Hasbro Buys eOne
Hasbro buys eOne.
Hasbro buys Entertainment One for $4 billion.
Peppa Pig, PJ Masks, Clifford the Big Red Dog, Monster Problems, and Ricky Zoom are coming to live with Power Rangers, Transformers, My Little Pony, G.I. Joe, and Monopoly.
The deal with eOne gives Hasbro a lift in its content media push, where it’s been buying smaller firms and licensing characters to major movie studios to boost sales of toys linked to movie franchises. Hasbro gets a studio adroit at making movies, television shows, animation, and music.
The deal also opens out Hasbro’s global reach by adding a major universal brand to its portfolio. Peppa Pig is a success everywhere. Hasbro will plug these characters into a brand-building infrastructure that turns dormant properties into robust revenue generators.
Brian Goldner of Hasbro said: ‘The acquisition of eOne adds beloved story-led global family brands that deliver strong operating returns to Hasbro's portfolio and provides a pipeline of new brand creation driven by family-oriented storytelling, which will now include Hasbro’s intellectual property. Also, Hasbro will leverage eOne’s immersive entertainment capabilities to bring our portfolio of brands that have appeal to gamers, fans, and families to all screens globally and realize full franchise economics across our blueprint strategy for shareholders. We are excited to welcome eOne’s talented employees from around the world into the Hasbro family.
We see opportunities for emerging markets. It’s also heartening to see that eOne has gotten great traction in markets like China for Peppa. It’s a real opportunity for a beachhead that can go in China for years to come. With eOne’s content creation capabilities across TV and film, we can reach audiences on all screens, from major distributors to broadcast and cable to new media platforms, including streaming. It fuels experiences with Hasbro brands across the fan economy.’
Allan Leighton of eOne said: ‘On behalf of the board of eOne, I am pleased by this exciting development, which is a testament to eOne management’s vision, leadership, and solid execution. This transaction creates significant, immediate value for our shareholders as it recognizes the strength of our future-facing business model.’
Hasbro buys Entertainment One for $4 billion.
Peppa Pig, PJ Masks, Clifford the Big Red Dog, Monster Problems, and Ricky Zoom are coming to live with Power Rangers, Transformers, My Little Pony, G.I. Joe, and Monopoly.
The deal with eOne gives Hasbro a lift in its content media push, where it’s been buying smaller firms and licensing characters to major movie studios to boost sales of toys linked to movie franchises. Hasbro gets a studio adroit at making movies, television shows, animation, and music.
The deal also opens out Hasbro’s global reach by adding a major universal brand to its portfolio. Peppa Pig is a success everywhere. Hasbro will plug these characters into a brand-building infrastructure that turns dormant properties into robust revenue generators.
Brian Goldner of Hasbro said: ‘The acquisition of eOne adds beloved story-led global family brands that deliver strong operating returns to Hasbro's portfolio and provides a pipeline of new brand creation driven by family-oriented storytelling, which will now include Hasbro’s intellectual property. Also, Hasbro will leverage eOne’s immersive entertainment capabilities to bring our portfolio of brands that have appeal to gamers, fans, and families to all screens globally and realize full franchise economics across our blueprint strategy for shareholders. We are excited to welcome eOne’s talented employees from around the world into the Hasbro family.
We see opportunities for emerging markets. It’s also heartening to see that eOne has gotten great traction in markets like China for Peppa. It’s a real opportunity for a beachhead that can go in China for years to come. With eOne’s content creation capabilities across TV and film, we can reach audiences on all screens, from major distributors to broadcast and cable to new media platforms, including streaming. It fuels experiences with Hasbro brands across the fan economy.’
Allan Leighton of eOne said: ‘On behalf of the board of eOne, I am pleased by this exciting development, which is a testament to eOne management’s vision, leadership, and solid execution. This transaction creates significant, immediate value for our shareholders as it recognizes the strength of our future-facing business model.’
Darren Throop of eOne said: ‘Hasbro’s portfolio of integrated toy, game, and consumer products will further fuel the tremendous success we’ve achieved at eOne. There’s a strong cultural fit between our two companies. eOne’s stated mission is to unlock the power and value of creativity which aligns with Hasbro’s corporate objectives. eOne teams will continue to do what they do best, bolstered by the access to Hasbro’s extensive portfolio of richly creative intellectual property and merchandising strength. Also, the resulting expanded Hasbro presence in Canada through eOne’s deep roots will bring world-class talent and production capabilities to Hasbro. Along with our leadership team, I look forward to working with Hasbro on our joint growth and success for years to come.’
Deborah Thomas of Hasbro added: ‘By combining two profitable and financially disciplined companies we expect to unlock value in the short- and long-term. eOne’s brands and TV and film abilities, together with Hasbro’s brands, toy and game innovation, and licensing capabilities, positions us to drive revenue and profit over the medium-term. We stay committed to maintaining an investment-grade rating and returning to our gross Debt to EBITDA target of 2.00 to 2.50X.’
Centerview Partners served as financial adviser to Hasbro. Cravath, Swaine & Moore Stikeman Elliott, and Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer served as legal advisers.
JP Morgan Cazenove served as financial adviser to eOne. Hoskin & Harcourt and Mayer Brown served as legal advisers.
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