Metan Development Group
Encyclopedia
METAN Development Group was established in late 2008 with for the purposes of delivering Western programming content to China
, and to develop and distribute Chinese content to international markets. Founded by Larry Namer
(co-founder of E! Entertainment Television), Martin Pompadur (former Chairman of News Corporation
Europe), and Jean Zhang (AmeriLink founder), Metan was established to work with the expanding Chinese market.
in 1960, holding various positions including General Manager of the Television Network, Vice President of the Broadcast Division and President of the Leisure Activities Group. His 17-year tenure at the company culminated with the distinction as the youngest person ever appointed as a member of the ABC Board of Directors. Mr. Pompadur is a principal owner of Caribbean International News Corporation, which publishes El Vocero
, a Spanish language daily newspaper in Puerto Rico
; the principal owner of Montana Coffee, a company in the wholesale coffee business in Russia
; an investor in Talent Partners, a U.S. payroll company; an investor in Seatwave
, a London-based ticket reseller; and a Media Advisor to the Dubai
based Millennium TMT Fund. He currently serves as Director of Nexstar Broadcasting Group
, News Out of Home B.V., Balkan Bulgarian, RP Coffee Ventures and Sky Italia
.
Larry Namer, President/CEO: An entertainment industry veteran with over 40 years professional experience in cable television
, live events and new media
, Larry Namer is a founding partner of METAN Development Group. An accomplished entrepreneur, Mr. Namer is the co-founder of E! Entertainment Television, a company now valued at over $3.5 billion, and the creator of several successful companies in the United States
and overseas. Among those companies are Comspan Communications that pioneered Western forms of entertainment in the former Soviet Union
and Steeplechase Media that served as the primary consultant to Microsoft
’s MiTV
for developing interactive TV applications. Mr. Namer began his career in 1971 at Time Incorporated
Manhattan Cable Television, and served as Vice President and General Manager of Valley Cable Television (VCTV) in Los Angeles
, the nation’s first 61-channel two-way cable system. His vision and direction garnered VCTV several Emmy
and Cable ACE award nominations, as well as recognition by Forbes
magazine as the national model for local cable television programming. In 1989, he was awarded the President’s Award from the National Cable Television Association. In recent years, Mr. Namer has become recognized as a leading experts on new technology and how it is fundamentally altering the business of international media and entertainment. Among the companies that have enlisted his expertise are Microsoft, Paul Allen
’s Digeo, World Digital Media Group (a joint venture of Radio Shack
), EchoStar, Sirius Radio network and Eurocinema
, a VOD service featuring recent award-winning European films, now available in over 36 million homes in North America
.
Jean Zhang, Co-Founder & Executive Vice President, Managing Director, China Operations: Jean Zhang founded AmeriLink Group, Inc., a business-consulting firm based in the San Francisco Bay Area
specializing in promoting business and cultural cooperation between government officials and senior corporate executives in China and their American counterparts in the United States. Ms. Zhang has been instrumental in developing the company’s strategy, working with both Chinese and American organizations to plan and offer short-term trainings for Chinese officials and executives based in the United States. AmeriLink has established a solid customer base in major cities throughout China and has developed strong relationships with high and mid-level Chinese government officials. Prior to AmeriLink, Ms. Zhang was a full-time Associate Professor at the University of Science & Technology of China’s School of Management in Beijing
. She is the author and co-author of several published books and articles. Jean was one of the youngest female Associate Professors on the faculty. In addition, Ms. Zhang worked with the Marketing and Public Relations Department at AT&T
China, Ltd., and was an Anchor and Writer for Beijing Economic Radio, where she hosted two programs: “Good Morning, Beijing” and “Joyful Tonight.” Ms. Zhang received her MBA from California State University, East Bay
. She also holds an undergraduate and a graduate degree from universities in China.
events and award shows. Since its launch in summer 2009, the series is now available on over 40 television stations reaching more than 250 million households throughout China. Metan also launched the series’ premier content on 10 of China’s top online portals in January 2010, adding 360 million Chinese netizen
s to its program reach.
In February, 2011 Metan teamed up with Tencent
, owner of China's largest Internet service portal QQ.com, to create special entertainment news coverage direct from Hollywood surrounding The 83rd Annual Academy Awards
, tailored specifically to Mandarin-speaking audiences. This first ever viewing event was watched by an audience of 3.2 million Mandarin-speaking viewers in China.
Metan has joined forces with global nonprofit WildAid
(http://wildaid.org) to distribute a special series of celebrity PSAs designed to raise awareness to reduce the demand for threatened and endangered species
products and to increase public support for wildlife conservation
worldwide.
