Amazon.com Inc is in discussions to buy the nearly century-old Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) movie studio in what would be its biggest push yet into the entertainment industry, media reports have said.
MGM, the storied Hollywood company behind the James Bond series, would help bolster Amazon’s Prime Video streaming service, The Information and Variety said in separate reports.
Amazon is weeks into negotiations to buy the studio for about US$9 billion, Variety reported.
Photo: Reuters
MGM and Amazon declined to comment on the report.
MGM has been seen as a takeover target for years, but was never able to close a sale. The company last year made a fresh push, when it reportedly hired advisers to solicit offers.
MGM, whose library includes the Rocky movies and Silence of the Lambs, also held talks with Apple Inc and Netflix Inc about taking its new James Bond film, entitled No Time to Die, directly to streaming, but the company last year said that it was committed to a theatrical release for the film, which is scheduled to open on Oct. 8 in the US.
Amazon has been reshuffling its entertainment operations with the return of long-time executive Jeff Blackburn.
Blackburn briefly left the e-commerce company to join Silicon Valley venture capital firm Bessemer Venture Partners, but he has taken command of Amazon’s entire entertainment division, including the Prime Video streaming service, Amazon Studios and Twitch, a site that streams video games.
Amazon’s bid for MGM is being handled by video executive Mike Hopkins, Variety said, adding that he is dealing directly with MGM chairman Kevin Ulrich.
MGM traces its roots back to the 1920s merger of Marcus Loew’s Metro films with a film studio run by Hollywood legend Louis B. Mayer.
While making great pictures like Dr. Zhivago and 2001: A Space Odyssey, MGM drifted in and out of financial distress in the second half of the 20th century. Over the decades, it was owned by Time Inc, CNN founder Ted Turner and more than once by the late billionaire Kirk Kerkorian.
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