Sony Pictures Opens Licensing Office In China

CULVER CITY, CA — In a first for the studio, Sony Pictures Entertainment's consumer products division announced Thursday it is establishing a Shanghai-based licensing office in a move to bolster its presence in international territories.

As director of Consumer Products, China, Sabrina Gu will be tasked with expanding SPE's licensing opportunities and relationships with business partners in the region.

"Now more than ever there is a world of opportunity in China for consumer products, which Gu will help to realize," said Jamie Stevens, executive vice president of Worldwide Consumer Products.

"From a box-office standpoint and an ancillary business perspective, China has become increasingly important to the growth and long-term vision of our intellectual property, and in managing a brand's lifecycle," Stevens said. "As Sony Pictures broadens the global appeal of its film and television properties in a substantial way, our new China-based licensing office will support that growth."

Gu has been in the licensing industry for nearly 15 years. She was at the forefront of the licensing business' emergence in China when she started in 2004 at Disney, where she worked until 2013.

She was at Nike from 2002-03, and Mattel Asia Pacific from 2014-16.

— City News Service, photo courtesy of Sony Pictures