Shari Redstone and partners sell Russian cinema chain Rising Star Media
Shari Redstone and her partners have sold the Russian theater circuit Rising Star Media to Cinema Park, Russia’s largest cinema chain.
Redstone, daughter of media mogul and Viacom Inc. and CBS Corp. Chairman Sumner Redstone, announced Monday that she and her partners, Paul Heth and investment banker Charlie Ryan of UFG Private Equity of Russia, sold the 75-theater chain last week to Cinema Park.
Financial terms were not disclosed. However, people close to the deal said the theater chain was sold for about $200 million. The price — one of the highest on a per-screen basis in recent history — was attractive to the Redstone group and comes at a time when emerging markets like Russia have grown increasingly popular for American movies and profitable for the major Hollywood studios.
Shari Redstone launched Rising Star Media in 2002 in partnership with Boston theater company National Amusements Inc., of which she is president, and acquired 100% ownership of the Russian circuit with Heth and Ryan in 2009.
“I was deeply impressed with the energy and vibrancy of the Russian people and their love of entertainment — particularly with their fascination with movies,” Redstone said in a statement. “I knew immediately that Russia was a place that we needed to be, and I am very proud of what we were able to accomplish there in such a short period of time.”
Rising Star Media, which operates luxury multiplexes under the name Kinostar de Lux, has 75 screens from Moscow to St. Petersburg and owns the five highest-grossing cinemas in Russia.
Cinema Park was founded in 2002 by ProfMedia, one of the largest media and entertainment companies in Russia. In 2010, the theater chain generated revenue of $120 million.
The company’s strong track record in Russia made it an ideal buyer, executives said.
“The fact that a Russian company with the stature of ProfMedia has acquired Rising Star is a true testament to what we have accomplished in this country,” Heth said.
