Jim Rogers joins FAB...upbeat on China's digital culture

Jim Rogers (L) shakes hands with Zhang Hongcheng, chairman of FAB Universal Corp, after signing the director agreement, June 10, 2013. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

Jim Rogers, an international investment guru and co-founder of the Quantum Fund, has joined the Board of Directors of FAB Universal Corp (NYSE MKT: FU) as director, saying he is very optimistic about the prospect of the company and the digital culture industry in China, the global digital media giant announced recently.

"With Mr. Rogers' position and experience in the international financial community, the company can have easier access to international capital markets, and...realize a huge potential value in the near future," said Zhang Hongcheng, chairman of FAB Universal that signed the director agreement on June 10.

FAB Universal, a worldwide distributor of digital entertainment, is stepping up its efforts to extend its global outreach after being listed on the New York Stock Exchange last year, with billions of digital media and entertainment distributed in over 240 countries worldwide so far.

The company, underpinned by its prowess in 5C intelligent kiosk technologies, is expected to rake in $100 million in business this year. Its revenues stood at $27.5 million in 2012, up 782 percent year-on-year, after the acquisition of Digital Entertainment International.

FAB has been pressing ahead in digital media and entertainment in China, in hopes of drawing investment worldwide and grabbing a piece of the growing pie in the digital culture industry in the country.

Earlier this month, the company held a release ceremony of the new album --"Awake"-- by Yang Siren, a talented Chinese singer signed exclusively by FAB Universal, at the company's flagship store in Beijing, which coincided with Jim Rogers' visiting there.

Jim Rogers visits the flagship store of FAB Universal, which coincided with a release ceremony of the new album --"Awake"-- by Yang Siren, a talented Chinese singer signed exclusively by the company, June 9, 2013. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

The page views on the website for the album in the first week exceeded 2 million after it was released online recently. The album ranked 7th on QQ's music list and will continue to rise, with mobile phone ring tones of this song downloaded for an on-trial service through China telecommunication operators exceeding 500,000. Tthe album also pre-sold nearly 100,000 copies in the first week.

"The music copyright value on various distribution platforms in the Chinese music industry is reported to have reached $10 billion," said Zhang.

"Live performance and talent management are new business for FAB Universal, and we plan to sign contracts with 150 singers and 100 rock bands by the end of 2013," he added.

Chinese consumers' growing appetite for entertainment in recent years continues to drive up the entertainment and media spending in the country. According to Global Entertainment and Media Outlook 2013-17 released by PwC on June 5, the nation's music market was worth $653 million in 2012, up from the 2008 revenue of $559 million. Its annual revenue is forecast to grow by 8.0% a year to reach $960 million in 2017.

Meanwhile, the digital market, accounting for more than three-quarters of all recorded music sales in China, is set to grow as a number of developments in the streaming and social networking space take shape, said the report.

China's culture and entertainment industry is expected to grow at 20 percent, and could be worth 5.5 trillion yuan ($887 billion) within the next seven years, according to an earlier report of China Daily citing a study by business consultancy giant Deloitte.

"The digital culture industry is booming in China and will be a new magnet for global investment.... And it is a strategic demand to streamline the industry," said Jim Rogers at the ninth China (Shenzhen) International Cultural Fair, a four-day event that ended on May 20.

Rogers said that he is very optimistic about the development prospects of China's digital culture industry, and will invest more in the country's cultural enterprises, especially digital culture ones.

He was appointed as Honorary Chairman of the Investment and Financing Summit on International Digital Culture Industry organized by FAB on May 19 during the event.