Madison Square Garden Entertainment

Last updated
Madison Square Garden Entertainment Corp.
Company type Public
NYSE:  MSGE (Class A)
Industry entertainment
real estate
FoundedApril 20, 2023;18 months ago (2023-04-20)
Founder James L. Dolan
Headquarters New York City, New York, U.S.
Key people
James L. Dolan
(Executive Chairman & CEO)
Andrew Lustgarten
(President)
Owner Dolan family
Sphere Entertainment (33%)
Subsidiaries
Website Official website

Madison Square Garden Entertainment Corp. (also known as MSG Entertainment) is an American entertainment holding company based in New York City, controlled by the family of Charles Dolan.

Contents

The first incarnation of the company was established in April 2020 when The Madison Square Garden Company (now Madison Square Garden Sports) spun off its non-sports assets as an independent, publicly traded company. In April 2023, Madison Square Garden Entertainment was renamed Sphere Entertainment, and spun off its theatres and event businesses as a new company that inherited the Madison Square Garden Entertainment name. Sphere Entertainment holds a minority stake in the spin-off.

MSG Entertainment owns and operates its namesake Madison Square Garden in New York City, including the arena and The Theater at Madison Square Garden. In addition to the Garden itself, MSG Entertainment operates two other theaters in Manhattan: Radio City Music Hall and the Beacon Theatre. Outside New York City, MSG Entertainment owns and operates the Chicago Theatre (acquired in 2008). MSG Entertainment also produces the Radio City Christmas Spectacular (starring the Rockettes) at Radio City Music Hall and formerly in other venues around the United States. [1]

History

In November 2019, The Madison Square Garden Company announced that it would spin off its non-sports assets as Madison Square Garden Entertainment (MSGE). [2] [3] The spin-off was completed on April 20, 2020. [4] [5]

On March 26, 2021, MSGE announced that it would acquire the regional sports network group MSG Networks in an all-stock deal, reuniting it with its namesake venue; [6] MSG Networks had originally been spun out from The Madison Square Garden Company in 2015. [7] The acquisition was completed in July 2021. [8]

On April 20, 2023, MSGE was renamed Sphere Entertainment, and spun off its "traditional" live events business (including its venues, aside from Sphere in Las Vegas) as a "new" MSGE via a stock split. Sphere Entertainment would retain Sphere, MSG Networks, and a 33% stake in the new MSGE's stock. [9] [10] Ahead of the spin-off, MSGE's stake in Tao Group was sold to Mark Scheinberg for $550 million; the stake was spun out with Sphere prior to the sale's closure. [10] [11]

Use of facial recognition

MSG has used facial recognition systems at its venues since 2018. [12] In July 2022, MSG Entertainment instituted a policy that prohibits representatives of law firms that have been engaged in litigation with MSG or its subsidiaries from attending its venues in New York City. The company stated that this is for professional conduct reasons. [13] [14]

MSG Entertainment has faced criticism for using facial recognition to enforce this policy, [15] [14] which is being probed by the Attorney General of New York. [16] In January 2023, members of the New York State Assembly and New York State Senate introduced identical bills designed to prevent MSG Entertainment from enforcing its policy at sporting events. [17] [18] [19] [20]

In late 2022, an attorney who works for a law firm in New Jersey involved in active litigation against MSG Entertainment was barred from attending the Radio City Christmas Spectacular with her nine-year-old daughter's Girl Scout troop and was forced to have her daughter enter the venue with the other children and mothers and attend the show without her. [21] The attorney in question does not practice law in the state of New York and had not heard of the relevant case involving MSG Entertainment until she was prevented from attending the show; she was singled out solely because of her association with her law firm. [21]

Explaining the policy, Executive Chairman James L. Dolan stated, "It's like something out of ‘The Godfather,’ it's like ‘It's only business.’ It's not only business, and if you sue us, we’re gonna tell you not to come." [21] One lawyer barred from entering Madison Square Garden to watch a New York Rangers game, meanwhile, stated that Dolan, "lit a firestorm–for no apparent reason other than that he is a petty and vindictive person." [17]

Related Research Articles

MSG, or monosodium glutamate, is a salt found in food, either naturally or as an additive.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Madison Square Garden</span> Multi-purpose indoor arena in New York City, U.S.

