The Public Sector Pension Investment Board, alongside global alternative investment manager Investcorp, is taking a strategic minority stake in United Talent Agency.
The capital from the two investors is aiming to boost the global talent and entertainment company’s continuing growth, expanding its core business of talent representation. Indeed, UTA recently amped up acquisitions in areas including live speaking, electronic music, e-sports and gaming.
“The investment in UTA is really an opportunity to back a trend in the media industry,” says Simon Marc, managing director and global head of private equity at PSP Investments, in a press release. “The entertainment industry is experiencing a lot of change, a lot of transformation. There is new technology, new players and so on, with Netflix and Amazon. A lot of that is changing the shape of the industry, but it is also driving a lot of growth and demand for content.
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“The need for content is becoming greater and greater, and the value of content has been growing exponentially over the last number of years,” he says. In such an environment, the business of scoping out new talent is growing along with the entertainment industry’s expansion, adds Marc. “This is an industry that is consolidating and the need for scale is growing.”
UTA, in particular, recognizes the need to diversify across areas of content, not limiting itself to simply working in television or live music, for example, he says.
PSP’s investment is part of a larger trend among institutional investors in seeking direct partnership deals with innovative enterprises. according to Marc. Part of his team’s current focus is pinpointing growth opportunities and allocating capital as a direct, but limited, partner, rather than purchasing private companies outright.
While the financial terms of the deal are undisclosed, UTA will maintain majority ownership, which was a key point of attraction for PSP, says Marc. “Finding a situation where it’s not people looking to sell the business, but it is really a group of partners looking for capital to grow their business.”
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