Marvel's Next Step

[Edeyore]

I have a solution for the whole problem. Disney eventually buys Universal too and get to do whatever they want with all of it.

 

[lebeau]

Not trying to be snarky, but if its characters are so great, why did Marvel declare bankruptcy back in 1996?

Do you really want to get into the complex history of the comic book speculation surge and implosion of the 90s? That would mean discussing Image comics, the Spider-clone saga, Heroes Reborn and a whole mess of things I don't want to think about.

Long story short: The entire comic book industry was hit hard at the time. DC had deep pockets of WB to fall back on. Marvel was being mismanaged and hadn't stumbled upon success at the box office yet. So, they nearly went under. But the characters would have survived no matter what.

 

[lebeau]

I don't remember what the site was (Screamscape?), but there was an article about a high-level Universal meeting regarding what their contingency plan would be if they lost the Marvel characters in IOA for whatever reason (bought out by Disney, Disney making Uni's life a living hell to force them to give up the Marvel rights, etc). The article mentioned one of their ideas was to buy out Six Flags' rights to the DC characters, re-theming Hulk to Superman and Spider-man to Batman.

I like Marvel, but my heart belongs to DC. Even moreso than Disney really. I actually wish Disney could have acquired DC instead of Marvel. Superman and Mickey Mouse just seem like a more natural fit. But if somehow DC could end up at Universal and Marvel at Disney, that would be the next best thing.

 

[FigmentJedi]

I'd definitely be happy if Universal took over the DC licenses. Maybe they'd actually put some damn effort into theming attractions unlike Six Flags

 

[flavious27]

Screamscape did post a pretty lengthy update on the idea.
http://screamscape.com/html/islands_of_adventure.htm

Interesting article, especially that one of the early designs for superhero island had a dc theme.

I wonder what the details of the DC/ Six Flags contract are concerning what areas are covered by it, is it the whole country or just the states six flag parks are located?

 

[lazyboy97o]

The DC-Six Flags deal is probably a bit more complicated. The Six Flags parks were owned by Time Warner before being sold to Premier Parks (today's Six Flags, Inc.) and I believe they still maintain an interest. The original Six Flags parks (Six Flags Over Texas, Six Flags Over Georgia, Six Flags St, Louis) are operated by but not wholly owned by Six Flags, Inc.

I would guess that Six Flags has global rights. Rights limited to territories with a park would have required new work when the chain was expanding.

The big loss to Six Flags would be guest confusion. Universal Orlando Resort advertises nationally, meaning people would be made aware of both offerings. Six Flags would not want to deal with guests upset that the real, immersive experience is elsewhere.

 

[flavious27]

The DC-Six Flags deal is probably a bit more complicated. The Six Flags parks were owned by Time Warner before being sold to Premier Parks (today's Six Flags, Inc.) and I believe they still maintain an interest. The original Six Flags parks (Six Flags Over Texas, Six Flags Over Georgia, Six Flags St, Louis) are operated by but not wholly owned by Six Flags, Inc.

I would guess that Six Flags has global rights. Rights limited to territories with a park would have required new work when the chain was expanding.

The big loss to Six Flags would be guest confusion. Universal Orlando Resort advertises nationally, meaning people would be made aware of both offerings. Six Flags would not want to deal with guests upset that the real, immersive experience is elsewhere.

I figure that SF has the rights over the whole country so that their is no confusion and also guests made that SF doesn't have that batman or superman ride or land.

If universal gets the rights, I think it would be country wide. They are going to pay the same that GF pays for the 12 parks in the US, and there could be an out clause that DC/WB has to pay for the rides to be rethemed.

With the sale of Uni, I think that superhero island is going to be low on the list of attractions to retheme with a new license.

 

[JLW11Hi]

I actually wish Disney could have acquired DC instead of Marvel. Superman and Mickey Mouse just seem like a more natural fit.

I agree! DC always seemed like the more "classic" brand, and Marvel seemed like more of a jazzy, teen-oriented Universal property. But DC is getting in a little too late in the non-Batman comic related movie arena, and Marvel, with its Spiderman and Avengers and X-Men, have proven to be very popular with people lately.

