UNION MERGER: The Screen Actors Guild and American Federation of Television and Radio Artists announced that a merger of the unions has been approved by both memberships. The joint union will become Hollywood’s largest talent organization. Called SAG-Aftra, it will combine SAG’s 120,000 TV and film actors with Aftra’s 70,000 singers, newscasters, and other entertainers and broadcasters. About 45,000 people were already members of both unions. Eighty-two percent of SAG voters and 86 percent of Aftra voters approved the merger. A 60 percent yes vote was required. Board members said the union will provide greater bargaining power in both traditional and new media.
IPO AHEAD: Oaktree Capital Group hopes to raise nearly $600 million in its planned initial public offering, the company said. The IPO is scheduled this week. In a regulatory filing, the downtown L.A. investment firm said it expects to price up to 12.9 million shares between $43 and $46 apiece for total proceeds of $595 million. The revelation marked a sharp departure from its initial IPO filing last June, when the company said it expected to raise up to $100 million.
LIVE BUY: Live Nation Entertainment Inc., a Beverly Hills concert promoter and ticketing company, has acquired Michael Coppel Presents, considered one of the leading concert promoters in Australia and New Zealand. Michael Coppel Presents has been in the concert business more than 30 years, promotes several hundred shows a year and sells up to 1.7 million tickets annually to concerts. Michael Coppel Presents, which is based in a suburb of Melbourne, Australia, has promoted concerts for such artists as U2, Lady Gaga and Beyonce. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
DEAL DONE: Green Dot Corp. has completed its acquisition of Loopt, a Mountain View mobile social networking developer, for $43 million in cash. It is Green Dot’s biggest purchase. The Monrovia provider of prepaid debit cards wants to use Loopt’s technology to help its development of a so-called mobile wallet, which would allow customers to make purchases through their smart phones. Green Dot said Loopt not only provides it with innovative mobile social networking software, but also a team of developers to design products. Loopt’s operations will remain in Mountain View.
IPO DONE: TCP Capital Corp., a business investment and development company, completed an initial public offering of nearly $85 million. The Santa Monica investment arm of Tennenbaum Capital Partners LLC said that the 5.75 million shares priced at $14.75 a share and raised $84.8 million before expenses. TCP plans to use proceeds to pay down debt and make investments. TCP Capital invests in the debt primarily of middle-market companies valued at between $100 million and $1.5 billion. It makes its investments under the guidance of Tennenbaum Capital. Tennenbaum has invested in about 200 companies since its 1999 founding. Last month, it successfully led a group of debt holders in acquiring Real Mex Restaurants Inc., the bankrupt Cypress operator of the El Torito, Chevys and Acapulco restaurant chains.
ANOTHER BUY: Reliance Steel & Aluminum Co. has acquired National Specialty Alloys LLC for an undisclosed amount. It’s the latest acquisition in a trend of renewed activity by Reliance. NSA is a Houston processer and distributor of specialty alloy, premium stainless steel and nickel alloy bars and other products. It was owned by a consortium of investors led by Post Oak Energy Capital LP of Houston. NSA has operations in Anaheim; Buford, Ga.; and Tulsa, Okla. Net sales for the 12 months ended Oct. 31 were $96 million. Financial terms of deal were not disclosed.
FILMING DOWN: On-location production days fell 2.1 percent in parts of Los Angeles during the first quarter of 2012, due to a large decrease in locally shot television, according to FilmL.A. Inc. The 9 percent drop in permitted TV production days offset gains made in local feature film and commercial shoots, which increased 16 percent and 11 percent, respectively. Other productions, such as music videos, were down 4.7 percent. The steepest declines came in TV dramas, reality TV and TV pilot projects, which all saw double-digit decreases.
VIVENDI SALE: Gaiam Inc. said that it has closed its $13.4 million acquisition of Universal Music Distribution Corp.’s Vivendi Entertainment. Gaiam, a Boulder, Colo., producer and distributor of yoga and fitness DVDs, said the deal creates the largest independent media distributor of nontheatrical content in the United States. In addition to its products, Gaiam has exclusive licensing agreements with Discovery Communications and other partners that produce content for distribution outside movie theaters. Universal City-based Vivendi Entertainment distributes DVDs and digital releases for independent companies, including NFL Productions, National Geographic and Weinstein Co.
ARMY CONTRACT: Jacobs Engineering Group Inc. said it was chosen to provide systems engineering and technical assistance for the U.S. Army’s Program Executive Office. The office, also known as PEO Soldier, supplies high-tech equipment for combat soldiers, such as surveillance equipment, protective gear and weapons. The contract has one base year and two one-year options, with a potential value of $157 million.
DRUG DEAL: Amgen Inc. and AstraZeneca Plc will jointly develop and sell five experimental drugs from Amgen’s inflammation portfolio. Under the collaboration, London’s AstraZeneca will make an upfront payment of $50 million to the Thousand Oaks biotech. The companies will share costs and profits on the drugs, which are being studied for treatment of autoimmune and respiratory diseases.
NEW EXECS: MRV Communications Inc. appointed Stephen Garcia as chief financial officer and Beth Arnold as vice president of finance. The Chatsworth provider of telecom equipment and services said Garcia and Arnold replace Chris King and Blima Tuller, respectively. Garcia has more than 20 years of financial and executive management experience in telecommunications and other sectors. Arnold has more than 15 years of financial management experience.
NEW COO: ValueClick Inc. said division head John Giuliani has been promoted to the new position of chief operating officer. Giuliani has been president of the Westlake Village online marketing firm’s Dotomi division. He was Dotomi’s chief executive when ValueClick bought the company in August. ValueClick said Giuliani will oversee several U.S. units. “John’s digital and database marketing expertise and leadership skills make him the perfect choice to drive the integration of our businesses, allowing our customers to leverage our unique vision,” Chief Executive James Zarley said in a statement.
