Kwan buys out CAA’s stake in joint venture

Industry: Entertainment 2016-11-18

MUMBAI: Indian celebrity management firm Kwan Entertainment & Marketing Solutions (Kwan) and Los Angeles-based entertainment and sports firm Creative Artists Agency (CAA) have ended their 4-year 50:50 joint venture, CAAKwan.

Sources with direct knowledge of the deal said Kwan has bought out CAA’s stake in the company for an undisclosed amount. ET was first to report that the JV between the two companies is likely to be dissolved and that Kwan was in talks to buy out CAA’s stake in the joint venture.

“Kwan has bought back CAA’s shares in CAA Kwan. As per the deal, the two parties have agreed for a two-year lock-in period, wherein Kwan cannot partner with any international agency and CAA cannot partner with any Indian player,” said one of the sources.

However, a source in CAA said that the agency has built strong and direct relationships in India and it will continue to operate independently.

“CAA have been recalibrating at how they want to operate in the market. Today, they have a strong base and relationships in India and don’t see any use of being in an exclusive partnership. They will continue to deal with talents and companies here in India independently and with Kwan for Deepika Padukone and Vir Das.”

In India, CAA has Anurag Kashyap and Phantom Films as clients.

With offices in Los Angeles, New York, Nashville, London, Beijing, Atlanta, Miami, Chicago, Stockholm, Munich, and Switzerland, CAA represents more than 5,000 clients, including A-list movie stars like Robert Downey Jr., Jennifer Lawrence, and Matthew McConaughey.

Kwan and CAA had announced their JV in October 2012. The JV was to represent talent in India and SAARC nations. The move was to help talented individuals bag commercial deals in the form of motion pictures, television, music, commercial endorsements, sports consulting, licensing and merchandising, live events and business development.

“While CAA was very focused on talent management, Kwan intended to venture into diverse businesses across entertainment space. Over the last four years, Kwan started evolving as a player ready to invest in startups as well as incubating businesses spanning pop culture, entertainment, and retail consumption. It was just a matter of time for the two players to go their separate ways,” said another source.

Anirban Blah, the founder of Kwan, refused to comment on the development.

Kwan recently acquired 85 per cent stake in Delhi-based entertainment startup Gigstart, which works as a marketplace-cum-discovery platform for the creative community. In the recent past, it has also acquired equity stakes in Saavn, Gamezop, Big Bang Media Ventures, Offroad Films and Elan Modelling.

In an earlier interaction, Blah told ET he plans to invest in about 30-40 companies over the next 5 years, which includes acquiring stake or incubating.