Sony To Buy MGM In 5 Billion Dollar Deal

[Kent Pribbernow]

<div class='os_post_top_link'><a href='http://news.com.com/Sony+agrees+to+buy+MGM/2100-1026_3-5364528.html?tag=nefd.hed' target='_blank'>http://news.com.com/Sony+agrees+to+buy+MGM/2100-1026_3-5364528.html?tag=nefd.hed</a><br /><br /></div><i>"A group headed by Sony Corp. agreed in principle on Monday to buy Hollywood film studio Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer for nearly $5 billion, sources close to the deal said. Comcast, the biggest U.S. cable operator, is considering plans to contribute about $300 million to the venture, the sources also said. The deal came after rival bidder Time Warner withdrew from the auction, saying it could not reach agreement on price. Sony and its partners, who have pursued MGM since early this year, will pay $12 a share and assume slightly less than $2 billion in debt as part of the agreement, the sources said."</i><br /><br /><img src="http://www.digitalmediathoughts.com/images/logo.jpg" /><br /><br />More consolidation in the entertainment industry. It's rather sad to see so many mergers and acquisitions. In the end only a handful of media giants will control the industry, which will most certainly stifle innovation. Sony stands to gain much from this deal, as it already controls several other key players in the business, such as the former Columbia Pictures. <br /><br />It's all about the money. To quote a line from the movie <b>The Right Stuff</b>...<i>"No bucks...no Buck Rogers"</i>

[Latch]

Does this mean that all of James Bond's gadgets will now use memory sticks?

[Kent Pribbernow]

Does this mean that all of James Bond's gadgets will now use memory sticks?

No, of course not. It just means you can only playback the DVD on Sony brand televisions and DVD players. :lol:

[James Fee]

I think this is great news. MGM is a disaster and they have not been able to release many of their older films on DVDs. Now we can see some of the classics as they should be (with commentary).

[Jason Dunn]

Interesting move, and not surprising - Sony is still bitter they lost the VHS/BETA wars, and since then they've come to understand that if you control the CONTENT on the FORMAT, you control both ends and ultimately can do what you want with it.

Still, 2 billion in debt? 5 billion deal? It's not like Sony is exactly soaring right now...

[Montego]

Most of this seems to be about the Blu-Ray format, with the other camp allied with DVD-HD. So, in a way we're going to be in the middle of another Beta/VHS war. Sony's control of Columbia and now the MGM library is a big stick, and the reason Warner wanted MGM so badly.