The Firm Acquires Spivak-Sobol Entertainment

(CelebrityAccess MediaWire) — After several weeks of speculation about The Firm acquiring another artist management company, The Firm has bought music management company Spivak-Sobol Entertainment. Financial terms were not disclosed.

Arthur Spivak and Stu Sobol, along with their artists and slate of managers, will relocate to The Firm's Beverly Hills office. Spivak-Sobol Entertainment artists include A Perfect Circle, Vanessa Carlton, The Distillers, Queens of the Stone Age, Three Days Grace and Yellowcard.

"Given the changing and consolidating entertainment landscape, it is more important than ever that artists and their concerns be better represented," said The Firm's founder/CEO Jeff Kwatinetz. "By pooling our collective resources, we can strengthen and better leverage artists' issues."

Spivak and Sobol said, "We have known Jeff as both a good friend and a fierce competitor for the past 10 years and it makes all the sense in the world to merge all of our assets and efforts in giving our artists the ability to better navigate the new waters of the entertainment business."

Recently, The Firm sold minority stakes in the company to private equity investors Thomas H. Lee Partners and Bain Capital to help finance its daily operations and possible acquisitions of other companies (CelebrityAccess, September 30, 2004). — Jane Cohen and Bob Grossweiner