Disney to Buy Marvel for $4 Billion

[k5jm]

You beat me to it. It looks like Universal Orlando will retain the rights to the Theme Park elements of the 4 big attractions.

The Orlando Sentinel now has an article on their home page that addresses some of the issues discussed in this thread. Here is the official statement from Universal:

"Marvel Super Hero Island at Universal's Islands of Adventure and the Marvel characters are a beloved and important part of the Universal Orlando experience. They will remain so," said Tom Schroder, a Universal spokesman. "Our guests are going to get to meet Spider-Man and all our other Marvel characters. We believe our agreement with Marvel stands and that the Disney/Marvel deal will have no impact on our guest experience."

According to the Sentinel, the agreement between Marvel and Universal gives the park exclusive U.S. rights east of the Mississippi to theme park attractions based on certain Marvel characters. The article states that:

"Marvel also has various deals with the two-park Universal Orlando. The agreements governing two of Universal's hugely popular rides, The Amazing Adventures of Spider-Man and The Incredible Hulk roller coaster, appear to be virtually perpetual deals. According to Universal's filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Universal Orlando retains American rights east of the Mississippi River for as long as its attractions are in operation."

 

[pilferk]

The Orlando Sentinel now has an article on their home page that addresses some of the issues discussed in this thread. Here is the official statement from Universal:

"Marvel Super Hero Island at Universal's Islands of Adventure and the Marvel characters are a beloved and important part of the Universal Orlando experience. They will remain so," said Tom Schroder, a Universal spokesman. "Our guests are going to get to meet Spider-Man and all our other Marvel characters. We believe our agreement with Marvel stands and that the Disney/Marvel deal will have no impact on our guest experience."

According to the Sentinel, the agreement between Marvel and Universal gives the park exclusive U.S. rights east of the Mississippi to theme park attractions based on certain Marvel characters. The article states that:

"Marvel also has various deals with the two-park Universal Orlando. The agreements governing two of Universal's hugely popular rides, The Amazing Adventures of Spider-Man and The Incredible Hulk roller coaster, appear to be virtually perpetual deals. According to Universal's filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Universal Orlando retains American rights east of the Mississippi River for as long as its attractions are in operation."

Two things:

The question is "til when". Because there is no such thing as "forever" in things like this. 20 years? 50? I wonder. Also, interestingly enough, the article says the agreement only covers "certain characters"...Spidey, Dr. Doom, and Hulk. That leaves a WHOLE lotta ground uncovered.

Second...that would seem to indicate to me that DL would be a prime candidate for a 3rd, Marvel oriented, gate....once DCA is squared away.

 

[angelmav]

I have to say, I really dont like this tie in. Just doesnt seem like a good mix to me. I think they would have been better off having gone after Harry Potter than this.

 

[ADP]

Two things:

The question is "til when". Because there is no such thing as "forever" in things like this. 20 years? 50? I wonder. Also, interestingly enough, the article says the agreement only covers "certain characters"...Spidey, Dr. Doom, and Hulk. That leaves a WHOLE lotta ground uncovered.

Second...that would seem to indicate to me that DL would be a prime candidate for a 3rd, Marvel oriented, gate....once DCA is squared away.

The article says its a perpetual contract; which I take to mean forever. However, I also take it from what I read this only applies to 4 of the Marvel characters; Hulk, Spiderman, Dr. Doom and one other I'm not sure about.

 

[jdtopgun71]

I think this is good for Disney because it shows that they are a solid company even during this economic downturn, but I too wonder how this will effect Universal. I saw no mention of this in the article but it seems like to me this is a direct shot at Universal because it is going to cause Universal to possibly have to retheme quite a number of attractions.

 

[G66]

I would view this with a little caution. On the face of it, looks like a can't miss. What if the corporate cultures clash?

Also realize that the bigger and more far flung the Mouse empire gets, the smaller a role WDW plays in the grand scheme of things.

I'm taking a wait and see attitude.