 

[flavious27]

I agree! DC always seemed like the more "classic" brand, and Marvel seemed like more of a jazzy, teen-oriented Universal property. But DC is getting in a little too late in the non-Batman comic related movie arena, and Marvel, with its Spiderman and Avengers and X-Men, have proven to be very popular with people lately.

Agreed, Stan Lee been very busy this decade.

 

[lazyboy97o]

Do you really want to get into the complex history of the comic book speculation surge and implosion of the 90s? That would mean discussing Image comics, the Spider-clone saga, Heroes Reborn and a whole mess of things I don't want to think about.

Long story short: The entire comic book industry was hit hard at the time. DC had deep pockets of WB to fall back on. Marvel was being mismanaged and hadn't stumbled upon success at the box office yet. So, they nearly went under. But the characters would have survived no matter what.

I think it would be a fun read.

I figure that SF has the rights over the whole country so that their is no confusion and also guests made that SF doesn't have that batman or superman ride or land.

Six Flags' rights extend into at least Mexico, as DC Comics is present at Six Flags Mexico. They also had a presence at Six Flags Holland and were planned for a presence at Six Flags Dubailand. But there are also Park Warner Madrid and Warner Bros. Movie World (in Australia) which previously had Six Flags involvement, but continue to operate with the DC characters present as Time Warner is still involved.

If universal gets the rights, I think it would be country wide. They are going to pay the same that GF pays for the 12 parks in the US, and there could be an out clause that DC/WB has to pay for the rides to be rethemed.

I really doubt Six Flags would want to get rid of the DC characters as they may be tied into a larger contract with Time Warner that included the Looney Tunes characters as well. Even then, Six Flags just divested itself of a lot of intellectual property and officials made several public statements about refocusing on their core properties, which includes the DC superheroes.

With the sale of Uni, I think that superhero island is going to be low on the list of attractions to retheme with a new license.

I am not sure I understand. The only license possibly in trouble is the deal with Warner Bros. for Harry Potter.

 

[flavious27]

I really doubt Six Flags would want to get rid of the DC characters as they may be tied into a larger contract with Time Warner that included the Looney Tunes characters as well. Even then, Six Flags just divested itself of a lot of intellectual property and officials made several public statements about refocusing on their core properties, which includes the DC superheroes.

Agreed, I think that SF will try what they can to keep the DC license, so much of their e and d ticket rides are tied to them.

I am not sure I understand. The only license possibly in trouble is the deal with Warner Bros. for Harry Potter.

I do not think that with the sale of Uni, the buyer will not put retheming superhero island high on their priorities list. Yes the buyer will do what they can to keep the wwhp contract as is. There are other licenses to worry about, like Spielberg.

 

[lazyboy97o]

do not think that with the sale of Uni, the buyer will not put retheming superhero island high on their priorities list. Yes the buyer will do what they can to keep the wwhp contract as is. There are other licenses to worry about, like Spielberg.

Where are you getting this issue about Spielberg? The interest in Universal Resort Orlando is being sold by the Blackstone Group, an investment company. NBC Universal is still going to be involved with the resort and will continue to own just under half of the venture. Due to the contracts, when Blackstone decided to sell they first had to offer their interest to NBC Universal before they are allowed to sell to another party.

 

[flavious27]

Where are you getting this issue about Spielberg? The interest in Universal Resort Orlando is being sold by the Blackstone Group, an investment company. NBC Universal is still going to be involved with the resort and will continue to own just under half of the venture. Due to the contracts, when Blackstone decided to sell they first had to offer their interest to NBC Universal before they are allowed to sell to another party.

Huh? NBC Universal has the option to buy out blackstone's share by June. If they don't buy out blackstone's share, the bids will be for 100% ownership of the resort.

http://articles.latimes.com/2011/mar/16/business/la-fi-blackstone-orlando-20110316

I bring up Spielberg because it has been reported that his contract gives him an out if the park changes hands, he will stand to get over 300 million.