Madison Square Garden, colloquially known as the Garden or by its initials MSG, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in New York City. It is located in Midtown Manhattan between Seventh and Eighth avenues from 31st to 33rd streets above Pennsylvania Station. It is the fourth venue to bear the name "Madison Square Garden"; the first two, opened in 1879 and 1890 respectively, were located on Madison Square, on East 26th Street and Madison Avenue, with the third Madison Square Garden (1925) farther uptown at Eighth Avenue and 50th Street.

James Lawrence Dolan is an American businessman, and the executive chairman and chief executive officer of Madison Square Garden Sports and Madison Square Garden Entertainment, and executive chairman of MSG Networks. As the companies' chairman, Dolan oversees all operations within the company and supervises day-to-day operations of its professional sports teams, the New York Knicks and New York Rangers, as well as their regional sports networks, which include MSG Network and MSG Plus. Dolan was previously CEO of Cablevision, founded by his father, until its sale in June 2016 to European telecom conglomerate Altice.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fuse (TV channel)</span> American national television network

Fuse is an American television channel owned by Fuse Media, LLC, that launched in 1994.

The MSG Network (MSG) is an American regional cable and satellite television network, and radio service owned by Sphere Entertainment.—a spin-off of the main Madison Square Garden Company operation.

AMC Networks Inc. is an American entertainment company headquartered in 11 Penn Plaza, New York.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">SportsChannel</span> American group of regional sports networks

SportsChannel is the collective name for a former group of regional sports networks in the United States that was owned by Cablevision, which from 1988 until the group's demise, operated it as a joint venture with NBC.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Irving Azoff</span> American entertainment executive

Irving Azoff is an American businessman, who is chairman of Full Stop Management, a company that represents recording artists. During the course of his career, he has worked as an agent, personal manager, concert promoter, movie producer, independent record label owner, merchandiser, music publisher, and CEO of a record label.

MSG Sportsnet is an American regional sports network owned by Sphere Entertainment; it operates as a sister channel to MSG Network. The network serves the New York City metropolitan area, whose reach expands to cover the entire state of New York, Northern New Jersey, Southwestern Connecticut and Northeastern Pennsylvania; MSG Sportsnet carries sports events from several of the New York area's professional sports franchises, as well as college sports events.

The NBA on USA is the de facto name for the USA Network's National Basketball Association (NBA) television coverage. The program ran from the 1979–80 season through the 1983–84 season.

Madison Square Garden Sports Corp. is an American sports holding company based in New York City.

Noah Tepperberg is an American businessman and co-founder of several New York City nightclubs and restaurants, including Marquee, Tao, Avenue and Lavo.

Madison Square Garden is a sports and entertainment venue in New York City.

Charles Francis Dolan is an American billionaire businessman, best known as founder of Cablevision and HBO. Today, Dolan controls Madison Square Garden Sports, MSG Networks, Madison Square Garden Entertainment, Madison Square Garden, Sphere, Radio City Music Hall, BBC America and AMC Networks. As of October 2021, his net worth was estimated at US$5.6 billion.

JD & The Straight Shot is the country blues and roots rock vanity project of its frontman and guitarist, Cablevision Systems Corporation CEO and Madison Square Garden Company Executive Chairman James L. Dolan.

Hank J. Ratner is an American media, sports, entertainment and telecommunications executive. He was previously a Vice Chairman of Cablevision Systems Corporation, President and CEO of The Madison Square Garden Company (MSG), Chief Operating Officer of AMC Networks and President and CEO of Independent Sports and Entertainment (ISE).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cablevision</span> Former American cable television company

Cablevision Systems Corporation was an American cable television company with systems serving areas surrounding New York City. It was the fifth-largest cable provider and ninth-largest television provider in the United States. Throughout its existence and in its final years, Cablevision exclusively served customers residing in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, and a small part of Pennsylvania. However, at one time it provided service in as many as 19 states. Cablevision also offered high-speed Internet connections, digital cable, and VoIP phone service through its Optimum brand name. Cablevision also offered a WiFi-only mobile phone service dubbed Freewheel.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sphere (venue)</span> Entertainment venue in the Las Vegas Valley, U.S.

Sphere is a music and entertainment arena in Paradise, Nevada, United States, east of the Las Vegas Strip. Designed by Populous, the project was announced by the Madison Square Garden Company in 2018, known then as the MSG Sphere. The 18,600-seat auditorium is being marketed for its immersive video and audio capabilities, which include a 16K resolution wraparound interior LED screen, speakers with beamforming and wave field synthesis technologies, and 4D physical effects. The venue's exterior also features 580,000 sq ft (54,000 m2) of LED displays. Sphere measures 366 feet (112 m) high and 516 feet (157 m) wide. The arena cost $2.3 billion, making it the most expensive entertainment venue built in Las Vegas.

