The Walt Disney Company and Fortnite maker Epic Games have announced they will collaborate on all-new games and an entertainment universe. Disney will also invest $1.5 billion (€1.39bn) to acquire an equity stake in Epic Games alongside the multiyear project. The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions, including regulatory approvals. In addition to interoperating […]
The Zee-Sony merger cancellation dispute rumbles on. India’s National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) issued a formal notice to Culver Max (formerly Sony Pictures Networks) on February 6th and has asked for a response in two weeks. The NCLT move comes in response to an application filed by Zee Entertainment Enterprises. Zee’s application, in essence, wants […]
Fremantle has acquired a majority stake investment in one of Asia’s largest independent TV and Film production companies, Beach House Pictures. Financial details were not disclosed. Founded in 2005 by producers Donovan Chan and Jocelyn Little, Beach House Pictures (BHP) specialises in creating and co-financing original IP across scripted and non-scripted content, entertainment and brand-funded […]
MultiChoice, the South African pay-TV broadcaster, has rejected a takeover bid from Canal+. Canal+, the Vivendi-owned pay-TV provider, had tabled a non-binding purchase bid but MultiChoice indicated that it felt the value of its business was undervalued. With a market capitalisation of $2.15 billion, MultiChoice turned down the Canal+ offer. In a statement given to […]
Two important elements are keeping the Zee/Sony merger on the front pages of India’s business newspapers. The first is that Singapore International Arbitration Centre (SIAC) has rejected an emergency petition for arbitration to happen. The request was made by Sony. Zee, in response, says that it will now look for an Indian arbitration of the […]
The Spanish regulatory body CNMC has given its go-ahead to the acquisition of Vodafone Spain by the UK’s Zegona, a deal valued at €5 billion, ruling that the consolidation “does not significantly modify the structure of the affected markets”. With ithe green light, along with the EU’s blessing, Zegona now faces the government’s approval, to […]
Canal+, owned by French media group Vivendi, has made an offer to acquire all the shares it does not already own in South Africa’s MultiChoice Group. Any potential deal – which has been submitted to the MultiChoice board of directors – would be worth in the region of €1.6 billion and, according to Canal+, would […]
It seems like we’ve been waiting for ‘the other shoe to drop’ and someone to buy Paramount for a long time. Even the group’s own CEO holds staff ‘town halls’ openly discussing likely bids while enjoining them to concentrate on their jobs and his own growth plans. That will be a good trick, if they […]
India’s National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT), which has been closely involved in the Zee Entertainment and Sony merger negotiations, has accepted a Petition from a shareholder in Zee which calls for the merger to go ahead. The Petition from Mad Men Film Ventures, a shareholder of Zee Entertainment Enterprises (ZEEL), directing Sony Pictures Network India, […]
Byron Allen, the US media mogul, has made a $14.3 billion (€13.2bn) bid to buy all of the outstanding shares in Paramount Global. The proposal, totalling $30bn funding, could see Allen Media Group (AMG) take on Paramount’s existing $15 billion of debt. “Byron Allen did submit a bid on behalf of AMG and its strategic […]