(Bloomberg) -- Comcast Corp., the largest U.S. cable operator, said it will acquire full control of a company that operates a Harry Potter-featured theme park in Japan, targeting the appeal of getaways for the region's growing middle-class and record visitors to the Asian nation.
Comcast's NBCUniversal unit will pay $2.3 billion for the remaining 49 percent stake in USJ Co., which also owns Universal Studios Japan in Osaka, according to a statement Tuesday.
The Philadelphia-based company is expanding in Asia, leveraging the global appeal of film characters from Spiderman to Minions, as rising incomes and increased spending fuel demand for leisure activities. Tourist arrivals in Japan jumped 22 percent to an all-time high 24 million last year, led by visitors from mainland China.
“The surge in inbound visitors is giving a big boost to theme parks,” said Mitsushige Akino, an executive officer at Ichiyoshi Investment Management Co. “There's a lot of growth potential. They have a clear service and, unlike retailers, are similar to a monopoly in the area.”
Comcast is also building a theme park destination in Beijing as it takes on Walt Disney Co., which opened its Shanghai Disneyland last year, to meet growing demand in the region. The company also has a licensing agreement with Universal Studios Singapore.
Magic Kingdom
Universal Studios Japan was the fourth-most popular theme park globally in 2015, behind Magic Kingdom in Florida, Disneyland in California and Tokyo Disneyland in Japan, according to Themed Entertainment Association/AECOM 10th annual global attractions attendance report.
The Osaka theme park, which launched with a license from NBCUniversal as a joint venture between the city and a group of private companies, opened the Wizarding World of Harry Potter attraction in 2014 and plans to debut Minion Park, the world's largest Minion-themed area, featuring rides and shops. It attracted a record number of visitors last fiscal, welcoming more than 12.7 million guests.
Comcast's purchase of the remaining stake in USJ Co. reflects an enterprise value of 840 billion yen ($7.4 billion), including the assumption of debt. The deal is expected to close in April. It had acquired a 51 percent stake in 2015.
Universal Studios Japan isn't the only theme park in Japan benefiting from more inbound tourists. The operator of Tokyo Disneyland expects overseas visitors to more than double by 2020 to about 4 million, as Walt Disney Co.'s first resort outside the U.S. benefits from publicity generated by Shanghai's new Disneyland and a government plan to draw more tourists to Japan.
Buying Out
In China, Disney Shanghai welcomed four million guests in its first four months, according to Walt Disney, helping offset lower attendance at other international parks, and Disneyland in California.
Comcast bought out Goldman Sachs, former Universal Studios Japan Chief Executive Officer Glenn Gumpel, private-equity firm MBK Partners and U.S. hedge fund Owl Creek Asset Management for the remaining stake in USJ.
The company had gained the Universal film and U.S. theme park businesses after it agreed in 2013 to pay General Electric Co. $16.7 billion for company ownership of NBCUniversal, which also gave Comcast control of the NBC broadcast network, as well as cable channels MSNBC and Bravo.
To contact the reporters on this story: Chris Cooper in Tokyo at ccooper1@bloomberg.net, Gerry Smith in New York at gsmith233@bloomberg.net.
To contact the editors responsible for this story: Sam Nagarajan at samnagarajan@bloomberg.net, Dave McCombs
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