Amazon received unconditional EU antitrust approval on Tuesday for its proposed $8.5 billion acquisition of MGM, which will help it compete with streaming rivals Netflix and Disney+ (DIS.N). The European Commission stated on March 9 that the deal would not raise competition concerns in Europe, confirming a Reuters report.
The EU competition enforcer stated that it investigated overlaps in audio-visual content between the world’s largest online retailer and MGM and discovered that their combined market shares are low and that they have strong rivals.
“The addition of MGM’s content into Amazon’s Prime Video offer would not have a significant impact on Amazon’s position as provider of marketplace services,” according to the Commission.
Amazon expressed satisfaction with the EU clearance. According to a person familiar with the matter, the US Federal Trade Commission has a mid-March deadline to decide on the deal. more info
Analysts predicted that the agreement would boost Amazon’s video streaming service and entice people to subscribe to Amazon Prime, which also provides fast shipping and encourages consumers to shop more frequently. MGM owns the rights to James Bond, one of the most profitable film franchises in history, with nearly $7 billion in global box office earnings.
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc. (also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures or MGM) is an American film and television production and distribution company founded in 1924. It is headquartered in Beverly Hills, California.
Marcus Loew founded MGM by merging Metro Pictures, Goldwyn Pictures, and Louis B. Mayer Pictures into a single company. It recruited a number of well-known actors as contract players—its motto was “more stars than there are in heaven”—and quickly rose to become one of Hollywood’s “big five” film studios, producing popular film musicals and winning numerous Oscars.
MGM filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy and reorganisation in 2010. MGM emerged from bankruptcy later that year, after reorganisation, under the ownership of its creditors. Gary Barber and Roger Birnbaum, both former executives at Spyglass Entertainment, were named co-chairmen and co-CEOs of MGM’s new holding company. After Barber left MGM in 2020, it began looking to be acquired by another company in order to pay its creditors.
Amazon announced its intention to purchase MGM for $8.45 billion on May 26, 2021, but no date was set. MGM is still constantly producing feature films and television series today. Its major productions include the Rocky and James Bond franchises, as well as the television series The Handmaid’s Tale.
