed by a 1989 sequel, three animated series: one in 1986, 1988, and 1997, many products including a recent video game released in 2009, and an upcoming third film TBA.
• The Partridge Family: The hit 1970s sitcom including the cartoon series Partridge Family 2200 A.D., the 1999 television movie Come On Get Happy: The Partridge Family Story, and the ultra short-lived series In Search of the Partridge Family in 2004.
• Open Season: Beginning with the 2006 film, with two direct-to-video sequels in 2009 and 2011.
• Underworld: Beginning with 2003 film, with three sequels in 2006, 2009, and 2012, produced by Lakeshore Entertainment.

Corporate structure

Headquartered in Culver City, California, USA, SPE comprises various studios and entertainment brands, including Columbia Pictures and GSN.

Senior management team

• Michael Lynton
  • Chairman & CEO, Sony Pictures Entertainment
• Amy Pascal
  • Co-Chairman, Sony Pictures Entertainment
  • Chairman, Motion Picture Group, Sony Pictures Entertainment
• Jeff Blake
  • Vice Chairman, Sony Pictures Entertainment

List of holdings

Sony Pictures Plaza in Culver City, California

Motion Pictures and Home Entertainment

• Columbia TriStar Motion Picture Group With a library of more than 4,000 films (including 12 Academy Award for Best Picture winners), as of 2004 this unit of Sony distributes about 22 films a year under its various studio brands in 67 countries.^[4] The group owns studio facilities in the United States, Hong Kong, Madrid, Mexico, the United Kingdom, Brazil and Japan. In addition to the below company-owned brands, Columbia TriStar also has a contract to distribute films for independent Revolution Studios and select films by MGM and United Artists.
  • Columbia Pictures: Founded in 1924 by Harry Cohn, Sony acquired the studio in 1989 from The Coca-Cola Company for $3.4 billion.^[5][6]
  • TriStar Pictures Formed in 1982 as a joint venture between Columbia Pictures, HBO, and CBS. Became part Columbia Pictures Entertainment in December 1987 and the Sony ownership in 1989. Was relaunched in 2004 as a marketing and acquisitions unit with a particular emphasis on genre films.
  • Sony Pictures India, production house established by Sony to release Indian movies and distribute Hollywood movies, released under Columbia Pictures.
  • Sony Pictures Classics (SPC): Specializes in acquiring distribution rights to independent and art films as well as producing lower-budget productions geared to limited audiences.^[4]
  • Sony Pictures Releasing
  • Sony Pictures Releasing International
    • Monumental Pictures: A Russian motion picture studio formed on February 2, 2006 as a joint venture between Sony Pictures Entertainment and Russia-based Patton Media Group producing and releasing Russian language films in Russia, the CIS, and Mongolia.
  • Screen Gems: Originally Columbia's animation division and later a television production company best known for TV's Bewitched and The Partridge Family, as well as bringing The Three Stooges short subjects to TV in 1958. Sony revived the Screen Gems brand to develop mid-priced movies (production budget of between $20 million and $50 million) in specific genres such as science fiction, horror, black cinema and franchise films.
  • Triumph Films: The label Sony uses for its low-budget films. Originally a joint venture between Columbia Pictures and Gaumont in 1982.
  • FEARnet A joint venture between SPE, Lions Gate Entertainment, and Comcast for horror, suspense, and thriller movies online.
• Sony Pictures Home Entertainment: Manufactures and distributes the Sony film library on Blu-ray Disc, DVD, video cassette, and UMD forms to global markets.
  • Sony Wonder: The former kids and family label of Sony Music Entertainment that was moved to SPHE on June 21, 2007.
• Sony Pictures Worldwide Acquisitions (SPWA): A Sony division which acquires and produces about 60 films per year for a wide variety of distribution platforms, especially for non-theatrical markets. It is also known as Worldwide SPE Acquisitions, Inc.
  • Destination Films: A "niche" motion picture company purchased by Sony in 2001.
  • Stage 6 Films: A direct to video label created in 2007.
  • Affirm Films: A motion picture label launched in 2008 to release gospel and Christian films.

