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Tag: Daniel Taylor

  • MGM names former DreamWorks and Miramax Films Rick Sand as COO

    MUMBAI: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer has roped in former DreamWorks and Miramax Films Rick Sands as its chief operating officer. 
    The announcement was made by MGM chairman and chief executive officer Harry E. Sloan.
    Rick Sands, till most recently was the president and chief operating officer of DreamWorks SKG and the former chief operating officer of Miramax Films. 
    As the new COO at MGM, Sands will also supervise the company’s finance, operations and business affairs. Sands’ appointment is effective immediately and he will be based at the company’s corporate headquarters in Century City, Calif.
    In this newly created position at MGM, Sands takes on the initial responsibilities of leveraging and managing the world’s largest modern film and television library across all platforms including the new media landscape of internet and mobile as well as the traditional channels of distribution — television, video and international.
    According to an official release, the MGM library comprises approximately 4,000 titles and over 10,400 episodes of television programming. Its film library has received 208 Academy Awards, one of the largest award winning collections in the world, and includes numerous successful film franchises including James Bond, Pink Panther and Rocky. 
    Sands will also devise plans to identify new content and channel opportunities for MGM with the company’s strategic equity partners, including Sony Corporation of America and Comcast Corporation.
    In making the announcement, Sloan stated: “I am thrilled to have Rick join MGM’s executive leadership team, where we will benefit immensely from his solid experience and great track record in managing and growing entertainment libraries at such leading companies as DreamWorks, Miramax and Hallmark Entertainment. Rick has a long history of working with extensive entertainment assets and this is key to furthering the exploitation of our content.”
    Sands added: “To be involved with MGM is a rare opportunity, having the ability to take an existing brand and to build an even stronger content-based leading enterprise. With the sweeping changes in the distribution business, I plan to bring a unique approach to the MGM library and to create new value and content. I also look forward working with Harry Sloan to expand what is at present one of the blue chip content providers in the industry.”

    Also read:
    MGM president Daniel Taylor to resign

  • MGM president Daniel Taylor to resign

    MUMBAI: Film and television studio Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM), recently bought over by Sony and a consortium of investors, have announced that MGM president Daniel Taylor is resigning effective tomorrow (31 January).
    A company release states that Taylor’s departure follows the completion of the first phase of MGM’s transition to its new business model as well as restructuring MGM’s operations.
    MGM chairman and CEO Harry E. Sloan says, “Dan Taylor has done an excellent job in overseeing one of the most complex transactions ever completed by a Hollywood studio. Also, after the sale of MGM, Dan was successful in planning the implementation of the structural transition of our business operations, which was an incredibly difficult process. He has given us a clean slate to build a powerful content-driven, entertainment concern.”
    Taylor says, “MGM has been a home to me and I feel privileged to have played a key role in overseeing this important assignment. I enjoyed the challenge of overseeing the transitional effort as well as restructuring all of MGM’s operations. I am proud that MGM is now in a position to be a competitive player in the new media landscape.”
    If MGM is able to make that transition, and soon, one beneficiary, particularly on the film side, would be Sony Entertainment Television India. Set India is expected to launch its new English movie channel SetPix next month and as of now, it will be relying mainly on MGM for new blockbuster titles.
    This is because the output deal that Sony pictures Entertainment currently has with HBO Asia (in which it is a 25 per cent stakeholder) remains unaffected. This means that SetPix will get to screen films from the SPE stable only after they have aired on HBO.
    Set India CEO Sony Kunal Dasgupta admitted as much when he told Indiantelevision.com, “Sony will honour its commitment to HBO as a 25 per cent stakeholder.”
    HBO country manager South Asia Shruti Bajpai also clarified that Sony’s new channel will not affect the existing output deal that HBO has with the studio. “HBO will continue to bring the biggest, the newest and the most Hollywood blockbusters to our viewers in India from all our partner studios, namely Warner Brothers, Paramount, Universal and Sony Pictures Entertainment,” Bajpai said.
    SetPix’ premiere television opportunities will come from MGM releases. Among the big MGM titles that will have their theatrical release in the course of 2006 are the new Bond film Casino Royale, the new Pink Panther movie as well as a new Rocky movie. MGM also has the critically acclaimed Capote, which is expected to get a best picture Oscar nomnation tomorrow evening.

  • Dan Taylor is MGM president

    Dan Taylor is MGM president

    MUMBAI: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) and its buyers- a consortium of investors including Sony and Comcast have appointed Daniel Taylor as MGM president.

    It was in September 2004 that MGM Studios was acquired by Sony for $5 billion. Time Warner was also in the race for MGM.

    MGM is currently in the process of being acquired by the consortium for $12 in cash per share, plus the assumption of MGM’s approximately $2.0 billion in debt. The transaction remains subject to several closing conditions, including obtaining European Union regulatory approval and the completion of financing.

    As president Taylor will be responsible for overseeing all operations of the independent privately-held MGM, including development and production of a smaller slate of theatrical and television product through co-financing and distribution with Sony. Additionally, he will play a major role in leveraging what Sony claims is the world’s largest modern film library while working with Comcast to expand MGM’s reach by identifying new platform, content and channel opportunities.

    Taylor said, “I am honoured to be selected to lead MGM as we enter this exciting new era, and I am confident that our legacy will endure. Working with our two libraries, Sony and MGM will now be able to provide access to the world’s largest collection of film and television content, while we continue to aggressively pursue new technology and distribution options.”

    Taylor spent the last seven and a half years at MGM, most recently as senior executive VP and CFO, where he oversaw all financial functions of the company, as well as its worldwide post-theatrical distribution and information services, while playing a key role as a member of the management team responsible for MGM’s overall corporate strategy and business development.