Currently, Metan is adapting several formats of popular Western TV shows for localized versions, as well as developing the original sitcom Return to Da Foo Tsun, daily health and wellness series Everyday Lohas (Life of Health and Sustainability) and feature film titled Moon Flower of the Flying Tigers.
In May 2011, Metan entered an exclusive partnership with Fusion TV to deliver action sports and adventure travel content to China.
In June 2011, Metan launched the new division Metan International Talent Management (MITM) that will represent projects and secure product endorsement deals with actors, writers and musicians in China and worldwide. MITM will also work with Western talent specifically in the Chinese market. International author and journalist Annie Wang
is the first artist signed to MITM who will represent Ms. Wang’s interests and projects across all media globally.
In June 2011, Metan also entered a long-term strategic partnership Sino Thinker International Culture Communication Co. Ltd. (Sino Thinker) to produce live entertainment, cultural, fashion and sporting events in China. The LXD (The Legion of Extraordinary Dancers) by film producer John Chu marks the first joint project produced by Metan and Sino Thinker. The LXD debuted in China on June 24 at Master Center, Beijing, as part of the Mini Live 2011 New Products Launch.
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
, and to develop and distribute Chinese content to international markets. Founded by Larry Namer
Larry Namer
Larry Namer is an entertainment and media entrepreneur who, along with Alan Mruvka, founded E! Entertainment Television, a company now valued at over $3.5 billion, and Movies USA Magazine.-Biography:...
(co-founder of E! Entertainment Television), Martin Pompadur (former Chairman of News Corporation
News Corporation
News Corporation or News Corp. is an American multinational media conglomerate. It is the world's second-largest media conglomerate as of 2011 in terms of revenue, and the world's third largest in entertainment as of 2009, although the BBC remains the world's largest broadcaster...
Europe), and Jean Zhang (AmeriLink founder), Metan was established to work with the expanding Chinese market.
Executive Biographies
Martin Pompadur, Chairman of the Board: Entertainment industry veteran, Marty Pompadur joined ABCAmerican Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
in 1960, holding various positions including General Manager of the Television Network, Vice President of the Broadcast Division and President of the Leisure Activities Group. His 17-year tenure at the company culminated with the distinction as the youngest person ever appointed as a member of the ABC Board of Directors. Mr. Pompadur is a principal owner of Caribbean International News Corporation, which publishes El Vocero
El Vocero
El Vocero is a Puerto Rican newspaper that is published in San Juan.Published since 1974, El Vocero was at first the third of the four largest Puerto Rico newspapers, trailing El Mundo and El Nuevo Día and leading The San Juan Star in sales...
, a Spanish language daily newspaper in Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico , officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico , is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the northeastern Caribbean, east of the Dominican Republic and west of both the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands.Puerto Rico comprises an...
; the principal owner of Montana Coffee, a company in the wholesale coffee business in Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
; an investor in Talent Partners, a U.S. payroll company; an investor in Seatwave
Seatwave
Seatwave is an online ticket exchange service operating in the European market. It was founded by Joe Cohen in 2006 with the aim of offering consumers a safe and transparent way to buy and sell tickets to live events including music, theatre and sport....
, a London-based ticket reseller; and a Media Advisor to the Dubai
Dubai
Dubai is a city and emirate in the United Arab Emirates . The emirate is located south of the Persian Gulf on the Arabian Peninsula and has the largest population with the second-largest land territory by area of all the emirates, after Abu Dhabi...
based Millennium TMT Fund. He currently serves as Director of Nexstar Broadcasting Group
Nexstar Broadcasting Group
Nexstar Broadcasting Group, Inc., is an entity of broadcast television stations headquartered in Irving, Texas. The company consists of 50 television stations across the U.S., ranging from market sizes 9 to 201 . 43 of the stations are broadcasting at full power, with the other 4 broadcasting at...
, News Out of Home B.V., Balkan Bulgarian, RP Coffee Ventures and Sky Italia
Sky Italia
Sky Italia S.r.l. is an Italian digital satellite television platform owned by News Corporation launched on 1 August 2003, when the former platforms TELE+ and Stream TV merged together...
.
Larry Namer, President/CEO: An entertainment industry veteran with over 40 years professional experience in cable television
Cable television
Cable television is a system of providing television programs to consumers via radio frequency signals transmitted to televisions through coaxial cables or digital light pulses through fixed optical fibers located on the subscriber's property, much like the over-the-air method used in traditional...
, live events and new media
New media
New media is a broad term in media studies that emerged in the latter part of the 20th century. For example, new media holds out a possibility of on-demand access to content any time, anywhere, on any digital device, as well as interactive user feedback, creative participation and community...
