Warner Brothers has bought MGM?

[626]

The Disneyt store thing is old news. Basicially They are going to bring the Disney stores to there origional glory. Instead of having a disney store in every mall they are going to be run by WDW merchandiseing and only be in a few major cities.

Not according to what the CMs at my wife's Disney Store have been told. They were told that for now, no US stores will be closing at all, and that all the stores currently open will be remodeled. They will also open additional stores. Further proof of this is her Disney Store for the past year or so has been in a month to month lease in the mall they are in, but the manager of her Disney Store has spoken with the mall's management and they confirmed that now the lease is to be extended until 2013! Now there's job security

 

[Jerm]

The Disneyt store thing is old news. Basicially They are going to bring the Disney stores to there origional glory. Instead of having a disney store in every mall they are going to be run by WDW merchandiseing and only be in a few major cities. The new york city store re-opening in october is going to be a test store. From there expect a few other stores to open up in cities around the US like it used to be when they first opened.

Nope only like 3 are becoming WoD stores all the rest will either close up or be CP/Disney Stores.

J

 

[tigger248]

I'm not sure about this but doesn't the WB Characters have an agreement with 6 Flags?

Yup! I work at Six Flags and we definitely have the WB Characters everywhere.

As for TDS, I also just went back to working there, and today my manager said none of the details have been worked out, but they are negotiating them. TCP is gonna buy out the stores, but from what I heard today, that's all that they know at this time.

 

[Number_6]

As far as if WB were to buy out MGM, it wouldn't do anything to the existing contracts with Disney. We got a taste of that up in Boston when the Red Sox were sold a couple of years ago. The management that was in place originally ended up extending all the contracts with the companies they were friends with for things like concessions just prior to signing the sale agreement so that they could cover their friends instead of risking the new management deciding to go with someone else. So we still have the way overpriced crap in Fenway Park thanks to the move of the old owners. The new owners can now do nothing about it. Now, once the contracts run out, that will be totally different. They can do whatever they want, either renew the deal, or tell Disney to off. I do like the idea that was posted about expanding the Muppets through the park, though, as a backup plan.

 

[AndyP]

Just go to World of Disney on holiday, that beats every store hands down!

 

[bgraham34]

my guidemap from 2002 says Disney-MGm Studios on it.

 

[Jerm]

The Guide book from this week says Disney/MGM Studios on it. Most things still do that are from the parks. There is some wierd thing that started a few years ago on the vacation planning videos and the old planning computer game, where they called it "Disney Studios". Everyone has heard diffrent reason for it but no one seems to know 100% why other then the contract with MGM has some loop hole in it about this or something? But as of today it is still Disney/MGM Studios.

J

 

[askmike1]

Most things at the Studio are still called

Disney-MGM
Studios​

However, the new merchandice is starting to transition into Disney Studios. WB or not, Disney did not want to extend it's contract with MGM. They are in the process of replacing MGM attractions with other attractions. Is it a coincidence that they are now putting in a new stunt show possibly to replace the MGM Indiana Jones Stunt Show? Is it a coincidence that Disney enacted a new Disney-Symbol in the park (Sorcerer Mickey Hat) to replace the old one (MGM Chinese Theater)? Is it a coincidence that the busses no longer say Disney-MGM Studios, but just Studios? Also, there was a rumor that Disney wanted to revamp the whole GMR to make it Disney-fied. In fact, Disney has done such a good job at Transitioning that the only things that will need replacing is Indiana Jones (there is already a new Stunt Show), GMR (again, the rumor of replacing it is out), and the Logo (I think Disney will do a good job at making the logo a nice mixture of Hollywood and Disney).

-Michael
"Some imagination, huh?"

 

[DarkMeasures]

Most things at the Studio are still called

Disney-MGM
Studios​

However, the new merchandice is starting to transition into Disney Studios. WB or not, Disney did not want to extend it's contract with MGM. They are in the process of replacing MGM attractions with other attractions. Is it a coincidence that they are now putting in a new stunt show possibly to replace the MGM Indiana Jones Stunt Show? Is it a coincidence that Disney enacted a new Disney-Symbol in the park (Sorcerer Mickey Hat) to replace the old one (MGM Chinese Theater)? Is it a coincidence that the busses no longer say Disney-MGM Studios, but just Studios? Also, there was a rumor that Disney wanted to revamp the whole GMR to make it Disney-fied. In fact, Disney has done such a good job at Transitioning that the only things that will need replacing is Indiana Jones (there is already a new Stunt Show), GMR (again, the rumor of replacing it is out), and the Logo (I think Disney will do a good job at making the logo a nice mixture of Hollywood and Disney).

-Michael
"Some imagination, huh?"

About Indy Stunt Show,
Even though MGM distributed the Indy movies, George Lucas has the rights to them and offered them out to Disney. (even with him having bad ties with Disney now I am sure he would stick to his original words by not letting any other amusmentpark/theme park have the rights).