Television Production and Distribution

• Sony Pictures Television Group: (formerly Columbia TriStar Television Group) The successor-in-interest to Columbia's television division (first Screen Gems, later Columbia Pictures Television, Coca-Cola Television, TriStar Television (A division of Columbia Pictures Television), and Columbia TriStar Television), as of 2004 the unit was producing 60 titles for various television outlets globally. Contains a library that includes more than 35,000 episodes of more than 270 television series and 22,000 game show episodes under the Columbia TriStar Television brand, and the television rights to the Embassy Pictures library (including The Graduate and The Lion in Winter) and also the owner of the television division "Embassy Television"--among most recent notable shows in this library are Seinfeld, King of Queens, Days of our Lives and The Young and the Restless.
  • Adelaide Productions
  • Barris Industries: Formed in 1965 by Chuck Barris as Chuck Barris Productions. Renamed to Barris Industries in 1984. Merged with the Guber-Peters Company in 1988 and renamed as Guber-Peters Entertainment Company in 1989.
  • Barry & Enright Productions (post-scandal), including Jack Barry Productions: Formed in 1947 by Jack Barry and Dan Enright, shut down in 1959, and reformed in 1975.
  • Crackle (formerly known as Grouper Networks): Crackle is a digital platform of Sony Pictures. It hosts videos on YouTube, Hulu, Dailymotion, and its own site, etc.
  • Culver Entertainment
  • ELP Communications (ELPC) and Tandem Licensing Corporation (TLC): The two in-name only units of Sony Pictures Television own the productions' copyrights presented by Norman Lear's companies: Tandem Productions and ELP Communications (series from T.A.T. to ELP Communications). The companies were formed by Bud Yorkin and Norman Lear in 1958 as Tandem Productions. Yorkin sold his shares to Lear in 1975. Lear sold Tandem/Embassy Television to The Coca-Cola Company in 1985 and later became Embassy Communications in 1986 (later became ELP Communications in 1988). ELPC and TLC are part of Sony Pictures Entertainment since 1991.
  • Embassy Row: A television and digital production company by Michael Davies known for producing Power of 10, the 2005 version of Chain Reaction, and the current incarnation of The Newlywed Game for GSN. SPT acquired the company on January 14, 2009.
  • Four D Productions: Independent production house founded by Danny Arnold in 1974. Acquired by The Coca-Cola Company in 1986.^[12]
  • GSN: (joint venture with DirecTV)
  • Merv Griffin Enterprises: Founded in 1964 by Merv Griffin as Merv Griffin Productions. He sold his company to The Coca-Cola Company in 1986 as Merv Griffin Enterprises and was a subsidiary of Columbia Pictures Entertainment from 1988 to 1991 and Sony Pictures Entertainment from 1991 to 1994.
  • The Minisode Network
  • Sony Movie Channel
  • Stewart Tele Enterprises: Formed in 1964 by Bob Stewart
• Sony Pictures Television International: Formed in 1995 as the worldwide television distribution arm for Sony Pictures Entertainment. Formerly known as Columbia TriStar International Television from 1995 to 2002.
  • Tuvalu Media: A Dutch production company based in Holland, Netherlands. SPT acquired a majority stake in the company in March 2010.
  • 2waytraffic: Acquired by Sony in 2008, this television production company owns a number of formats, most notably including Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?.
  • SPE Networks
    • Sony Aath
    • Sony Entertainment Television
    • Animax: Instituted in Japan by Sony in 1998, Animax is the world's largest anime television network,^[13] with respective networks operating across Japan, East Asia, Southeast Asia, South Asia, South America and other regions.^[14] However, Animax was cut off from Vietnam cable network in 2010 without any reason
    • AXN: Formed in 1997, AXN is Sony's entertainment television network, which airs across Japan, Asia, Latin America and Europe.

