SEVEN acquires AMC’s equity stake in cinema business in Saudi Arabia

Saudi Entertainment Ventures (SEVEN), a wholly owned subsidiary of the Public Investment Fund (PIF), has restructured its joint venture partnership with US-headquartered AMC Entertainment Holdings (AMC), the world’s largest movie exhibition company.

Under the new agreement, the company will acquire AMC’s equity stake in the cinema business in the kingdom to gain 100 per cent ownership.

SEVEN will also retain intellectual property rights and the AMC Cinemas brand name in the Saudi market. The acquisition comes at a critical time as the company prepares itself for the massive operations of developing 21 integrated entertainment destinations to fulfil the mandate of establishing the entertainment sector nationwide.

Read: Saudi Arabia’s SEVEN to invest SAR50bn to develop entertainment destinations in 14 cities

Integrating the cinema business into SEVEN plays a key component in the entertainment offering in Saudi; it also enables the company to further consolidate its position in the kingdom. The Saudi entertainment market, which is growing at an annual rate of 47.65 per cent, is expected to touch SAR4.4bn by the end of 2030.

SEVEN will continue to partner with AMC through a franchise agreement, enabling it to keep the brand name of AMC Cinemas which, in 2018, became the first cinema operator in the kingdom. Under the SEVEN-AMC partnership, AMC Cinemas currently operates 85 screens across the kingdom.

Abdullah Al Dawood, chairman of SEVEN, said: “Our partnership with AMC – the world’s largest cinema chain, was crucial in developing knowledge, technical expertise and equipping us with the know-how to build up institutional capacities and support growth in Saudi Arabia’s entertainment industry. The acquisition of AMC’s stake in Saudi Arabia reflects SEVEN’s long-term strategy of bringing unparalleled experiences to the people and visitors of the kingdom and contribute to the Saudi Vision 2030 goals.”

Adam Aron, chairman and CEO of AMC, said: “After more than five years since our first trip to Saudi Arabia and nearly five years since we opened our first theatre there, we believe this announcement and agreement is the natural next step in the process as we achieved our objectives of the joint venture.”