08 Aug 2018
Fox acquisition offers new horizons for Disney, as operator enjoys record quarter for its parks
BY Tom Anstey
Disney chief Bob Iger has said the company's acquisition of Fox will offer new compelling ways for it to bring its products to market, utilising newly-acquired intellectual property to create never-before seen products across its portfolio, including in its theme parks.
The US$71.3bn (€63bn, £56.6bn) acquisition of Fox, which has now been approved by Disney's shareholders, sees Disney gain a huge media library and the rights to the first Star Wars film and the film rights to the Fantastic Four and X-Men franchises – two IPs not obtained through its previous multi-billion-dollar acquisitions of Lucasfilm and Marvel.
The move is expected to have a significant impact on the theme park industry, with Disney likely planning to bring its new Fox IPs to its parks.
"In this era of unprecedented consumer choice, brands matter more than ever and our incredible portfolio of high-quality, in demand branded content uniquely positions us to strategically and successfully navigate this increasingly dynamic marketplace," said Iger, speaking during an earnings call.
"The assets we're buying fit perfectly with our plans to substantially grow our intellectual property portfolio and to bring our products to market in ways that consumers, as well as the creative community find extremely compelling."
For the quarter, Parks and Resorts revenue at Disney increased 6 per cent to US$5.19bn (€4.47bn, £4bn), with operating income up 15 per cent to US$1.3bn (€1.12bn, £1bn). These figures represent a new high for Disney in what is the operator's third quarter.
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