After conquering the e-commerce world and landing US markets with a blast, Alibaba Group Holding Ltd (NYSE:BABA) CEO Jack Ma is reportedly eyeing for buying content from Hollywood content producers for his company. In a program on Bloomberg, Lulu Chen talked about news of Alibaba’s plans about Hollywood content. Chen said that content is the key factor in China for Jack Ma. Alibaba wants to buy the best, exclusive and exciting content from Hollywood to initially stream it in China. Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX) might have a potential challenger here in the form of Jack Ma.
Alibaba Group Holding Ltd (NYSE:BABA) has shown a keen interest in content and TV in the past as well. Recently, the company spent no less than $800 million to buy a massive stake in China Vision, which is now known as Alibaba Group Holding Ltd (NYSE:BABA) Pictures in China. Jack Ma also owns 18.5% stake in Chinese video game streaming service Youku Tudou Inc. Chen said that Alibaba Group Holding Ltd(NYSE:BABA) wants to stream Hollywood content directly from Magic Boxes and Rainbow box devices. These devices are used to broadcast international content in China. Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX) is currently the leader in content streaming in the US, but vision and assets of Jack Ma can materialize into a competitor for the company in years to come.
According to reports, Ma is in talks with giants like The Walt Disney, Warner Bros and Paramount Pictures. Chen thinks that the main issues Alibaba Group Holding Ltd (NYSE:BABA) will face in this venture is regulatory hurdles. Recently, Chinese government issued an order to abandon the streaming boxes and content. Alibaba introduced some third party apps that had content readily available in them for streaming. If Alibaba Group Holding Ltd (NYSE:BABA) succeeds in getting a deal with Hollywood players, it would open many paths towards opportunities in the content business for the company. If Alibaba Group Holding Ltd (NYSE:BABA) gets milestones in the content business in China, Jack Ma will not stop in the country and could land in the US to challenge big players like Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX).
Carl Icahn‘s Icahn Capital Lp hold around 1 million Netflix, Inc. (NADSAQ:NFLX) shares.
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