Disney to Acquire Marvel Entertainment for $4B

The Walt Disney Company has agreed to acquire Marvel Entertainment for $4 billion in stock and cash. The deal sees Disney gaining Marvel’s more than 5,000 characters. Ike Perlmutter, Marvel’s chief executive officer, as well as its current creative team, will continue to oversee the properties, working directly with Disney executives and business lines.

The deal will create an even bigger global licensing juggernaut that will have almost $36 billion in combined sales of licensed merchandise, according to the exclusive License! Global ranking of the Top 100 licensors. Disney Consumer Products was ranked No. 1 with $30 billion in retail sales of licensed products and Marvel was ranked No. 4 with $5.7 billion in retail sales of licensed products.

In July, License! Global analyzed Marvel’s corporate and licensing strategies in an exclusive cover story, titled “Hero Worship,” and spotlighting Simon Philips, Sandrine de Raspide, Paul Gitter (and Iron Man) as its cover photo.

“This transaction combines Marvel’s strong global brand and world-renowned library of characters including Iron Man, Spider-Man, X-Men, Captain America, Fantastic Four and Thor 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,” says Robert A. Iger, president and chief executive officer of The Walt Disney Company. “Ike Perlmutter and his team have done an impressive job of nurturing these properties and have created significant value. We are pleased to bring this talent and these great assets to Disney.”

Marvel’s existing third-party licensing and distribution deals will remain in place. When the deals expire, Disney says they will consider bringing projects in-house or seek out other third parties.

“Disney is the perfect home for Marvel’s fantastic library of characters given its proven ability to expand content creation and licensing businesses,” says Ike Perlmutter, Marvel’s chief executive officer. “This is an unparalleled opportunity for Marvel to build upon its vibrant brand and character properties by accessing Disney’s tremendous global organization and infrastructure around the world.”

Under the terms of the agreement and based on the closing price of Disney on August 28, 2009, Marvel shareholders would receive a total of $30 per share in cash plus approximately 0.745 Disney shares for each Marvel share they own.

License! Global Insight: This deal will offer Disney Consumer Products the opportunity to broaden its portfolio beyond its core kids, girls and tween segments and into blockbuster family entertainment driven by the popular superhero characters. Conversely, Marvel will be able to leverage
DCP’s strong global retail relationships and company-driven infrastructure in most countries versus Marvel’s use of agents. Disney Consumer Products will be able to help grow Marvel’s international licensing business.

In addition, the deal will enable other company strengths to be leveraged in television, publishing, interactive and gaming, live events and theme parks. Therefore, consumers can expect to see more Marvel content on Disney XD, more publishing efforts, video games, and events and attractions based on Marvel’s extensive portfolio of characters. Furthermore, Marvel will benefit from Disney’s leadership in technology, particularly Pixar, which Disney acquired three years ago.

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