Reliance Big Entertainment Acquires 50% in Codemasters

Codemasters, the leading British developer and publisher of world-class video games, announced that Reliance Big Entertainment Ltd. (RBEL), a part of India's Reliance ADA group, has agreed to acquire a 50 per cent shareholding in the company, alongside existing investor, Balderton Capital, the leading European venture capital firm that first invested in Codemasters in 2005.

RBEL's gaming division, Zapak Digital Entertainment Ltd. will oversee the Codemasters investment.

Zapak is the largest gaming company in India, with interests in online casual games, massively multiplayer online games (MMOG) publishing, India's largest chain of gaming cafes and physical distribution of gaming software. Zapak also controls Jump Games, an award winning international mobile game development and publishing company with global distribution across Asia, Europe, North America, and South America.

Rohit Sharma, CEO of Zapak, said: "We are excited to partner with Codemasters and believe it's very strong technology, development and distribution presence will complement our global gaming portfolio. Additionally, Zapak's global strength in mobile gaming will enhance Codemasters' ability to fully leverage its attractive franchises such as its racing and cricket games."

Codemasters has major franchises in cricket games (The Ashes), racing games (Formula 1, Dirt2 and Race Driver Grid), performance games (Dance Factory) and military simulations (Operation Flashpoint 2) and annual revenues in excess of US$ 150 Million.

Rod Cousens, chief executive of Codemasters, said: "The opportunities arising from this partnership are truly exciting. This is great news for our development and publishing teams. Reliance and Zapak have immense resources and will help us realize the full potential of our game coding and online excellence across so many platforms, and especially in the world's fastest growing markets. The future of Codemasters has never looked brighter. It's a whole new game!"

Tim Bunting, Balderton Partner, said: "We are delighted to welcome Reliance as our partner in Codemasters and gratified by the confidence in Codemasters that Reliance's initiative represents."
About Codemasters:

Codemasters (www.codemaster.com), the award winning games developer and publisher, has a 21 year heritage in the UK and annual revenues in excess of US$ 150 Million. It has major franchises in cricket games (The Ashes), racing games (Formula 1, Dirt2 and Race Driver Grid), performance games (Dance Factory) and military simulations (Operation Flashpoint 2).

Codemasters is widely acclaimed for its proprietary “new generation” game engine and the coding skills of its multiple UK and Malaysian development teams as well as its effective social network marketing strategies and the Codemasters Online Game team.

Headquartered in Warwickshire, UK, the company maintains European operations in Germany, France, Spain, and Benelux and, in 2006, established its US operations in California.

Warner Bros. Home Entertainment distributes Codemasters titles throughout the US. Across the group, Codemasters employs over 450 people. In January 2006, Chris Deering, the former President of Sony Europe, Consumer Electronics Division, and Chairman and CEO Sony Computer Entertainment Europe, was appointed non-executive Chairman. Rod Cousens joined the company as CEO in 2005.

Credit : http://www.zapak.com/news/zapak-codemasters.php

Anil Ambani still in Worlds Most Powerful List - Mukesh out

Another feather in Anil Ambani's hat and proof of his achievements, business acumen and wisdom.

Though a sharp erosion in his wealth and a long-running sibling rivalry notwithstanding, Indian billionaire Anil Ambani has retained his position in the list of "The World’s 100 Most Powerful People", but his ranking has slipped down 30 places since last year, while sibling Mukesh Ambani has made a total exit from the list. Anil Ambani is now ranked 97th in the latest edition of the annual ranking , compiled by British fashion magazine Vanity Fair. Anil is the only Indian in the list, which is topped by financial services behemoth Goldman Sachs CEO Lloyd Blankfein.

Anil was ranked at 67th position jointly with Mukesh in the previous year’s list.

The current list, described as “The New Establishment 2009” by the magazine, also figures names like Apple’s iconic chief Steve Jobs and legendary investor Warren Buffett and these 100 people have been described as the world’s most powerful in today’s information age.

