The US branch of Kadokawa (JP company) are the ones with the Haruhi 'license.' They're just using Bandai Entertainment for assistance & distribution purposes for Haruhi, in the same way that they used FUNimation to release FMP: TSR. Bandai Ent is not a subsidiary of Bandai JP--they may have some professional ties, but they have to pay Bandai JP money to get a license (Haruhi is a totally different matter; presumably Kadokawa is paying them for their help, but Kadokawa US rather than Bandai holds the right to release the show and stuff). Bandai Visual US doesn't have to pay anyone money to release an anime in the US.
Kadokawa released Haruhi in Japan, IIRC, so I assume that's why their US branch is able to release Haruhi (in conjunction with Bandai Ent). Actually Bandai Visual JP didn't have anything to do with the JP Haruhi, as far as I know. Kadokawa didn't have to choose Bandai Ent to assist them with Haruhi--they could've picked Funi again, for instance. It just so happened that they ended up with Bandai Ent. Bandai Visual US is analagous to Kadokawa US--a direct offshoot of a JP company. Bandai Ent is its own operation w/ a confusing name.
At least that's the way I understand it.