, Larry Namer is a founding partner of METAN Development Group. An accomplished entrepreneur, Mr. Namer is the co-founder of E! Entertainment Television, a company now valued at over $3.5 billion, and the creator of several successful companies in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and overseas. Among those companies are Comspan Communications that pioneered Western forms of entertainment in the former Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
and Steeplechase Media that served as the primary consultant to Microsoft
Microsoft
Microsoft Corporation is an American public multinational corporation headquartered in Redmond, Washington, USA that develops, manufactures, licenses, and supports a wide range of products and services predominantly related to computing through its various product divisions...
’s MiTV
MiTV
U Television Sdn. Bhd. is Malaysia's third pay television operator. It was launched in September 2005 after having obtained all the necessary approvals from the censorship board on its broadcast contents...
for developing interactive TV applications. Mr. Namer began his career in 1971 at Time Incorporated
Time Incorporated
Time Incorporated can refer to:*Time Inc., the publishing arm of Time Warner*Time Incorporated, an alternate title for the Doctor Who serial The Ultimate Foe...
Manhattan Cable Television, and served as Vice President and General Manager of Valley Cable Television (VCTV) in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, the nation’s first 61-channel two-way cable system. His vision and direction garnered VCTV several Emmy
Emmy Award
An Emmy Award, often referred to simply as the Emmy, is a television production award, similar in nature to the Peabody Awards but more focused on entertainment, and is considered the television equivalent to the Academy Awards and the Grammy Awards .A majority of Emmys are presented in various...
and Cable ACE award nominations, as well as recognition by Forbes
Forbes
Forbes is an American publishing and media company. Its flagship publication, the Forbes magazine, is published biweekly. Its primary competitors in the national business magazine category are Fortune, which is also published biweekly, and Business Week...
magazine as the national model for local cable television programming. In 1989, he was awarded the President’s Award from the National Cable Television Association. In recent years, Mr. Namer has become recognized as a leading experts on new technology and how it is fundamentally altering the business of international media and entertainment. Among the companies that have enlisted his expertise are Microsoft, Paul Allen
Paul Allen
Paul Gardner Allen is an American business magnate, investor, and philanthropist. Allen co-founded Microsoft with Bill Gates...
’s Digeo, World Digital Media Group (a joint venture of Radio Shack
Radio shack
Radio shack is a slang term for a room or structure for housing radio equipment.-History:In the early days of radio, equipment was experimental and home-built. The first radio transmitters used a noisy spark to generate radio waves and were often housed in a garage or shed. When radio was first...
), EchoStar, Sirius Radio network and Eurocinema
Eurocinema vod
Eurocinema is an on-demand TV network in Canada and the United States presenting European and other foreign films. Each film comes with a short film on a related theme, and is in original audio with English subtitles...
, a VOD service featuring recent award-winning European films, now available in over 36 million homes in North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
.
Jean Zhang, Co-Founder & Executive Vice President, Managing Director, China Operations: Jean Zhang founded AmeriLink Group, Inc., a business-consulting firm based in the San Francisco Bay Area
San Francisco Bay Area
The San Francisco Bay Area, commonly known as the Bay Area, is a populated region that surrounds the San Francisco and San Pablo estuaries in Northern California. The region encompasses metropolitan areas of San Francisco, Oakland, and San Jose, along with smaller urban and rural areas...
specializing in promoting business and cultural cooperation between government officials and senior corporate executives in China and their American counterparts in the United States. Ms. Zhang has been instrumental in developing the company’s strategy, working with both Chinese and American organizations to plan and offer short-term trainings for Chinese officials and executives based in the United States. AmeriLink has established a solid customer base in major cities throughout China and has developed strong relationships with high and mid-level Chinese government officials. Prior to AmeriLink, Ms. Zhang was a full-time Associate Professor at the University of Science & Technology of China’s School of Management in Beijing
Beijing
Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...
. She is the author and co-author of several published books and articles. Jean was one of the youngest female Associate Professors on the faculty. In addition, Ms. Zhang worked with the Marketing and Public Relations Department at AT&T
AT&T
AT&T Inc. is an American multinational telecommunications corporation headquartered in Whitacre Tower, Dallas, Texas, United States. It is the largest provider of mobile telephony and fixed telephony in the United States, and is also a provider of broadband and subscription television services...
China, Ltd., and was an Anchor and Writer for Beijing Economic Radio, where she hosted two programs: “Good Morning, Beijing” and “Joyful Tonight.” Ms. Zhang received her MBA from California State University, East Bay
California State University, East Bay
California State University, East Bay is a public university located in the eastern region of the San Francisco Bay Area. The university, as part of the 23-campus California State University system, offers over 100 areas of study...
