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Tag: intervention

  • GRB Entertainment creates GRB Worldwide, appoints Gavin Reardon president

    GRB Entertainment creates GRB Worldwide, appoints Gavin Reardon president

    MUMBAI: Non-fiction reality producers GRB Entertainment (“Growing up Gotti”, “Intervention”, “Invasion Iowa”), has announced it will be spinning off its existing international distribution division and transforming it into an entirely new venture to be known as GRB Worldwide.

    This new entity, which will officially launch at this year’s MIP, will focus on the financing, creation, and acquisition of both fiction and non-fiction programming for global distribution. The company will be headed by Gavin Reardon, who has been promoted to president of GRB Worldwide from his current position as senior vice-president, international distribution, for GRB Entertainment, a post he has held for the past five years.

    Reardon will report to Gary Benz, president and CEO of GRB Entertainment and will continue to be based in Los Angeles. The announcement was made yesterday by Benz.

    While GRB Entertainment currently specializes in reality, docu-drama, and docu-soap programming, GRB Worldwide will concentrate its efforts on expansion into other genres of both non-fiction and fiction programming domestically and internationally. In addition, Reardon plans to work closely with outside producers developing strategic co-production and acquisition partnerships.

    Given GRB Worldwide’s aggressive stance, they expect to deliver 60 hours of fiction programming, from television series to telefilms, by the end of the first year.

    “With eight series on the air and several pilots in production for U.S. broadcasters through GRB Entertainment, we have decided to create and launch GRB Worldwide to better serve the global marketplace and to take advantage of opportunities for fiction programming,” commented Benz.

  • Zee seeks SEBI intervention against Padmalaya promoters

    MUMBAI: Zee Telefilms Ltd (ZTL) has requested market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) to investigate into the fraudulent acts of founder-promoters of the Padmalaya companies.

    “We have written to SEBI, informing the regulator of the wrong filings of shareholding pattern by Padmalaya Telefilms Ltd (PTL) to defraud its shareholders. We want SEBI to intervene,” says a source in Zee.

    PTL, Zee says, has filed wrong shareholding pattern of the company on quarterly basis. The filings were “totally incorrect and were not representing the correct shareholding position of the company on the date or for the period of filing.”

    Zee has accused the promoter shareholders of misappropriating a substantial amount of shares that its subsidiary Padmalaya Enterprises Private Ltd. (PEPL) held in PTL, a listed company. Padmalaya companies’ managing director GA Seshagiri Rao, along with his relatives, had allegedly pledged PEPL’s shares in PTL to raise loans without the knowledge of the board.

    ZTL, which has a 64 per cent stake in PEPL, is unhappy. As a result of the misappropriation, PEPL’s holding in PTL has dropped from 50.3 per cent to about 20 per cent. Zee’s indirect interest in PTL has, thus, fallen from 33 per cent to around 13 per cent.

    Zee is also planning to initiate legal action against some of those who have lend money to the promoter shareholders against the PTL shares, the source says. The recipient of the PTL shares held by PEPL has ignored to file any declaration of their holding even though their stake or the size of the transaction was more than two per cent of PTL’s total issued and paid up capital.

    Explaining to SEBI, Zee has said that it was offered a strategic stake in PTL by Rao and his relatives in March 2002. Zee entered into an arrangement which resulted in constitution of PEPL (a dormant company till then) as the holding company of PTL. ZTL funded PEPL to enable it to subscribe to the PTL shares issued on preferential basis and to acquire PTL shares in the open offer. PEPL acquired 20,00,000 shares on preferential basis and 19,25,031 shares under open offer. The promoter shareholders transferred their stake of 22.50 lakh shares of PTL to PEPL and Rao continued to occupy the position of managing director of PTL and PEPL.

    But in August 2004, Zee came to know from informal sources in the market that there were irregularities in the functioning of PEPL and PTL. ZTL appointed M/s Guru and Ram, Chartered Accountants, Chennai, to look into the matter which submitted the final report on 9 December, 2004.

    “Keeping the Board of PEPL and ZTL in the dark, the promoter shareholders fraudulently with dishonest intentions, misappropriated 6,264,631 equity shares of PTL held by PEPL to provide security for raising loans in the name of Rao, brother GSR Krishna Murthy and their related entities/companies, primarily Padmalaya Studios Private Limited and Padmalaya Vision Ltd,” Zee informed SEBI.

  • Karnataka CM’s intervention in Kannada filmdom issue

    Karnataka CM’s intervention in Kannada filmdom issue

    BANGALORE: The Karnataka chief minister has requested the Karnataka Film Exhibitors Federation (KFEF) to refrain from defying the seven-week moratorium on the release of non-Kannada films, till 18 October. KFEF president Odugouder told Indiantelevision.com that the CM had asked deputy CM Sidharamaiah to look into the matter.

    Commending on the recent attacks on the theaters in Bangalore he said, “The CM has let them off once, but if they repeat this I don’t think they would be condoned. Only muscle power will not work in a democracy, we are hopeful for solution that will be agreeable to all.”

    Cinema Exhibitors expressed solidarity with almost 800 of the 1100 theaters in Karnataka participating In the state-wide one day theater strike protesting the recent attacks on theatres which screened non-Kannada films.

    In the meantime, a Telugu group has decried the happenings in Kannada filmdom, saying that though more than 35 per cent of the state’s population was Telugu-speaking, their views were not being considered in the matter.

  • Vijay Lazarus is Indian Music Industry’s president

    Vijay Lazarus is Indian Music Industry’s president

    MUMBAI: In an effort to resurrect itself from a catastrophic loss making situation the Indian Music Industry (IMI) has appointed Vijay Lazarus as its full time president.

    The appointment comes as a booster dose to the Rs.18 billion loss laden (over the last 3 years) music industry in its crusade against piracy and in reiterating its commitment to the Indian entertainment industry and the economy as a whole.

    Lazarus will serve a dual responsibility as full time IMI president and also Phonographic Performance Limited (PPL) president. PPL is the exclusive copyright society of the recording industry).

    Lazarus added, “The Indian music industry has been going through a very tough phase due to the rampant piracy. But IMI’s relentless efforts have paid off and our cause has generated momentum over the years.

    “At IMI, we believe that the Indian music industry has immense growth potential to sustain not only the music companies and the artistes, but also play a part in the development of the economy.

    “The music industry in USA contributes about five per cent to its GDP annually. We believe that with sustained efforts at curbing piracy and reformed laws and policies, we can turn around this depleting state and revive the rich cultural heritage of Indian music that we almost lost to piracy.

    “I am confident that we can not only better the USA average by contributing effectively to the growth of the country, but also take Indian music and its artistes to greater echelons around the globe.”

    Ironically, the Indian music industry is the fifth largest consumer of music units in the world (181.1 million units). However due to rampant piracy and lack of deterrent punishment to pirates and other issues being faced by IMI, it lacks way behind at no. 18 in the world in terms of music value (0.6 per cent of world sales).

    IMI’ will undergo a complete re-organisation of s activities is being brought about that will reflect the present realities of the business. New initiatives in legal and enforcement actions are being aimed at enhancing the non-physical format revenues.

    The IMI is currently seeking strategic governmental intervention for the amendment of the Copyright Act as well as appeals for exemptions and relief’s from levies. Towards this cause, introduction of a stringent licensing regime for the commercial use of music under Collective Administration and the active monetisation of revenues from existing and new streams will be the major thrust areas for the music Industry in its efforts for a turnaround.