Latham Advises Tencent Music Entertainment Group
American multinational law firm Latham & Watkins advised Tencent Music Entertainment Group on its minority equity investment in Wave VR.
Virtual reality is a technology that simulates vision to end up with a 3D environment in which a user appears to be immersed while browsing through it or experiencing it.
Founded in 1934 in Los Angeles, California, Latham is the second-largest law firm in the world by revenue. As of 2021, Latham is also one of the most profitable law firms in the world, with profits per partner exceeding $4.5 million.
The deal will enable Tencent to air Wave experiences in China across all of its platforms including QQ Music, Kugou Music, Kuwo Music, and WeSing.
Tencent is a company that develops music streaming services for the Chinese market. Tencent Music’s apps include QQ Music, Kugou, Kuwo, and WeSing; which have more than 800 million active users and 120 million paying subscribers.
Additionally, this collaboration will allow the two companies to develop virtual concert content for TME Live, an innovative live performance brand under TME, which pioneers the integration of offline concerts with an online experience.
The Latham deal team was led by Hong Kong corporate partner Frank Sun, with Beijing associate Jason Zhao. Advice on CFIUS matters was provided by D.C. partner Steven Croley, counsel Rachel Alpert, and associate Tahura Lodhi; and on IP matters by Hong Kong associate Kieran Donovan.
Wave brings people together through virtual entertainment. Their shows enable artists and audiences to collaborate in the creation of the most interactive live performance experiences in the world.
Wave combines the best of live music, gaming and broadcast technology to transform the live music experience. All shows are live streamed globally across their popular social and gaming platforms including YouTube, Twitter, Twitch, TikTok, Facebook and Roblox.