August 31st, 2009
SmartPlanet: Disney buys Marvel for $4 billion; here's why it's a smart business move
Walt Disney Co. said on Monday that it plans to buy Marvel Entertainment, Inc. for $4 billion in a deal that would add characters such as Spider-Man, Iron Man, the Hulk and the X-Men alongside Mickey Mouse and WALL-E.
Under the deal, Disney will acquire more than 5,000 Marvel characters as well as several multi-million-dollar movie franchises. In return, Marvel gets the distribution heft of the world’s No. 2 media company.
Want to know why Wolverine and Hannah Montana make sense together? Read it on SmartPlanet’s Smart Takes blog.
Andrew J. Nusca is an associate editor for ZDNet and SmartPlanet.
See his full profile and disclosure of his industry affiliations.