The MSG Sphere London was a proposed music and entertainment venue to be built in the Stratford area of East London, England. Initially proposed by the United States–based Madison Square Garden Company (MSG) in 2018, and subjected to a protracted planning process, the plans were officially withdrawn by MSG in January 2024.

Sphere Entertainment Co. is an American entertainment holding company based in New York City, and controlled by the family of Charles Dolan. It owns the Sphere event venue in Paradise, Nevada, in the Las Vegas Valley and New York-based regional sports network chain MSG Networks.

References

  1. ↑ "Our Company". msgentertainment.com. Madison Square Garden Entertainment Corp. Retrieved July 22, 2020.
  2. ↑ Chin, Kimberly (November 7, 2019). "Madison Square Garden to Spin Off Entertainment Unit". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved July 22, 2020.
  3. ↑ Hayes, Dade (2019-12-03). "Madison Square Garden Co. Sets Plan To Divide Entertainment And Sports Assets". Deadline. Retrieved 2024-07-27.
  4. ↑ Miller, Ben (April 20, 2020). "Madison Square Garden Entertainment spin-off is complete". New York Business Journal. New York Business Journal. Retrieved July 22, 2020.
  5. ↑ Chin, Kimberly (November 7, 2019). "Madison Square Garden to Spin Off Entertainment Unit". The Wall Street Journal. The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved July 22, 2020.
  6. ↑ Hayes, Dade (2021-03-26). "Madison Square Garden Entertainment Acquires MSG Networks Sibling In All-Stock Deal". Deadline. Retrieved 2021-03-26.
  7. ↑ Beckerman, Josh (2015-09-11). "Madison Square Garden Details Split". Wall Street Journal. ISSN   0099-9660 . Retrieved 2021-03-26.
  8. ↑ "MSG Entertainment Completes Acquisition of MSG Networks". 9 July 2021.
  9. ↑ "MSG Pays $181M For Controlling Stake In Nightlife Company Tao Group". February 1, 2017. Retrieved February 4, 2020.
  10. 1 2 Donnelly, Matt (2023-04-18). "Tao Group, Creator of Nightlife and Dining for Glitterati, Sells to Mohari for $550 Million". Variety. Retrieved 2024-07-27.
  11. ↑ "MSG sells Tao Group Hospitality to New York investor for $550M". Las Vegas Review-Journal. 2023-04-18. Retrieved 2024-07-27.
  12. ↑ Draper, Kevin (2018-03-13). "Madison Square Garden Has Used Face-Scanning Technology on Customers". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved 2023-01-20.
  13. ↑ Frankel, Alison (2022-06-27). "Game over? Plaintiffs' lawyers banned from Madison Square Garden by MSG". Reuters. Retrieved 2023-01-26.
  14. 1 2 Hill, Kashmir (2023-01-16). "Lawyers Barred by Madison Square Garden Found a Way Back In". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved 2023-01-16.
  15. ↑ Hill, Kashmir; Kilgannon, Corey (2022-12-22). "Madison Square Garden Uses Facial Recognition to Ban Its Owner's Enemies". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved 2023-01-20.
  16. ↑ Brodkin, Jon (2023-01-26). "MSG probed over use of facial recognition to eject lawyers from show venues". Ars Technica. Retrieved 2023-01-26.
  17. 1 2 Kelly, Keith J. (January 26, 2023). "ABC Nightline on Case as Hoylman, Simone Intro Bills to Stop MSG from Banning Attorneys". Our Town. Retrieved March 25, 2023.
  18. ↑ Gonella, Catalina (February 4, 2023). "A state senator heard he was banned from MSG. So he tried to go to a Knicks game". Gothamist . WNYC . Retrieved March 25, 2023.
  19. ↑ "Bill A03195". New York State Assembly . Archived from the original on March 25, 2023. Retrieved March 25, 2023.
  20. ↑ "Senate Bill S2424". The New York State Senate . Archived from the original on March 25, 2023. Retrieved March 25, 2023.
  21. 1 2 3 Wallace, Sarah; Shea, Tom (February 8, 2023) [February 6, 2023]. "MSG Entertainment Lifts Ban for Some Lawyers Involved in Lawsuits Against Company". NBC 4 New York . Retrieved March 25, 2023.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.