 

[lazyboy97o]

Huh? NBC Universal has the option to buy out blackstone's share by June. If they don't buy out blackstone's share, the bids will be for 100% ownership of the resort.

http://articles.latimes.com/2011/mar/16/business/la-fi-blackstone-orlando-20110316

I bring up Spielberg because it has been reported that his contract gives him an out if the park changes hands, he will stand to get over 300 million.

Ah, ok, I must have forgotten that part. Though, I think it might be time to do some digging in the SEC archives for the actual deal. Just look how much misinformation is out there regarding Universal's deal for the Marvel characters.

Even then, I am not really worried. It would not be new to the theme park world or NBC Universal which does not wholly own Universal Studios Japan, Universal Studios Singapore, the upcoming Universal Studios South Korea and the canceled/pending Universal Studios Dubailand. In fact, NBC Universal seems to be quite fond of licensing out the Universal Studios park brand and has made the licensing model the center of its expansion plans, pretty much going back to Universal Studios Florida even being a joint venture.

 

[Wilt Dasney]

I really felt like I was stepping out of line delving into the DC-Six Flags connection in here. Glad the drift has met with so much approval. :lol:

The most concrete statement I could find about the license is here. It's written by Six Flags, is quite vague and is clearly corporate cheerleading, but the word "exclusive" implies no one else could use the characters even if they wanted to.

http://investors.sixflags.com/phoenix.zhtml?c=61629&p=irol-homeprofile

Our licensing agreement with DC Comics and Warner Bros. Consumer Products allows Six Flags the exclusive theme park rights to many of the world's greatest cartoon characters and super heroes, from Bugs Bunny and his Looney Tunes friends to DC Comics Super Heroes Batman, Robin, The Green Lantern, Wonder Woman and The Flash, enabling Six Flags to offer our 24 million guests a full character program, including character meet and greets, meals, photograph and autograph opportunities and new retail options.

Edit: Interesting they don't list Superman as one of the heroes they have "exclusive" rights to. Could just be an oversight since they can't list all the characters in the DC Universe, but you'd think that one would be first in line for any brief rundown. Hmmmm... :lookaroun

 

[FigmentJedi]

They'll probably end up turning Marvel Island into something based on Transformers. Spidey could probably be converted into the Transformers ride being built in USH and they could use the theme of Axiom Nexus, a dimensional hub introduced in more recent media, to utilize multiple incarnations of Transformers besides the Bay movies.

 

[lebeau]

Edit: Interesting they don't list Superman as one of the heroes they have "exclusive" rights to. Could just be an oversight since they can't list all the characters in the DC Universe, but you'd think that one would be first in line for any brief rundown. Hmmmm... :lookaroun

These days, even DC doesn't have exclusive rights to Superman!

 

[lebeau]

They'll probably end up turning Marvel Island into something based on Transformers. Spidey could probably be converted into the Transformers ride being built in USH and they could use the theme of Axiom Nexus, a dimensional hub introduced in more recent media, to utilize multiple incarnations of Transformers besides the Bay movies.

Or they will just leave it the way it is since they still own exclusive theme park rights to Marvel on this side of the country.

 

[flavious27]

Ah, ok, I must have forgotten that part. Though, I think it might be time to do some digging in the SEC archives for the actual deal. Just look how much misinformation is out there regarding Universal's deal for the Marvel characters.

Even then, I am not really worried. It would not be new to the theme park world or NBC Universal which does not wholly own Universal Studios Japan, Universal Studios Singapore, the upcoming Universal Studios South Korea and the canceled/pending Universal Studios Dubailand. In fact, NBC Universal seems to be quite fond of licensing out the Universal Studios park brand and has made the licensing model the center of its expansion plans, pretty much going back to Universal Studios Florida even being a joint venture.

That was the part that stuck out the most to me, that blackstone could force a sale of the whole property.

As for as Universal licensing their name and properties to a new owner, I don't know if it will make sense to. Last year revenue increased to 1.1 billion, and they had their net income rise 125 million to just over 148 million. A new owner will have to divy up that 148 million to universal for the naming rights to the park along with the licensing to properties like Jurassic Park and the Mummy.

 

[Merman]

I dont think Marvel is very disney
the shirts and whatnot that disney is already selling with spiderman on it are annoying enough i really dont want them to expand the parks with marvel themed attractions