America's biggest cable operator, Comcast, has made an offer to buy the Walt Disney Company in a deal valued at around $66bn.
Comparisons are already being made to the merger between AOL Time Warner, in that any merger of Comcast and Disney would unite a distribution platform - Comcast's large number of cable systems - and Disney's content, ranging from movies to the ABC television network and the ESPN cable channel.
Comcast has proposed to issue 0.78 of its Class A shares for each Disney share, valuing the company at around $54bn. However, it would also take on $11.9bn of Disney's debt, effectively pushing the value of the transaction to the $66bn figure. Disney's shareholders would own 42% of the combined company.
Brian L. Roberts, president and CEO of Comcast, said:
"This is a unique opportunity for all shareholders of Comcast and Disney to create a new leader of the entertainment and communications industry. Not only would this merger create significant shareholder value, but it would also position the combined company to compete vigorously with other entertainment and communications companies, including newly created integrated distribution/content providers."
It turns out that Comcast has been trying to enter into discussions regarding a merger with Disney's chairman and chief executive officer, Michael Eisner, for the past week. Eisner rejected the offer outright, and Comcast has therefore made its case in the public arena. Its timing could not be better; Eisner is coming under fire from Roy Disney, a nephew of Walt Disney himself, who has even set up a Save Disney.com website.
Comparisons are already being made to the merger between AOL Time Warner, in that any merger of Comcast and Disney would unite a distribution platform - Comcast's large number of cable systems - and Disney's content, ranging from movies to the ABC television network and the ESPN cable channel.
Comcast has proposed to issue 0.78 of its Class A shares for each Disney share, valuing the company at around $54bn. However, it would also take on $11.9bn of Disney's debt, effectively pushing the value of the transaction to the $66bn figure. Disney's shareholders would own 42% of the combined company.
Brian L. Roberts, president and CEO of Comcast, said:
"This is a unique opportunity for all shareholders of Comcast and Disney to create a new leader of the entertainment and communications industry. Not only would this merger create significant shareholder value, but it would also position the combined company to compete vigorously with other entertainment and communications companies, including newly created integrated distribution/content providers."
It turns out that Comcast has been trying to enter into discussions regarding a merger with Disney's chairman and chief executive officer, Michael Eisner, for the past week. Eisner rejected the offer outright, and Comcast has therefore made its case in the public arena. Its timing could not be better; Eisner is coming under fire from Roy Disney, a nephew of Walt Disney himself, who has even set up a Save Disney.com website.
