Guggenheim Partners-Led Group Reaches Deal to Acquire Dick Clark Productions

6:21 AM PDT 9/4/2012 by Georg Szalai

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The group, which also includes Mandalay Entertainment and Mosaic Media Investment Partners, has reached a definitive agreement to buy the independent TV producer.

An investor group including Guggenheim Partners, Mandalay Entertainment and Mosaic Media Investment Partners made things official Tuesday, saying it has reached a definitive agreement to acquire Dick Clark Productions from RedZone Capital Management. The deal was first reported exclusively by The Hollywood Reporter last week.

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Guggenheim, a diversified financial services company based in Chicago and New York, is the primary financier behind the $2.15 billion purchase of the Los Angeles Dodgers that was announced this year. The company manages more than $160 billion in assets and is a co-owner of Prometheus Global Media, owner of The Hollywood Reporter.

Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed, but sources had told THR that the buyers would pay about 10 percent more than the $350 million sought by Dick Clark Productions. That would put the purchase price at about $385 million. UPDATE: Sources peg the sale price at $370 million.

Independent TV producer Dick Clark has a content portfolio that includes the Golden Globe Awards, the American Music Awards, New Year’s Rockin’ Eve and So You Think You Can Dance.

The consortium emphasized in a statement that it is made up of "experienced, long-term investors with a deep understanding of the media and entertainment industry and a history of collaboration with each other."

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Peter Guber, chairman and CEO of Mandalay Entertainment, said the group would "use our resources to build upon dcp’s delivery of premier programming and events that address the surging demand for high-quality, branded event entertainment.”

Added Allen Shapiro, managing partner of Mosaic Media Investment Partners, “In this evolving world of content and distribution, dcp’s ‘tentpole programming’ of well-known television events is increasingly sought after."

The deal needs some regulatory approvals but is expected to be completed "expeditiously," the investor group said.