 

[dpic]

Disney buying the Muppets was one of the worst business deals ever. Because of the tragic death of Jim Henson, the Muppets were a dying franchise, and Disney got taken.

Now, Marvel Comics has pretty much wrung all of the potential out of the franchise. The only reason the general public knows about Marvel is through movies. There won't be anymore Spiderman movies, Hulk has crashed and burnt twice, there have been more than enough X-Men movies, and who cares about the 2nd tear "Heros?"

Once again, Disney has overpaid for a fading franchise. Marvel was poised to return to its limited appeal base of comic reading boys when Disney swoops in with a $4 BILLION offer--I wish I owned stock in Marvel. Why can't Disney use its incredible creative force to develop its own character base that will appeal more to boys? I bet they could have accomplished that for far less than $4 billion.

 

[yitbos96bb]

I would think that the lawyers already looked at ways to get out of the contract. The existing contract would be considered before you place a offer of this size. I just wonder how buying this helps them? Are there more spiderman movies comming out and since I don;t have little kids anymore. Are the characters in Marvel super popular.

Helps them in a few ways...

1) YES, Marvel is very hot... Remember Marvel is X-men, Spidey, Iron Man, Hulk... Among Others.

2) Marvel is producing its own films now. While they have distro deals, the real money comes from production and the real risk. So Disney is buying these films... even though another company is distributing, they will make a nice amount of money.

3) They NEED tween boys and Nick is killing them. They have the marketing knowledge and capability, but not the right product... This is it.

4) There are 5000 characters they can potentially use for movies.

 

[yitbos96bb]

US is not that far away from Disney...it's about 10-15 min drive!! People go to US all the time from Disney while staying on property and everything. I went there one time to meet my mom and her friend for lunch and it took me 15 to get there. PLus...it's fairly easy to find!!

If they DID, it would be run as an indpendent property. It may only be 15 min away (and I disagree strongly that it only takes 15 minutes in that traffic... 30 Min depending on what gate you are at) but its not part of the self contained land. I don't think they want to run busses there... although Disney might finally relent and help Orlando get a light rail system from the Airport, etc. Maybe your MYW tickets would include US, but knowing Disney, probably not.

 

[angelmav]

Helps them in a few ways...

1) YES, Marvel is very hot... Remember Marvel is X-men, Spidey, Iron Man, Hulk... Among Others.

2) Marvel is producing its own films now. While they have distro deals, the real money comes from production and the real risk. So Disney is buying these films... even though another company is distributing, they will make a nice amount of money.

3) They NEED tween boys and Nick is killing them. They have the marketing knowledge and capability, but not the right product... This is it.

4) There are 5000 characters they can potentially use for movies.

I dont know if you read many comics, but they have gotten awfully adult. Marvel has some pretty risque story lines. I still see this as an odd mix. Perfect for Universal, odd for Disney. The comics have also priced the tweens out of there product in many cases, they average buyer/collector is probably much older than you imagine.

 

[yitbos96bb]

Disney buying the Muppets was one of the worst business deals ever. Because of the tragic death of Jim Henson, the Muppets were a dying franchise, and Disney got taken.

Now, Marvel Comics has pretty much wrung all of the potential out of the franchise. The only reason the general public knows about Marvel is through movies. There won't be anymore Spiderman movies, Hulk has crashed and burnt twice, there have been more than enough X-Men movies, and who cares about the 2nd tear "Heros?"

Once again, Disney has overpaid for a fading franchise. Marvel was poised to return to its limited appeal base of comic reading boys when Disney swoops in with a $4 BILLION offer--I wish I owned stock in Marvel. Why can't Disney use its incredible creative force to develop its own character base that will appeal more to boys? I bet they could have accomplished that for far less than $4 billion.

Wow Dan... so many wrong things, I don't know where to start... perhaps a quick google might help get the facts right.

