Saban Lines Up $500 Million to Acquire Brands

LOS ANGELES: Saban Capital Group is setting aside more than $500 million for the acquisition of a portfolio of properties to kickstart its newly formed Saban Brands venture, which will be led by former Fox L&M chief Elie Dekel as president.

Saban Brands has been created to acquire, manage and license entertainment properties and consumer brands across media and consumer platforms globally. Its portfolio will include entertainment, fashion, lifestyle, celebrity and consumer brands.

"The formation of Saban Brands enables us to utilize our extensive experience to create and grow compelling global properties that reach into every aspect of consumers’ lives through strategic and far-reaching licensing partnerships," said Haim Saban, the chairman and CEO of Saban Capital Group. "As media and consumer options become increasingly fragmented and proliferated, our underlying thesis is that properties that resonate with consumers today will only become more meaningful over time. We are committing significant investment capital to Saban Brands and have great confidence in Elie and his executive team as they build a leading global intellectual property company."

Dekel added: "Saban Brands represents a new approach to brand management and licensing. Leveraging our unique capabilities, significant resources and transmedia orientation, Saban Brands is poised to become a force of innovation and opportunity."

Dekel was most recently the head of licensing and merchandising at 20th Century Fox. He was tapped to join Saban Capital Group last July, renewing a long-running working partnership with Haim Saban, He first worked with Saban in the 1990s, including during the merger with Fox Kids and takeover of The Family Channel.