Recently, Watson & Band’s legal team led by the firm’s partners Frank Qian and Xiaosu Zhu was selected into the 2023-2027 Preferred Outside Counsel Pool of Shanghai Media Group (SMG) and its wholly owned or holding subsidiaries after review and evaluation by the review board of SMG.

SMG is one of the Internet new mainstream media and comprehensive state-owned cultural industry groups with the most diversified and the largest scale of industries in China. It has a total of 192 holding entities at all levels including Oriental Pearl, owning12 TV channels, 11 radio frequencies, 13 nationwide digital pay TV channels, 5 publicly distributed newspapers and magazines. SMG’s business covers media operation and network transmission, contents production and copyright operation, Internet new media, live performance, cultural tourism and real estate, cultural finance and investment, video shopping and other fields, thus creating comprehensive cultural industry ecology. With years of efforts, SMG has built a large number of influential cultural brands, classic contents and landmark buildings and participated in multiple major events of the national level, becoming a crucial and indispensable part of urban culture of Shanghai. Both SMG and Oriental Pearl Group Co., Ltd., SMG’s subsidiary listed company, occupy a position among the World’s Top 500 media companies for consecutive years and the former is also the 100th member of United Nations SDG Media Compact.

Since 2008, Watson & Band has been serving as the outside legal counsel of SMG, providing SMG and its subsidiary companies including Dragon TV, SMG PERFORMING ARTS GROUP (SMG LIVE), OCN and Yicai with quality legal services in investment and cooperation, copyright introduction, dispute resolution and other fields for multifarious and popular cultural and entertainment projects including variety shows such as Chinas Got Talent, Go fighting! and Chinese Idol: Our songs as well as stage plays such as Sleep No More, War Horse and the Disguiser. With its rich experience in cultural and entertainment industry accumulated for years, Watson & Band is always endeavoring to provide better and cost-effective legal services for clients.