Disney Needs to Make Another Acquisition Soon?

Discussion in 'TV & Media' started by Ketrick, Oct 14, 2017.

  1. Ketrick

    Ketrick Commander Red Shirt

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    Before getting into the heart of my post, I want to make a few things clear. The first is that I'm not one of the people who thinks Disney or any other company should own or control all mass media. The second is that I recognize that there are many intellectual properties that Disney owns and does little to nothing with. Now, with that out of the way, I can get on to the heart of my post.

    The time we live in has become an age of mass media consolidation. In order to survive, mass media companies have to acquire new content and new means of distribution and this means they have to make mergers and acquisitions or allow themselves to be acquired by another company which will help them better compete. This is also an age when broadcast television is dying and cable is seriously ailing. In the past when Disney was severely ailing, Disney made important acquisitions and these acquisitions transformed not only Disney, but also all of mass media.

    Now is the time for Disney to make another acquisition. Yes, in 2014, they bought Maker Studios and they just finished buying controlling interest in BAM Tech. However, now that they for the time being have resolved their distribution problem, they have a need for new content which only an acquisition will adequately satisfy. Their biggest competition in animation, DreamWorks Animation, was recently bought by Comcast which owns NBC-Universal and starting next year Comcast will gain the distribution rights to DWA works from FOX. This means their biggest competition has just upped its game. In addition to this, AT&T is close to getting approval for its acquisition of Time Warner, another major competitor. Lastly, with its acquisition of controlling interest in BAM Tech, Disney announced that it would create its own distribution network to distribute its movies and shows instead of continuing their contract with Netflix. Disney will also need more new content for its new network.

    Some potential acquisitions that to me make sense are Sony Entertainment, The Jim Henson Company, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles franchise, Studio Ghibli, Archie Comics, DHX Media, and Rovio Entertainment in the near term. Netflix or at least Millarworld, Hasbro or Mattel, and what formerly was Classic Media make sense to me in the longer term.

    What's your opinion? Do you agree Disney needs to make another acquisition soon? Why or why not? If you do, what companies or franchises do you believe Disney should acquire and why?
     
  2. Shaka Zulu

    Shaka Zulu Commodore Commodore

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  3. It would be interesting to see what kind of burgers we could choose from if they acquired McDonald's. A duck burger?Lions & Dalmatians? I love a quarter pounder but its pretty boring so maby a hostile takeover would be a fun thing. McDonald's should know...
     
  4. CorporalClegg

    CorporalClegg Admiral Admiral

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    Disney's next big move will be in the videogame industry. It's really the one market left for them - there really hasn't been much to speak of since the 8/16bit Capcom days.

    The safe money (whether it's a buyout or full parnership/merger) is on Electronic Arts, Square-Enix,. and Activision in that order. The first two should be obvious, and the last one would be just to get their hands on the Warcraft brand name.
     
  5. JirinPanthosa

    JirinPanthosa Admiral Admiral

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    Final Fantasy characters at Disneyworld, hmm.
     
  6. CorporalClegg

    CorporalClegg Admiral Admiral

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    Well I was thinking more along the lines of Dragon Quest characters at Disneyworld. The brand is the perfect diamond in the rough for Disney to unleash in the West. (I mean how do you look and blue slime monster with a French accent and not think Disney?)

    But, really, the whole point to the merger would be so they can fully monopolize KH to a degree they can't really do now.
     
  7. Owain Taggart

    Owain Taggart Vice Admiral Admiral

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    They had their own studio for a time (run by Warren Spector, I think?) , but eventually moved out of game producing. I thought that when they had bought LucasArts along with LucasFilm, that they'd use that as their opportunity to get back into it and use LucasArts as their gaming brand, but then they went and closed the studio. They really have done very little in terms of gaming unless you count Disney Infinity, and at this point, they don't strike me as being very interested in gaming, or they would have done something by now with some other their IPs. They also strike me as a company that really has no idea what to do with gaming.
     
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  8. JirinPanthosa

    JirinPanthosa Admiral Admiral

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    If we're talking about American Disney parks I don't think many people outside niche groups give half a crap about Dragon Quest, but an entire generation grew up playing some FF between 4 and 10.

    I know DQ is bigger in Japan. If that mattered we'd have Tales characters in Disney. ;)
     
  9. CorporalClegg

    CorporalClegg Admiral Admiral

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    My point though is Disney would make the West give a crap. Everything about the IP oozes a Disney feel. The only thing that's missing in the logo.
     
  10. JirinPanthosa

    JirinPanthosa Admiral Admiral

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    I think that's a hard sell to American audiences without profoundly changing the series, is my point. Whereas FF has grand melodramatic narratives that appeal to American sensibilities, DQ has established its brand as the one that doesn't experiment too much with combat and story. For Dragon Quest to become popular in America it'd have to adopt more action and more melodrama, at which point it'd just be FF with slimes.
     
  11. Ketrick

    Ketrick Commander Red Shirt

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    DHX Media is considering selling itself in part or completely or seeking a merger. Disney would be wise to consider making an offer. DHX owns the world's largest independent library of children's programming which includes Inspector Gadget, Teletubbies, Degrassi, Slugterra, Bob the Builder, Strawberry Shortcake, and an 80% stake in Peanuts. Netflix, Amazon, and Comcast especially would be wise to make offers also.