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Sony Pictures Entertainment is acquiring Alamo Drafthouse Cinema and will manage its 35 locations, a rare example of a traditional Hollywood studio\u2019s owning a theater chain.<\/p>\n
The deal, announced Wednesday, followed the Justice Department\u2019s decision in 2020 to rescind the so-called Paramount consent decrees \u2014 movie distribution rules dating to 1949 that forced the largest Hollywood studios to sell off their theater holdings. Those rules were intended to prevent studios from controlling the film business, from creation to exhibition.<\/p>\n
In 2019, the Justice Department\u2019s antitrust chief at the time, Makan Delrahim, said changes in the entertainment industry \u201cmade it unlikely that the remaining defendants can reinstate their cartel.\u201d Sony\u2019s move could open the door to similar deals by other leading studios. In recent years, Netflix, the leading streaming company, has bought theaters to show films.<\/p>\n
Alamo, the seventh-largest theater chain in North America, operates theaters in 25 metro areas across the United States and has invested in distinctive programming and food offerings in an attempt to lure in moviegoers away from major multiplexes.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
The terms of the deal were not disclosed. Sony bought Alamo from Altamont Capital Partners and Fortress Investment Group, as well as the chain\u2019s founder, Tim League. Mr. League said the dine-in movie theater chain was \u201cbeyond thrilled\u201d about the deal.<\/p>\n
It comes at a time of financial trouble for Alamo and for the movie theater business as a whole. Several of Alamo\u2019s franchised locations filed for bankruptcy and closed this month, making Sony\u2019s move a potential lifeline for the struggling chain. Alamo filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in 2021 before a private equity firm stepped in.<\/p>\n
The cinemas will still operate under the Alamo Drafthouse brand, Sony said, though they will be managed by a newly formed division at Sony led by Michael Kustermann, Alamo\u2019s chief executive.<\/p>\n
\u201cAlamo Drafthouse has always held the craft of filmmaking and the theatrical experience in high esteem, which are fundamental shared values between our companies,\u201d said Tom Rothman, the chief executive of Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group.<\/p>\n
The industry has grappled with multiple headwinds in recent years, as the pandemic caused a slump in box office receipts \u2014 and, more recently, a dismal start to the summer blockbuster season \u2014 while Hollywood strikes chipped away at the number of movies that studios churned out.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
Ticket sales in the United States and Canada for the year to date total just over $2.8 billion, a 26 percent decline from the same period last year, according to Comscore.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n