Sony Corp. said Monday it will combine Columbia Pictures and TriStar Pictures into one movie production unit, bringing together the studios it bought in 1989 to help it cut costs and boost its film output.
Sony, which last year released such hits as “Men in Black” and “My Best Friend’s Wedding,” will combine all production, legal and business affairs departments immediately.
All future films will be distributed under the Columbia Pictures banner, though the TriStar name will be used periodically.
The move combines the studios that Sony purchased from Coca-Cola Co. in 1989 for $3.4 billion.
Sony, which previously merged the distribution departments of the two studios, said it plans to increase production to 20 to 24 films a year.
“This formalizes a practical situation that has existed and eliminates (a) couple of layers of redundancy,” said Porter Bibb, an investment banker with Ladenburg Thalmann & Co. in New York.
The move comes amid a strong year at the box office for Sony, which doubled its share of the U.S. and Canadian market in 1997 with hits such as “Air Force One” and “I Know What You Did Last Summer.”
The studio ranks second so far this year with 13.5 percent of the market and almost $180 million in box-office sales, according to AC Nielsen EDI.
