Disney to Acquire Marvel Entertainment

The Walt Disney Company has agreed to acquire Marvel Entertainment Inc. and its portfolio of more than 5,000 characters in a stock and cash transaction totaling approximately $4 billion.

“This transaction combines Marvel’s strong global brand and world-renowned library of characters including Iron Man, Spider-Man, X-Men, Captain America, Fantastic Four and Thor with Disney’s creative skills, unparalleled global portfolio of entertainment properties, and a business structure that maximizes the value of creative properties across multiple platforms and territories,” said Robert A. Iger, president and CEO of The Walt Disney Company. “We believe that adding Marvel to Disney’s unique portfolio of brands provides significant opportunities for long-term growth and value creation.”

“Disney is the perfect home for Marvel’s fantastic library of characters given its proven ability to expand content creation and licensing businesses,” Marvel CEO Ike said. “This is an unparalleled opportunity for Marvel to build upon its vibrant brand and character properties by accessing Disney’s tremendous global organization and infrastructure around the world.”

Perlmutter will continue to oversee the Marvel properties, working directly with Disney’s global lines of business to build and further integrate Marvel’s properties.

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