Local entertainment giant forms US partnership
BEC-Tero Entertainment Plc is aiming to grow its sales by about 10 percent during 2015 after signing a joint venture agreement with the United States company Live Nation Entertainment to promote international concerts in Thailand.
As per the standard agreement practice with foreign investment businesses into Thailand, the Live Nation Entertainment Company will own 49 percent in the new organization, called Live Nation BEC-Tero Co, while the Thailand company, BEC-Tero, will hold the 51 percent stake.
The management of the Los Angeles-based Live Nation company views Thailand as a key market and they believe the local partnership will be a major plank in generating Live Nation’s global presence. A spokesman for the company said Live Nation aims to offer fans, sponsors and artists a seamless service that will stretch across the globe.
In 2014, Live Nation expanded into China, Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, the Philippines and Singapore. The company will start operations in Malaysia in February this year.
Live Nation’s business covers concerts, ticketing services, artist management, media coverage and sponsorship. The company is looking to see what opportunities exist in the Thailand marketplace, and if they find suitable paradigms then they intend to expand further in the country to improve the landscape for Thai fans.
The new joint venture company will greatly benefit the local Thai customer base, with top-ranked international concerts more likely to be staged across the country. It should lead to genuinely A-level performers making Thailand a part of any world or regional tours. It is also expected that the partnership will help reduce the cost of production for these major events, thereby making the bringing of top-ranked acts to Thailand more affordable, both for the companies engaging these sough-after performers but also in terms of ticket pricing for the fans.
The Live Nation BEC-Tero operation will oversee international concerts while BEC-Tero will continue in its long-term role of staging local concerts, exhibitions and other show-business operations.
In previous years BEC-Tero would normally arrange for five international-class concerts a year to be staged in Thailand, but this new partnership means that capacity will double. For fans, it means there will be a major international headline act performing in Thailand on average once every five weeks.
Sponsorship now contributes about 40 percent of the cost of each concert. Among those slated for Thailand for 2015 include Taylor Swift, Michael Buble, and One Direction.
Regional stars from popular countries such as South Korea and Japan will also be heading to Thailand this year.