If he does, I just hope it doesn't go out to Paramount. Look at the movie based rides Paramount has.
Top Gun - Only themeing is minimal in line.
Tomb Raider - Top Spin in a building.
Italian Job - Rollercoaster through themed parts. (most promising but would be considered really bad show even at Universal).

Anyway, if George Lucas were to option his rides to Universal, it wouldn't be bad except that the major budget difference.

I do know though that the Disney attractions with Lucas's name on them were some of the most innovative. (I don't remember if Lucas directed Captian EO or not).
Indiana Jones- EMV, coolest ride system in the world.
Star Tours - First simulator ride ever built.
Alien Encounter- Even though Lucas had nothing to do with this except his name being place on the entrance sign, this attraction introduced one of the coolest sound systems ever. (it did exist before in postshow that is now for Drew Carey, another attraction that uses the sound system).

I know I have gone way off topic but no other Theme Park could have made these attractions this innovative. I could consider these the counterparts to the Disney attractions at the 1964 world's fair. George Lucas should know that and that is the main reason why Disney should never lose the rights for his movies.

Anyway, most MGM references are out of the park besides on some of the very early attractions. The MGM part though seemed to be given up on when Tower of Terror was built and dead by when Rock N Rollercoaster opened.

But anyway, if WB (wouldn't it be Time Warner?) did buy MGM (I need a link to a reliable source), nothing would probably happen to the current parks. Premiere parks does have WB liscences but Warner Bros. does run their own Studio Theme Parks. It is just that due to Six Flags, the studio parks are all outside the US.

 

[Thrawn]

Most things at the Studio are still called

Disney-MGM
Studios​

However, the new merchandice is starting to transition into Disney Studios. WB or not, Disney did not want to extend it's contract with MGM. They are in the process of replacing MGM attractions with other attractions. Is it a coincidence that they are now putting in a new stunt show possibly to replace the MGM Indiana Jones Stunt Show? Is it a coincidence that Disney enacted a new Disney-Symbol in the park (Sorcerer Mickey Hat) to replace the old one (MGM Chinese Theater)? Is it a coincidence that the busses no longer say Disney-MGM Studios, but just Studios? Also, there was a rumor that Disney wanted to revamp the whole GMR to make it Disney-fied. In fact, Disney has done such a good job at Transitioning that the only things that will need replacing is Indiana Jones (there is already a new Stunt Show), GMR (again, the rumor of replacing it is out), and the Logo (I think Disney will do a good job at making the logo a nice mixture of Hollywood and Disney).

-Michael
"Some imagination, huh?"

Your post is complete conjecture.
The new stunt show was brought over because it is working well at Studios Paris.
The Chinese theater was never the symbol of MGM, before the hat it was the earful tower.
There have been rumors for a very long time about changing/updating the Great Movie Ride. As I have said previously, even if MGM were to leave completely, Disney would not have to change the ride (or anything else MGM) at all. They have the rights to use everything they have in its current form.

 

[TURKEY]

Most buses I see still say Disney MGM Studios.

 

[askmike1]

Your post is complete conjecture.
The new stunt show was brought over because it is working well at Studios Paris.
The Chinese theater was never the symbol of MGM, before the hat it was the earful tower.
There have been rumors for a very long time about changing/updating the Great Movie Ride. As I have said previously, even if MGM were to leave completely, Disney would not have to change the ride (or anything else MGM) at all. They have the rights to use everything they have in its current form.

Although the stunt show did well in Paris, it wasn't such a smash hit that the would automatically clone it for WDW. Although this may be the case, I view it more as a way to get Indiana Jones out. As for GMR, maybe I misphrased it. It wasn't the symbol of the park, but the centerpiece of the park. It is the first thing you see (like the castle, SSE, and Tree of Life). Now, you see the hat (sort of a shift from Hollywood to Disney-Hollywood. As for the busses, the newer busses are able to fit in Disney-MGM Studios, but I notice that the older busses just say Studios.

-Michael

 

[Number_6]

Back to the sale of MGM, CNN is now reporting that Time-Warner has been outbid by a group led by Sony which is willing to pony up about $5 billion.

 

[lnsemsf]

Link to CNN article if anybody is interested - http://money.cnn.com/2004/09/13/news/fortune500/twx_mgm/index.htm?cnn=yes

 

[NemoRocks78]

It's a done deal.....

Sony, cast of partners buy MGM
The group submitted its nearly $3 billion bid before MGM's board took up Time Warner's offer.
By Andrew Ross Sorkin | The New York Times
Posted September 14, 2004

A consortium led by the Sony Corp. of America reached a tentative agreement Monday to buy Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, the Hollywood studio famous for James Bond and the Pink Panther, for nearly $3 billion, snatching it from the hands of Time Warner at the 11th hour.

The deal, which ends an auction that was filled with behind-the-scenes machinations for months, included one last surprise twist: Comcast, the cable giant, joined Sony's consortium as a strategic partner and a possible investor.

