Robert Pittman, the US investor, is reportedly placing a bid for the Hard Rock Café restaurant chain, which is owned by the UK-based Rank Group.
The Hard Rock business – which could fetch up to £500m – is also thought to have attracted interest from the UK private equity firms Permira and TDR Capital.
Pittman is a former chief operating officer of AOL Time Warner and was chief executive at Six Flags, the theme park operator, from 1990-1995. He is also regarded as the ‘father of MTV’ for defining the music channel’s style when he was programme manager and later president and CEO.
The Hard Rock brand has 124 cafés, seven casino/hotels and one standalone casino throughout 43 countries.