Other Sony Pictures operations

• Sony Pictures Music Group
• Sony Pictures Family Entertainment Group
• Sony Pictures Consumer Products
• Sony Pictures Digital Productions Inc.^[4][15]
  • Sony Pictures Imageworks
  • Sony Pictures Animation
  • Sony Station
  • Sony Pictures Network
  • Sony Pictures Mobile
  • Sony Pictures Digital Networks
    • SPiN
    • SoapCity
    • Screenblast
    • Advanced Platform Group APG
  • Sony Pictures Europe
    • Offices located at 25 Golden Square, London, United Kingdom

Entrance to SPE main lot in Culver City

• Sony Pictures Cable Ventures, Inc.
• Sony Pictures Studios: The actual physical buildings, land and movie-making equipment properties in Culver City, California. Includes 22 sound stages, ranging in size from 7,600 to 43,000 square feet (700 to 4,000 m²)
• Sony Pictures Entertainment (Japan) (SPEJ): The company plans, produces, manufactures, sells, imports, exports, leases, broadcasts and distributes movies, TV programs, videos and audio-visual software in Japan. The company web site says it was established on February 10, 1984,^[16] predating Sony's acquisition of Columbia Pictures Entertainment by 5 years. SPEJ was formed in 1991 through the merger of Columbia Tristar Japan, RCA Columbia Pictures Video Japan, and Japan International Enterprises.^[17] Based in Tokyo, Japan.
• Sony Pictures Loot: A newly formed group of developers that creates experiences and products for PlayStation Home. Their products include premium personal spaces and decorative ornaments and clothes/costumes for the users personal spaces and avatars. The premium personal spaces have equipment that allows users, if hooked up to a video capture system, make their own machinimas in Home.^[18]
• Sony Pictures Studios Post Production Facilities
• Worldwide Product Fulfillment
• Sony Pictures Technologies
  • Digital Authoring Center provides educational seminars for film-makers preparing stereoscopic productions. Also known as Sony Pictures Digital Authoring Center.
  • Colorworks, established in 2009, provides digital image production services such as digital restoration, digital intermediates, scanning and film recording, digital dailies and asset management

Notes and references

1. ^ Outline of Principal Operations, Sony Corporation of America
2. ^ Sony Pictures Entertainment Inc.: Private Company Information BusinessWeek
3. ^ ^{a b c} "Consolidated Financial Results for the Fiscal Year Ended March 31, 2009". Tokyo, Japan: Sony. 14 May 2009. p. 5. http://www.sony.net/SonyInfo/IR/financial/fr/08q4_sony.pdf. Retrieved 15 November 2009. 
4. ^ ^{a b c d} Sony Pictures – Corporate Factsheet, sonypictures.com
5. ^ ^{a b} Rudolph B (1994) So many dreams so many losses. Time vol. 144, no. 22 (November 28, 1994)
6. ^ ^{a b} Griffin N, Masters K (1996) Hit and Run: How Jon Peters and Peter Guber Took Sony for a Ride in Hollywood. (Simon & Schuster, ISBN 0-684-83266-6)
7. ^ Nathan, J. (1999) Sony: The Private Life. (Houghton Mifflin, ISBN 0-395-89327-5, ISBN 0-618-12694-5)
8. ^ She Holds Torch for Sony Pictures Entertainment, latimes.com
9. ^ Sony will purchase MGM in a deal worth about $5 billion, CNN, September 14, 2004.
10. ^ http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-13636704
11. ^ http://news.cnet.com/8301-31021_3-20068414-260/hackers-steal-more-customer-info-from-sony-servers/?tag=topStories1
12. ^ "Columbia Pictures Television Group acquires Four D Productions Inc.". PR Newswire. August 28, 1986. http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-4349754.html. Retrieved 2011-05-01. 
13. ^ The Anime Biz – By Ian Rowley, with Hiroko Tashiro, Chester Dawson, and Moon Ihlwan, BusinessWeek, June 27, 2005.
14. ^ Animax Asia – Corporate Profile – Animax-Asia official website.
15. ^ Affiliated Companies (Outside Japan) Sony Corporation
16. ^ Sony Pictures Online SPEJ – Company Profile, Sony Pictures Entertainment (Japan), Inc. official website.
17. ^ History of Columbia Pictures Part 3, Sony Pictures Entertainment Japan (in Japanese)
18. ^ "Sony Pictures' Loot: A group of developers making Home wares". Destructoid. http://www.destructoid.com/sony-pictures-loot-a-group-of-developers-making-home-wares-131448.phtml. 

External links

• Official website
• Sony Pictures Entertainment Museum
• Sony Pictures Entertainment (SPE) at the Internet Movie Database