The Sony-led group, which includes the buyout firms Providence Equity Partners, Texas Pacific Group and DLJ Merchant Banking Partners, struck the deal just 24 hours before MGM had scheduled a board meeting to approve a deal with Time Warner.

The deal also calls for Sony to assume about $1.9 billion in MGM debt.

If the transaction is completed, it would be the third time that Kirk Kerkorian, MGM's controlling shareholder, would have sold the company.

The deal caps a come-from-behind story for Sony, which originally bid for MGM in April but was unable to complete the deal after becoming bogged down in negotiations with its own backers, opening the field to Time Warner.

With the last-minute addition of Comcast to the Sony-led consortium -- a pact that was negotiated over Labor Day weekend in Martha's Vineyard, where executives from Sony and the other investors converged on the summer house of Brian L. Roberts, Comcast's chairman -- the group decided to raise its bid to $12 a share from $11.23 and offer a nonrefundable $150 million deposit.

Time Warner had offered $11 a share and had guaranteed the deal's completion.

MGM shares closed Monday at $11.55 each on the New York Stock Exchange.

The Sony-led group could justify the higher bid because part of its deal with Comcast calls for the creation of several new premium cable channels that will broadcast both Sony and MGM movies, adding an additional revenue stream for the company.

For Comcast, its participation came with some reluctance. Having lost its hostile bid for the Walt Disney Co. and been derided by investors for even making the offer, Roberts was wary about being part of another potentially unsuccessful bid for a content provider, executives close to the negotiations said.

While MGM may be famous for making films like The Wizard of Oz, under the plan being developed by the Sony-led group, most of the movie studio operation would be shut down. Sony would license and distribute MGM's most valuable asset, its library of more than 4,000 films. Only the studio's best-known film series, like James Bond, would continue to be produced under the MGM brand through Sony.

Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.

 

[netenyahoo]

How sad - only James Bond movies would be released under the MGM name. A studio with such a proud tradition is basicly dead. I guess it had been dying for a long time.

 

[Stitchfan712]

Disney Store in SLC has been gone for months now, and that was NOT an underperforming store. It was always packed. Now the only time I can "get my fix" is by ordering online or to actually go to one of the parks.

 

[Bagheera]

Most things at the Studio are still called

Disney-MGM
Studios​

However, the new merchandice is starting to transition into Disney Studios. WB or not, Disney did not want to extend it's contract with MGM. They are in the process of replacing MGM attractions with other attractions. Is it a coincidence that they are now putting in a new stunt show possibly to replace the MGM Indiana Jones Stunt Show? Is it a coincidence that Disney enacted a new Disney-Symbol in the park (Sorcerer Mickey Hat) to replace the old one (MGM Chinese Theater)? Is it a coincidence that the busses no longer say Disney-MGM Studios, but just Studios? Also, there was a rumor that Disney wanted to revamp the whole GMR to make it Disney-fied. In fact, Disney has done such a good job at Transitioning that the only things that will need replacing is Indiana Jones (there is already a new Stunt Show), GMR (again, the rumor of replacing it is out), and the Logo (I think Disney will do a good job at making the logo a nice mixture of Hollywood and Disney).

-Michael
"Some imagination, huh?"

The Indiana Jones movies were released by Paramount.

Grauman's Chinese Theatre is now owned by
Mann Theatres.

The reason that Disney has not used MGM in their electronic marketing (and this is the case even in an old 1992 promotional video) is that their deal does not allow them to use the MGM name in electronic promotional media (ostensibly to keep them from using it in films, but it covers everything).

That said, it's probably a safe bet that Disney will drop the MGM name at the end of the contract, but I'm not sure if they'll negotiate to keep the scenes from MGM movies in the Great Movie Ride.

 

[RidesChica07]

SO let me get this straight there selling mgm studios to warner bros(there dropping the mgm name ) . . but there keeping the park in disney ????

The Indiana Jones movies were released by Paramount.

Grauman's Chinese Theatre is now owned by
Mann Theatres.

The reason that Disney has not used MGM in their electronic marketing (and this is the case even in an old 1992 promotional video) is that their deal does not allow them to use the MGM name in electronic promotional media (ostensibly to keep them from using it in films, but it covers everything).

That said, it's probably a safe bet that Disney will drop the MGM name at the end of the contract, but I'm not sure if they'll negotiate to keep the scenes from MGM movies in the Great Movie Ride.

 

[Number_6]

SO let me get this straight there selling mgm studios to warner bros(there dropping the mgm name ) . . but there keeping the park in disney ????

No, the Disney-MGM Studios is still Disney. MGM the motion picture company has been sold to Sony, but the offer that was originally being talked about was from Time Warner. Sony outbid Time-Warner so that means Sony now owns MGM. Because of the change of ownership for MGM, the question had been if the MGM name would remain a part of the park's name. The thought is that it will stay until the end of the current contract and then be dropped. But if it gets dropped, a new question comes up in the form of 'Will they renegotiate to keep the scenes from MGM movies that are featured in the Great Movie Ride?"