Amazon is in talks to buy MGM for $9 billion

[numberthirty]

I feel like we should have had WalmartTV by now. I wonder if that's around the corner, too...

That scenario would probably involve some of it's employees asking to be treated better than dirt.

I tend to doubt that Wal-Mart is in any real hurry to do that.

[Vakanai]

That scenario would probably involve some of it's employees asking to be treated better than dirt.

I tend to doubt that Wal-Mart is in any real hurry to do that.

How would their employees matter in this scenario at all? I don't think they're going to promote any cashiers to acting or directing positions.

Not being callous, but treating their store employees better doesn't come into the equation with anything Wal Mart might do in this space.

[numberthirty]

How would their employees matter in this scenario at all? I don't think they're going to promote any cashiers to acting or directing positions.

Not being callous, but treating their store employees better doesn't come into the equation with anything Wal Mart might do in this space.

To me?

You'd need some kinda employees just to get anything like that off of the ground.

If you treated the employees you would need for that even remotely like you treat the "Lunch Box..." employees?

It's going nowhere fast.

[Vakanai]

To me?

You'd need some kinda employees just to get anything like that off of the ground.

If you treated the employees you would need for that even remotely like you treat the "Lunch Box..." employees?

It's going nowhere fast.

I'm talking more the existing superstore employees. Clearly they'd have to pony up real cash and respect to the Hollywood types to get a streaming service. But paying millions to Tom Cruise the movie star won't improve the lot of Tom Cruise the stock boy who is no relation to movie Tom Cruise.

[luprki]

Amazon buying MGM for $9 billion is fairly cheap. MGM has an impressive and historic library of films.
Remember Disney bought 21C for $71 billion, AT&T bought Warner for $85 billion

[Anthony W]

Amazon Prime, where they still charge you to watch 50 year old movies. Screw you Bezos.

I'm still trying to wrap my head around the fact that they deliver other stuff as well.

[luprki]

No, the key phrase is "what the hell?" You realize that just because they might be buying old movies from long ago, new movies were doing well before covid. Like, where is your connection between old movies, and how Hollywood is doing now? How are they connected?

Most movies wasn’t doing well before covid and box office attendance has been going down each year since 2002.
Steaming is taking over, this why we have been seeing these mergers in the last few years. Disney buys 21C to build for Disney+, Discovery and Warner are merging to build a streaming giant, now Amazon will buy MGM for its rich library.

[Immortal Weapon]

Waiting for Apple to buy Lions Gate.

[numberthirty]

Most movies wasn’t doing well before covid and box office attendance has been going down each year since 2002.
Steaming is taking over, this why we have been seeing these mergers in the last few years. Disney buys 21C to build for Disney+, Discovery and Warner are merging to build a streaming giant, now Amazon will buy MGM for its rich library.

Not so much...

Stop, and seriously consider what just went down.

If streaming is indeed the golden egg that you are saying?

Why did AT&T just unload it? Why wouldn't they keep it all for themselves?

[Kirby101]

Amazon buying MGM for $9 billion is fairly cheap. MGM has an impressive and historic library of films.
Remember Disney bought 21C for $71 billion, AT&T bought Warner for $85 billion

The difference is MGM is just a library of old movies. The other 2 include rights to potential blockbusters. Its really apples and oranges.

[Killerbee911]

Amazon buying MGM for $9 billion is fairly cheap. MGM has an impressive and historic library of films.
Remember Disney bought 21C for $71 billion, AT&T bought Warner for $85 billion

Those things that you mention aren't even remotely close to the same thing,Arguably The X-men franchise by itself is worth around 9 billion dollars, Superman or Batman is worth around 9 billion dollars. MGM has nothing that is going to make 9 billion dollars or view with the potential to make back that money. Their collective of films is not impressive because nobody cares about them bunch of old black and white stuff isn't that helpful today

Again Marvel and Lucas sold for 4 Billion. MGM isn't on the level of those things, FoX and WB were full media empires. Disney couldn't get Fox Sports because it would have a clear monopoly. 9 Billion is not cheap

[SUPERECWFAN1]

21st Century Fox had the following properties that made the deal very pricy :

X-Men
Fantastic Four
Aliens
Predator
Die Hard


Disney also bought the TV and animation studio as well. So they locked in Family Guy , Simpsons and other Fox animated cartoons. TV wise Disney now owns various TV properties.


M.A.S.H
LA LAW
Modern Family
Its Always Sunny in Philadelphia


The list goes on and its BIG. There is a reason why Fox was worth billions more. MGM isn't...its value isn't as big as Fox is right now.

[Timothy Hunter]

Does this possibly mean that every MGM release will be on Prime?

[Timothy Hunter]

I agree that $9 billion is too much to spend on MGM as it is right now. Since Ted Turner owns the pre-May 1986 MGM library and it's now controlled by Warner Bros., all the really great stuff that MGM made in the Golden Age of Hollywood (and, yes, I do consider Seven Brides for Seven Brothers to be one of these) is not part of the Amazon purchase. MGM now doesn't even own Tom and Jerry! The only reason MGM owns Rocky is because MGM bought United Artists, where Rocky was produced.

Just because Amazon has money to burn that doesn't mean they should burn it. They have an obligation to their shareholders to value the deal properly, and I'm not getting how it totals $9 billion.

I've never lost interest so fast.

[SUPERECWFAN1]

I agree that $9 billion is too much to spend on MGM as it is right now. Since Ted Turner owns the pre-May 1986 MGM library and it's now controlled by Warner Bros., all the really great stuff that MGM made in the Golden Age of Hollywood (and, yes, I do consider Seven Brides for Seven Brothers to be one of these) is not part of the Amazon purchase. MGM now doesn't even own Tom and Jerry! The only reason MGM owns Rocky is because MGM bought United Artists, where Rocky was produced.

Just because Amazon has money to burn that doesn't mean they should burn it. They have an obligation to their shareholders to value the deal properly, and I'm not getting how it totals $9 billion.

Back in the late 1980's Peter Gruber and Jon Peters nearly bought MGM and it was in comically worse shape after you pointed this out in 1988. Even then MGM was trying to be pricey (they wanted $1 billion back then comically and people said it was kinda silly)


https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-...452-story.html


Now they never bought MGM as we know. Because the people joked in Hit & Run that basically all Peters and Gruber was getting was the lion logo and really not much else films wise. Now here we are 30+ years later and we have a company over pricing MGM again. Even with more films there. (The article points out the Turner sell of Film library which modern day MGM has to slap themselves in head...as that would help them with a sale now)