Jason Somerville

Jason Somerville is a media and entertainment corporate and investment banker with over 20 years of experience, and is considered a leading banker to independent film and music companies.In February 2010, Mr. Somerville founded EIG, a boutique investment and merchant bank with a focus on startup through middle market companies operating in media, entertainment, and technology. As Managing Partner of EIG, Mr. Somerville has worked on over $1 billion in capital raising and merger and acquisition engagements since the firm’s founding. Visit Ongoing Engagements and Completed Engagements for selected engagements.Prior to forming EIG, Mr. Somerville was a Team Leader in J.P.Morgan’s Entertainment Industries Group, reporting to J.P.Morgan Vice Chairman, John Miller, the entertainment industry’s pre-imminent corporate and investment banker.At J.P.Morgan, Mr. Somerville provided corporate and investment banking services for clients in film and television. Such clients included Alliance Atlantis, Anchor Bay Entertainment, Beacon Pictures, Classic Media, Echo Bridge Entertainment, IDT Entertainment, Incentive Filmed Entertainment, Initial Entertainment Group, Screen Capital International, Sidney Kimmel Entertainment, Starz Media and Village Roadshow Entertainment Group. Mr. Somerville structured and syndicated over $2.5 billion of investments in film and television companies.In addition, Mr. Somerville founded the firm’s music practice and built from scratch a multi-billion-dollar capital market in music rights in less than three years, the first new significant capital market in entertainment in 30 years. He educated the investor community on the music industry, increasing the size of the investment market from zero to 18 active investors and $0 to $300 million of available investment capital per transaction. In addition, he syndicated the first-ever investment in an independent music rights company in 2005 (Concord Music Group) as well as the largest-ever investments in independent music rights companies in 2009 (BMG Rights Management and Bug Music). Mr. Somerville structured and syndicated over $1 billion of investments in a broad spectrum of music rights companies, including Alfred Music Publishing, BMG Rights Management, Bug Music, Concord Music Group, Integrity Media, and Key Brand Entertainment.As head of the firm’s industry-leading music practice, Mr. Somerville worked with his clients to evaluate and/or acquire over 40 music rights companies and catalogs, including Boosey & Hawkes, Broadway Across America, Crosstown Songs, Famous Music, The Rodgers and Hammerstein Organization, Universal Rondor/Zomba, and Windswept Music, as well numerous other prominent companies and catalogs.Prior to joining J.P.Morgan, Mr. Somerville worked in Banc of America Securities’ Media and Entertainment Group where he helped provide an array of investment banking services to traditional and digital media companies.Mr. Somerville began his career with Chase Securities (now J.P.Morgan) in the firm’s New York-based Mergers and Acquisition Group. As analyst and later associate, Mr. Somerville worked on many of the firm’s largest mergers and acquisitions transactions. Mr. Somerville had the honor of being the youngest and most-accelerated Analyst-to-Associate promotion in the firm’s history.Mr. Somerville holds a BA in International Studies from The Johns Hopkins University and a Bologna Center Diploma from The Johns Hopkins University’s Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS). He currently serves on the Next Committee of the New England Conservatory in Boston, Massachusetts.