MRC II Distribution Company, L.P.

Trade name	MRC
Formerly	Media Rights Capital (2006–2013)
Company type	Private
Industry	Film Television
Founded	2006; 19 years ago (2006)
Founders	Modi Wiczyk Asif Satchu
Headquarters	9601Wilshire Boulevard, Beverly Hills, California 90212 , U.S.
Area served	Worldwide
Key people	Modi Wiczyk (co-CEO and co-chairman) Asif Satchu (co-CEO and co-chairman) Scott Tenley (COO)
Owner	Eldridge Industries (minority)
Website	www.mrcentertainment.com
Footnotes / references [1]

MRC II Distribution Company, L.P.,^[2]doing business asMRC (formerlyMedia Rights Capital), is an Americanfilm andtelevision production company by Mordecai (Modi) Wiczyk and Asif Satchu in 2006. Based inBeverly Hills, California, the company funds and produces film and television programming.

The company's divisions includeMRC Film,MRC Non-Fiction, andMRC Television. In 2018, the company merged withTodd Boehly's media assets under Valence Media, with the company as a whole taking on the MRC name in 2020; this includedDick Clark Productions (briefly known as MRC Live & Alternative), audience data firmLuminate (the former Nielsen SoundScan), and the entertainment industry publicationsBillboard andThe Hollywood Reporter. Boehly (through Eldridge Industries) re-acquired most of these assets in August 2022.

Productions by the company have included theNetflix seriesHouse of Cards andOzark, and the filmsBaby Driver,Knives Out, andTed.

MRC was founded by Modi Wiczyk and Asif Satchu in 2006.^[3] Its early investors includedGuggenheim Partners,AT&T,WPP Group,Goldman Sachs and ABRY Partners.^[4][5] In 2007, it funded filmmakers such asRobert Rodriguez,Ricky Gervais,Walter Salles,Ryan Murphy,Richard Kelly,Bennett Miller andTodd Field.^[6] The same year, it entered into an agreement withWarner Bros. Pictures to allow Warner to distribute three of the eight pictures over a $250 million feature production funding.^[7] MRC launched a television division of the studio in early 2008.^[8]

In 2008,The CW leased its Sunday-night schedule to MRC beginning in the 2008-09 television season. MRC scheduled the reality showIn Harm's Way and the dramasValentine andEasy Money.^[9] In November 2008, after all four shows drew poor viewership, The CW announced that it would withdraw from the agreement.^[10] The network returned the Sunday timeslots to its affiliates in the 2009–10 season.^[11] In 2010, MRC made a bid to buyFocus Features fromNBCUniversal but was unable to close the deal. That same year, MRC struck a 5-year, 20-picture distribution deal withUniversal Pictures.^[12] After acquiring rights to produce aU.S. remake of the BBC miniseriesHouse of Cards, MRC would sell the series to the streaming serviceNetflix in 2011.^[13][14][15]

On February 1, 2018,Eldridge Industries, a holding company owned by former Guggenheim Partners presidentTodd Boehly, announced that it would contribute its media assets — includingThe Hollywood Reporter,Dick Clark Productions, andBillboard, and merge them with MRC into a new company known asValence Media.^[16] In October 2018, MRC formed a joint venture withUnited Talent Agency known as Civic Center Media, which seeks to back projects involving its members via MRC.^[17][18]

In December 2019, Valence Media acquiredNielsen Holdings'music data business, with the division being rebranded as MRC Data.^[19]

In 2020, Valence Media rebranded as MRC.^[20]

On September 23, 2020, it was announced thatPenske Media Corporation, owner ofThe Hollywood Reporter's main competitorVariety, would assume operations of the MRC Media & Info publications under a joint venture with MRC known as PMRC. In turn, MRC will form a second joint venture that will develop content tied to PMRC publications.^[21]

In September 2021, formerE! president Adam Stotsky became the new president of MRC Live & Alternative, replacing the outgoing Amy Thurlow. At this time, Dick Clark Productions was folded into MRC Live & Alternative and discontinued as a brand.^[22]

In August 2022, Eldridge agreed with Wiczyk and Satchu to divide MRC's assets, effectively undoing the 2018 Valence Media merger. Eldridge re-acquired the company's live and alternative division (which resumed business as Dick Clark Productions), as well as MRC's share of the PMRC joint venture,Luminate (the former MRC Data), and investments in studios includingA24 andFulwell 73. The remaining MRC entity, in which Eldridge will retain a minority stake, will retain its scripted film and TV production entity as well as investments in Civic Center Media andT-Street Productions.^[23] Wiczyk and Satchu became chairmen of the company in 2023.^[24]

SpinMedia (formerly BuzzMedia) was an American digital publisher that owned a number ofpop culture websites, includingSpin,Stereogum,Vibe, andThe Frisky.^[25] It was founded in 1999 by Anthony Batt, Marc Brown, Kevin Woolery, and Steve Haldane under the name Buzznet,^[26] and by 2006, Buzznet had a total of nine employees in theLos Angeles,California, area.^[26] The BuzzMedia name was created as the company started to acquire more pop-culture and music blogs.

The company acquired Spin Media, publisher ofSpin magazine, in July 2012.^[27] After shutting down the print version of the magazine, reducing its staff to about 200, and focusing on advertising, it rebranded itself as SpinMedia in March 2013.^[28] At that time, Steve Hansen became its chief executive.^[28] In April 2013, it acquiredVibe magazine.^[29][30]

In 2014,M/C Partners became the primary owner of SpinMedia after anassignment for benefit of creditors.^[31] That year, BuzzMedia had also acquired music sites Property of Zack,AbsolutePunk.net, Under The Gun Review, and Punknews.org.^[32]

In September 2016, SpinMedia soldBuzznet, Idolator, andPureVolume to startup corporation Hive Media.^[33] In December of that year,Eldridge Industries acquiredSpin,Vibe,Stereogum, andDeath and Taxes via the Hollywood Reporter-Billboard Media Group for an undisclosed amount, making Billboard the world's largest music brand in terms of digital traffic and audience share.^[34][35]Celebuzz,The Frisky, andThe Superficial were sold toCPX Interactive.^{[36][better source needed]} In January 2020,Spin andStereogum were sold to Next Management Partners and the site's management, respectively, as part of a larger focus onVibe and a music data business.^[37]

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