“Anil Ambani lost a lot of wealth and was the among biggest losers when Forbes published its annual wealth ranking in March: his fortune fell by $32 billion, to $10 billion. But that still left him with plenty of cash to close a Bollywood-meets-Hollywood deal with Steven Spielberg to make a $500 million investment in DreamWorks (along with the rights to distribute its films in India),” Vanity Fair said about Anil.

The magazine also mentioned - “In one of their biggest battles, Mumbai’s high court ordered elder brother Mukesh’s company to make good on a deal from 2005 to sell natural gas to Anil’s company for 17 years at a price 44 per cent lower than that set by the government. That could mean billions of dollars worth of savings for Anil and losses for Mukesh, who appealed to India’s Supreme Court.”

In his “latest act of do-goodery,” the magazine said, Anil opened a 730-bed hospital in Mumbai.

The magazine, in its last year rankings, had said both Mukesh and Anil together held a large combined net worth and they inherited their father’s sprawling industrial conglomerate in 2002, “but never figured how to play together nicely”.

This could be another cause of the 'sad frowning face' look on Mukesh Ambani's forehead these days, whose company RIL, has been in the midst of most controversaries.

(you can read the article at http://dreamworks-reliance-big-entertainment.blogspot.com/2009/09/worlds-most-powerful-people-anil-ambani.html)

Spielberg to direct film for Anil Ambani

As far as the Indian entertainment business goes, it doesn’t get bigger than this one.!!
Reliance ADAG will get cult Hollywood director Michael , of the super hit "Transformers" franchise that grossed over US $700 million worldwide, to direct a film for them. This will be followed by two more films in which Steven Spielberg will be actively involved and the legendary director will even wield the megaphone for one.

Earlier this year, Reliance Big Entertainment (RBE) and Steven Spielberg’s Dream-Works Studios entered into a much-publicised US $825 million deal. The Michael Bayhelmed film "I Am Number Four is the first instalment of that venture. Spielberg excited about film based on Crichton book.

Reliance ADAG in association with Steven Spielberg’s DreamWorks Studios has roped in Michael Bay to direct a film. Says Stacey Snider, co-chair and CEO of DreamWorks Studios, “With the backing of Reliance, we are able to continue developing our slate and producing films for worldwide movie-going audiences...and with 'I Am Number 4', we’ll continue our successful partnership with Michael Bay who truly delivers movies that have mass global appeal.’’The two other films on the anvil are 'Pirate Latitudes' and 'Harvey'.

Pirate Latitudes, an adventure story being developed out of a posthumously published novel by the late Michael Crichton who died last year of cancer, is a film that Spielberg plans to produce and may direct himself. Screenwriter David Koepp, who adapted Crichton’s novels for Jurassic Park and The Lost World, will write the script for the film which centres around a daring plan to infiltrate Port Royal, one of the world’s richest and most notorious cities, and raid a Spanish galleon filled with treasure.

“Michael Crichton was one of our greatest storytellers who expanded all of our imaginations with his books, films, and television,’’ says Spielberg. “With the ‘ER’ and ‘Jurassic Park’ series, I enjoyed one of the best collaborations of my career. Now with ‘ Latitudes’, I am excited about bringing this new Michael Crichton work to the screen.’’

I Am Number 4 is based on a novel co-written by A Million Little Pieces author James Frey and Jobie Hughes. Al Gough and Miles Millar, the duo credited with scripting Spiderman 2, The Mummy: Tomb Of The Dragon Emperor, Shanghai Noon and Shanghai Knights, will adapt it for the screen. The storyline follows a group of teenage alien refugees assimilating into high school on Earth when they discover that their home planet’s enemy is now hunting them on their new turf.

As for Harvey, Spielberg has committed to direct this one. The film will be an adaptation of the Mary Chase Pulitzer Prize-winning play Harvey, which will be done as a co-production between 20th Century Fox and DreamWorks. The play won the Pulitzer Prize in 1944, and was previously turned into the 1950 Universal film that starred Jimmy Stewart and Josephine Hull. Now the project will be produced by Spielberg and Don Gregory, with Elizabeth Gabler and Carla Hacken overseeing for Fox 2000, which acquired the rights in 2008.

(you can read more at http://hollywood-with-bollywood.blogspot.com/2009/09/spielberg-to-direct-film-for-anil.html)