Wanda's acquisition of AMC approved

Dalian Wanda Group Corp Ltd's acquisition of AMC Entertainment Holdings Inc was approved by the National Development and Reform Commission in June.

Dalian Wanda Group inked an agreement with AMC in May after a two-year negotiation process. The largest domestic theater chain operator paid $2.6 billion for the acquisition. Under the terms of the agreement, Wanda has to assume the debt of the US cinema chain and it also promised to invest up to $500 million in its operations.

With the deal, Wanda becomes the owner of the second-largest theater chain in the world's largest film market, and is set to be the largest-scale theater chain operator globally.

Wanda Cinema Line owns 86 cineplexes and 730 movie screens, of which 47 are IMAX screens, and it aims to expand to more than 200 cineplexes with 2,000 screens by 2015.

According to the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television, Wanda Cinema Line grossed 1.785 billion yuan ($280.1 million) in box office receipts in 2011, ranking first among domestic rivals. Total ticket sales reached 13.12 billion yuan last year.

After the acquisition, AMC will keep its management team and employees, and its equity structure will remain unchanged, according to AMC's chief executive officer Gerry Lopez.