1) I disagree on the Muppets, especially since they bought it years after Henson died. The deal wasn't bad, Disney not doing anything with them was. Don't blame the deal, blame the company. However, that coudl change. Jason Segal (How I met your Mother, FOrgetting Sarah Marshall) and Nick Stoller (Forgetting Sarah Marshall director) are working on the new muppet movie. Every bit of news has been very positive and saying this is the best since the original.

2) Spiderman 4 is due in 2011.

3) Venom (Spidey bad guy) has been greenlit, no release date yet.

4) There are 3-4 more planned X Men Movies including Wolverine 2, Magneto orgins and a Deadpool (Ryan Rynolds Character) movie.

5) Iron man 2 was produced and financed by Marvel Studios. Thor, THe Avengers, Captain America and several others are as well. This means Disney gets the lion's share of the profit, even if another is doing distribution.

6) Yes Owning Marvel stocks would be awesome as its essentially a $50 a share compensation.

7) One could argue Iron Man was a Second TIER hero before the movie to most of the public. He certainly didn't have Batman, Superman, Spiderman, X-Men following.

8) Wrung all the potential? Seriously... with a 5000 character catalog. Sorry, that's just a bit short sighted.

9) Your numbers to back up Marvel's fade? I'll save you the time... they don't exist.

10) The cost - That's the interesting part... if properly leveraged, its a good deal. If not, then its bad. The potential is there.

11) Developing Male friendly characters... your numbers to back this up as being cheaper are? Because they have failed miserably to mediocrely in their attempts.

 

[G66]

Can we get an Incredibles attraction before we start building Marvel World? I'm just say'n

Dpic,

I'm not ruling out your scenario. This is no slam dunk.

 

[yitbos96bb]

I dont know if you read many comics, but they have gotten awfully adult. Marvel has some pretty risque story lines. I still see this as an odd mix. Perfect for Universal, odd for Disney. The comics have also priced the tweens out of there product in many cases, they average buyer/collector is probably much older than you imagine.

I do read a lot of comics... I'll give you they are more so than the 60's, but not more so than most of DC or Vertigo or Dark Horse... Fables, Preacher, The Boys (before it went to Dynamite) are ALL way more adult. Nothing i have read in Marvel over the last 5 years is any more risque than what I have seen on ABC. Yes its not G rated, but at worst its PG. And that's easy to fix... you make a new universe. They did it with the Ultimates, which I read more of now than the original series as the stories are generally better, IMHO. You can make a more wise-cracking comics code version of the titles in a new universe. Again nothing marvel does holds a candle to Fables or Preacher in terms of Sex, violence, language, etc.

I'll give you the cost factor... WAY pricy. This is not for the comics... its for the Movies (remember Pulp Fiction is a Disney movie), TV SHows, and the Video Games. LOTS of good Marvel Video Game properties.

 

[pilferk]

The article says its a perpetual contract; which I take to mean forever. However, I also take it from what I read this only applies to 4 of the Marvel characters; Hulk, Spiderman, Dr. Doom and one other I'm not sure about.

It says it's "virtually perpetual". I know...semantics. But in business....nothing is forever. And when something is called "virtually" perpetual...it makes me wonder why it's virtual. Because that means there is SOME sort of out, somewhere.

 

[baby1disney]

The article says its a perpetual contract; which I take to mean forever. However, I also take it from what I read this only applies to 4 of the Marvel characters; Hulk, Spiderman, Dr. Doom and one other I'm not sure about.

I would almost bet that Wolverine would be the 4th person you're thinking of. He's definitely up there within the top 10.

Disney buying the Muppets was one of the worst business deals ever. Because of the tragic death of Jim Henson, the Muppets were a dying franchise, and Disney got taken.

Did you ever think that if Disney didn't buy them....that they might have "died" a long time ago?? In a way, by having them at Disney...they'll always live on and parents can tell their children about them back in the day!!

Now, Marvel Comics has pretty much wrung all of the potential out of the franchise. The only reason the general public knows about Marvel is through movies.

