New Movie Researcher C4 Completes MPG Deal

Hollywood-based entertainment research start-up C4 has completed the acquisition of the assets of Motion Picture Group (MPG), which was shut down in controversial circumstances in June. C4 says it now has 20 staff and will grow to 45 in the next couple of months.

Former OTX and MPG Chief Executive Vincent Bruzzese (pictured) is leading the new firm, backed by three film producers, and has taken many of its senior staff from the former team of MPG, one of whose Partners David Lugliani said six weeks ago that he was about to sue the new venture. According to www.variety.com , Lugliani was a party to the latest announcement alongside the three producers, indicating that more acceptable terms have been found.

D. Todd Shepherd of Miscellaneous Entertainment, who along with his colleague George Waud and producer-financier Michael Benaroya is backing C4, told Variety: 'We are all very happy that we could work out this mutually beneficial deal with MPG and its advisors. The team at C4 is already working to revolutionize the way decision makers analyze creative and financial entertainment content with the support of sound research and smart data algorithms. Having the MPG research data is useful in that quest.'

C4's services for movie studios include script analysis, screening research, tracking and ad testing, and it also provides research for the television, digital and video game sectors. Bruzzese, who began his research career at MarketCast and joined Worldwide MPG in 2001, has gone on record claiming that Hollywood is 'woefully behind in terms of evolving and understanding consumers in this new digital era' and says he wants to change that.