. She also holds an undergraduate and a graduate degree from universities in China.
Current Projects
Metan’s flagship series Hello! Hollywood!, a weekly entertainment news series tailored to Chinese audiences, offers up the latest in celebrity and lifestyle news and covers the most glamorous red carpetRed carpet
A red carpet is traditionally used to mark the route taken by heads of state on ceremonial and formal occasions, and has in recent decades been extended to use by VIPs and celebrities at formal events.- History :...
events and award shows. Since its launch in summer 2009, the series is now available on over 40 television stations reaching more than 250 million households throughout China. Metan also launched the series’ premier content on 10 of China’s top online portals in January 2010, adding 360 million Chinese netizen
Netizen
The term Netizen is a portmanteau of the English words internet and citizen. It is defined as an entity or person actively involved in online communities and a user of the internet, especially an avid one. The term can also imply an interest in improving the internet, especially in regard to open...
s to its program reach.
In February, 2011 Metan teamed up with Tencent
Tencent QQ
Tencent QQ, generally referred to as QQ, is the most popular free instant messaging computer program in mainland China. As of July 11, 2011, the active QQ users accounts for QQ IM totaled 812.3 million, possibly making it the world's second largest online community. The number of simultaneous...
, owner of China's largest Internet service portal QQ.com, to create special entertainment news coverage direct from Hollywood surrounding The 83rd Annual Academy Awards
83rd Academy Awards
The 83rd Academy Awards ceremony, presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences , honored the best films of 2010 and took place February 27, 2011, at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles beginning at 5:30 p.m. PST / 8:30 p.m. EST. During the ceremony, Academy Awards ...
, tailored specifically to Mandarin-speaking audiences. This first ever viewing event was watched by an audience of 3.2 million Mandarin-speaking viewers in China.
Metan has joined forces with global nonprofit WildAid
WildAid
WildAid is an international 501 NGO whose mission is to end the illegal wildlife trade. Rather than an issue of biology or culture WildAid views the illegal wildlife trade fundamentally as a matter of economics - of supply and demand....
(http://wildaid.org) to distribute a special series of celebrity PSAs designed to raise awareness to reduce the demand for threatened and endangered species
Endangered species
An endangered species is a population of organisms which is at risk of becoming extinct because it is either few in numbers, or threatened by changing environmental or predation parameters...
products and to increase public support for wildlife conservation
Wildlife conservation
Wildlife conservation is the preservation, protection, or restoration of wildlife and their environment, especially in relation to endangered and vulnerable species. All living non-domesticated animals, even if bred, hatched or born in captivity, are considered wild animals. Wildlife represents all...
worldwide.
Currently, Metan is adapting several formats of popular Western TV shows for localized versions, as well as developing the original sitcom Return to Da Foo Tsun, daily health and wellness series Everyday Lohas (Life of Health and Sustainability) and feature film titled Moon Flower of the Flying Tigers.
In May 2011, Metan entered an exclusive partnership with Fusion TV to deliver action sports and adventure travel content to China.
In June 2011, Metan launched the new division Metan International Talent Management (MITM) that will represent projects and secure product endorsement deals with actors, writers and musicians in China and worldwide. MITM will also work with Western talent specifically in the Chinese market. International author and journalist Annie Wang
Annie Wang
Annie Wang is co-founder, CTO, and creative director of Her Campus, an online magazine geared towards college women. She is in charge of building and developing the Her Campus website. She is a student at Harvard University, where she is majoring in visual and environmental studies with a...
is the first artist signed to MITM who will represent Ms. Wang’s interests and projects across all media globally.
In June 2011, Metan also entered a long-term strategic partnership Sino Thinker International Culture Communication Co. Ltd. (Sino Thinker) to produce live entertainment, cultural, fashion and sporting events in China. The LXD (The Legion of Extraordinary Dancers) by film producer John Chu marks the first joint project produced by Metan and Sino Thinker. The LXD debuted in China on June 24 at Master Center, Beijing, as part of the Mini Live 2011 New Products Launch.
External links
- http://www.metandevelopmentgroup.com
- http://www.todotvnews.com/scripts/templates/despliegue_imprimir_con_foto.asp?nota=eng/Distribuci%F3n/Mercados/2010/07_julio/23_meta_ruyi_media_alianza_distribuci%F3n_produccion&numero=
- http://www.screendaily.com/territories/asia-pacific/metan-enters-strategic-relationship-with-chinas-ruyi-film/5016264.article
- http://viewer.zmags.co.uk/publication/360fd22c?page=1#/360fd22c/10