Hollywood Breakdown
Alibaba's Jack Ma Visits Hollywood
Executives across Hollywood hoped for face time with the founder of Alibaba and one of the richest men in China on his visit to Southern California. Jack Ma's company may be opening an office in Los Angeles, but what kind of partnerships he's looking to form in Hollywood remains to be seen.
By Kim Masters • • 3m ListenJack Ma's short visit to Los Angeles in the last week of October attracted a lot of attention in Hollywood, even if Ma hasn't fully laid out his plans in the film industry. Ma is one of the wealthiest men in China and heads Alibaba, the Amazon of China, which raised $21.8 billion for its September IPO. That kind of money has executives eager to look at securing deals and partnerships with Alibaba Pictures, which may be opening an office in LA. Further down the line, there's speculation that Alibaba may be even looking to buy a U.S. studio. Ma met with leaders at Sony, Paramount and Lionsgate. He left midweek, earlier than some executives were anticipating, but not before catching a Laker's game with WME's Ari Emanuel and Patrick Whitesell.