This isn't true!! Marvel has a slue of characters that they could bring to life...and if you look at some of their movies, especially towards the end of them, they show another Marvel character. That usually means that somehow they tie into the story and that the next movie or two will either feature them or they will be incorporated into the story line somehow.

Once again, Disney has overpaid for a fading franchise. Marvel was poised to return to its limited appeal base of comic reading boys when Disney swoops in with a $4 BILLION offer--I wish I owned stock in Marvel. Why can't Disney use its incredible creative force to develop its own character base that will appeal more to boys? I bet they could have accomplished that for far less than $4 billion.

Just because Disney pays for something that we...general public..may not like at the time, doesn't mean it's a bad decision. Now...I'm by no means saying that Disney hasn't made bad decisions....just ask anyone who's been on the Stitch ride!! But, Disney has proven time and time again that they know what they're doing becasue if they didn't, they wouldn't have the fan base and following that they do.

I dont know if you read many comics, but they have gotten awfully adult. Marvel has some pretty risque story lines. I still see this as an odd mix. Perfect for Universal, odd for Disney. The comics have also priced the tweens out of there product in many cases, they average buyer/collector is probably much older than you imagine.

Some of the story lines are "adultish". But, think back to when you read them. I'm sure you're parents probably thought the same thing and it probably wasn't nearly as riskque as it canbe. Plus, if you're targeting a certain age group or demographic, you have to give them what they want and that may be it...I don't know because I really don't read comic books/magazines.

I do agree that maybe we all should wait and see what happenes. I think this will/is a fabulous idea and I hope it's definitely for the better.

 

[cat83]

haha I have nothing constructive to add and haven't read through...

But I find it hilarious that on the main page, the link to this thread is cut off at

"Disney to Buy Marvel for $4..."

 

[baby1disney]

haha I have nothing constructive to add and haven't read through...

But I find it hilarious that on the main page, the link to this thread is cut off at

"Disney to Buy Marvel for $4..."

I didn't even catch that!!

 

[cat83]

I didn't even catch that!!

I breezed through a few pages, and it looks like some people think Disney should get a refund

 

[alamode]

It's funny reading both the Disney and Marvel boards online, both fans think the other group is dying. Nothing could be further from the truth.

As for Marvel (from Globe Investor):

Marvel is profitable — it made $206-million in its last fiscal year on revenue of $676-million — but Disney’s earnings per share will drop partly because the company will issue 59 million new shares. Marvel also is releasing two costly blockbusters, Thor and The First Avenger: Captain America in 2011, and income from DVD sales of those films likely wouldn’t roll in until fiscal 2012.

I went to Fan Expo here in Toronto this weekend, and Marvel is definitely still going strong. They had one of the largest exhibits, and one of the largest crowds.

One of the items that hasn't been mentioned on here yet are video games. Disney hasn't really been known for their great presence in this area, and there are lots of Marvel games in the works, both for the PC and consoles.

This will get the young male audience, which Disney wants with this purchase.

Personally, I see it as a win-win proposition.

 

[baby1disney]

It's funny reading both the Disney and Marvel boards online, both fans think the other group is dying. Nothing could be further from the truth.

As for Marvel (from Globe Investor):

Marvel is profitable — it made $206-million in its last fiscal year on revenue of $676-million — but Disney’s earnings per share will drop partly because the company will issue 59 million new shares. Marvel also is releasing two costly blockbusters, Thor and The First Avenger: Captain America in 2011, and income from DVD sales of those films likely wouldn’t roll in until fiscal 2012.

I went to Fan Expo here in Toronto this weekend, and Marvel is definitely still going strong. They had one of the largest exhibits, and one of the largest crowds.

One of the items that hasn't been mentioned on here yet are video games. Disney hasn't really been known for their great presence in this area, and there are lots of Marvel games in the works, both for the PC and consoles.

This will get the young male audience, which Disney wants with this purchase.

Personally, I see it as a win-win proposition.

I totally agree with you 100%!!