Three words (well, two and a letter): Disney's X-Babies. --
Steven Otte [email protected] --- On Mon, 8/31/09, Kevin G. Barkes <[email protected]> wrote: From: Kevin G. Barkes <[email protected]> Subject: Synergy up the wazoo: Disney buys Marvel, plans superhero version of "Newsies," "Squanto vs Spiderman", "Ariel and Price Namor" To: [email protected] Date: Monday, August 31, 2009, 9:10 AM Disney to Buy Marvel Entertainment By MIKE BARRIS Walt Disney Co. agreed to buy Marvel Entertainment Inc. for $4 billion in cash and stock, bringing characters like Iron Man, X-Men and Spider-Man into the Disney fold. Under the deal, Disney will acquire ownership of 5,000 Marvel characters. Marvel shareholders will receive $30 a share in cash plus about 0.745 Disney share for each Marvel share. Based on Friday's closing prices, the deal is valued at $50 per Marvel share, about a 29% premium. The move marks another bet by Disney in a company that has had recent box-office success. In 2006, the company unveiled its deal to acquire Pixar Animation Studios, and the studio has gone on to have a string of hits. 'Marvel-ous' Movies Selection of movies based on Marvel characters 1998: Blade 2000: X-Men 2002:Spider-Man 2003: Daredevil; X2: X-Men United; Hulk 2004: The Punisher; Spider-Man 2 2005: Elektra; Fantastic Four 2006: X-Men: The Last Stand 2007: Ghost Rider; Spider-Man 3; Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer 2008: Iron Man; The Incredible Hulk 2009: X-Men Origins: Wolverine Disney Chief Executive Robert A. Iger said the deal combines Marvel's strong global brand--which also includes Captain America, Fantastic Four and Thor, among others-- with Disney's "creative skills, unparalleled global portfolio of entertainment properties, and a business structure that maximizes the value of creative properties across multiple platforms and territories." Marvel Chief Executive Ike Perlmutter called Disney "the perfect home for Marvel's fantastic library of characters given its proven ability to expand content creation and licensing businesses." The comic book maker has been boosting cultural awareness of its characters by continuing to branch out into animated television series and live-action films. However, the company in the spring pushed back its film schedule through 2012 as it looked to build anticipation for its upcoming slate of films. Marvel's results have been boosted from its film-production business, and last year was the first year it which it began to produce its own films, taking in all the profits instead of just licensing fees. In March, it formed an international advisory board made up of business leaders from overseas markets as it looked to expand its global presence. The deal will require antitrust approval as well as shareholder approval. Regards, KGB ----- Kevin G. Barkes Email: [email protected] KGB Report: http://www.kgbreport.com Commentwear by KGB: http://www.commentwear.com National Temperature Index: http://nationaltemperatureindex.com DCL Dialogue on line: http://www.dcldialogue.com Random Quotations Generator: http://www.goodquotations.com Over 13,000 searchable quotations. --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "World News Now Discussion List" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/wnndl?hl=en -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
