CARDED?: The Florida Attorney General’s Office is investigating Green Dot Corp. and other providers of prepaid debit cards for possible deceptive and unfair practices. The state is looking into hidden fees associated with the cards and “misrepresentations promising to improve consumers’ credit scores,” according to a statement. Headquartered in Monrovia, Green Dot is considered one of the pioneers of prepaid debit cards, which have become increasingly popular with low-income customers and others without bank accounts. The reloadable cards are available at tens of thousands of locations, including many Wal-Marts and 7-Elevens. Green Dot Chief Executive Steve Streit issued a statement saying the company does not charge hidden fees and will cooperate with the investigation.
ACQUIRED: Hollywood postproduction and entertainment services provider Deluxe Entertainment Services Group has acquired 2D-to-3D conversion company StereoD for an undisclosed amount. Burbank-based StereoD’s conversion technology was used in the hit action film “Thor” and the upcoming “Captain America: The First Avenger.” StereoD President William Sherak and his team of about 250 employees are expected to stay with the company. Deluxe Entertainment Services is a processor of film and Blu-ray discs.
STREAMING DEAL: Miramax Films has signed a deal with Netflix Inc. that will give the Los Gatos movie rental service’s customers streaming access to several movies in the Santa Monica film studio’s library, including “The English Patient,” “Good Will Hunting” and “Pulp Fiction.” Miramax has been looking for ways to monetize its assets since Walt Disney Co. sold the independent movie company for $60 million last year to Filmyard Holdings LLC, which is backed by local billionaires Tom Barrack and Ron Tutor.
DEVELOPMENT: New York developers Millennium Partners and Argent Ventures, which own Hollywood’s Capitol Records building on Vine Street, are seeking approval for a $1 billion mixed-use complex surrounding the iconic cylindrical office tower. Plans for the million-square-foot development would include a hotel, condos or apartments, offices, restaurants and stores. New buildings on the 4.5-acre site of the proposed Millennium Hollywood project would be sited to preserve views of the ’50s-era Capitol Records tower, which is home to EMI Group’s Capitol Records label.
MORE PUBLIC: Oaktree Capital Management reportedly is planning to move its shares from a quasipublic Goldman Sachs exchange to the New York Stock Exchange in a deal that would value the downtown L.A. asset manager between $8 billion and $9 billion, according to a media report that cites people familiar with the plan. The company founded by local billionaires Bruce Karsh and Howard Marks in 1995 manages around $85 billion, mostly invested in debt and distressed assets. The stock originally sold at $44 a share four years ago and still trades for about the same general price. Making the shares more liquid on the NYSE is expected to significantly boost their value. Oaktree has declined to comment on the reports.
TAKING CONTROL: Rentech Inc. has closed its acquisition of a majority stake in Aiea, Hawaii, biofuels developer ClearFuels Technology Inc., with existing ClearFuels investors retaining a minority interest. Rentech, the L.A. developer of bio-based synthetic fuels for jetliners and other uses, said the deal enables it to add ClearFuels biomass gasifier to its suite of energy conversion technologies. The Hawaiian plant will produce renewable synthetic jet and diesel fuels from fibrous matter remaining after sugarcane or sorghum stalks are crushed to extract their juice.
WI-FI DEAL: Boingo Wireless Inc. has announced it will deploy Wi-Fi hotspot services at Caruso Affiliated’s Grove shopping center in L.A.’s Fairfax District and Americana at Brand in Glendale. The Santa Monica company, whose shares have slid since a May 4 initial public offering, said that the Internet service is expected to roll out to on-site dining establishments and common areas of the shopping centers next month.
NEW CHANNELS: Spanish-language broadcaster Univision Communications Inc. has announced plans to start three cable television channels next year, and produce more original programming rather than buying it from Latin American producers. The New York entertainment giant, which has significant operations in Los Angeles and is owned by an investor group controlled by billionaire Haim Saban, plans to launch a cable news channel, a soccer-heavy sports channel and a telenovela channel devoted to the popular soap operas that are a mainstay of its flagship Univision broadcast network.
SOLD: Grand Rapids, Mich.-based Blackford Capital has acquired Westlake Village health care finance company Key Health Medical Solutions Inc., a purchaser of medical debt. The company’s proprietary software provides access to actuarial and financial data for the medical-legal funding industry, allowing for improved due diligence and collections. The company and its 60 employees are expected to remain in Westlake Village. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
MOVING UP: Talk station KFI-AM (640) climbed to second place in L.A. Arbitron radio ratings in April. KFI, owned by Clear Channel Communications, claimed a 4.5 percent share of listeners compared with 4.3 percent in March. It overtook adult contemporary station KOST-FM (103.5), which dropped a notch to third place with a 4.4 percent share in April, down from 4.6 percent in March. Top 40 station KIIS-FM (102.7) remained in first place with a 5.2 percent share of listeners in April, up slightly from 5.1 percent in March.
EARNINGS: Air Lease Corp. reported first quarter net income of $3.18 million compared with a loss of $480,000 a year earlier. Revenue was $55.2 million. … Hot Topic Inc. reported a first quarter net loss of $7.7 million, compared with a loss of $1.8 million a year earlier. Sales fell 0.8 percent to $161 million. … Trio-Tech International reported a third quarter net loss of $462,000 compared with net income of $19,000 a year earlier. Revenue fell 65 percent to $2.65 million.
