Hmm disney and pixar both make quality animation so I have no reservations about this.

The Walt Disney Co. says it is buying longtime partner Pixar Animation Studios Inc. for $7.4 billion.


Cnn breaking news.

Gah! I'm sick of these buyouts!!! Disney to puchase Pixar.
 

I was so looking forward to when Pixar ended their relationship and went out on their own... now they are simply being BOUGHT OUT. Ugh.

The Adobe / Macromedia buyout impacted me personally and I hated that... now this one is going to drive me crazy as well.

Smart move for Adobe, brilliant move for Disney. The question is... is this going to be any good for the consumer? :(

FYI, the story is breaking news on CNN right now, no story yet.

It will cost them ~$7,400,000,000

One day everything will be owned by one company and YOU will be working for them.

The strategy is to always make the initial impact of these things seem negligable. But trust me... this isn't good for most people.

Disney wouldn't spend that 7400000000 if they didn't think they'd get 7400000002 back somewhere.

Having said that... Disney needed this. And I've always been a fan of Disney (in most ways, not all). It's just that I'm also a big fan of Pixar as well and I like seeing more rather than less.

More here.

das

I believe Superboy has a remedy to that...

Dude, that is so sweet. I have to do work for Pixar, but this buyout means I won't have to anymore in the future. God bless this purchase!

rotfl

I wonder what ol' Walt would have said if SuperBoy invited him to -- oops, let's not go there. LMAO

:lol:

This is good as M&A activity fuels the economy (actually just wall street bonuses). The best will be when Wall Street gets even more fees as whatever form Pixar becomes spins off from Disney in a few years.

I guess Disney has agreed to stop writing lame scripts in-house and re-employ a studio that can.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) - Walt Disney has announced that it is buying Pixar, the animated studio led by Apple head Steve Jobs, in a deal worth $7.4 billion.

Speculation about a deal being imminent raged on Wall Street for the past few weeks. Disney has released all of Pixar's films so far, but the companies' current distribution deal was set to expire following the release of this summer's "Cars."



Steve Jobs, the CEO of Apple and Pixar, will become a board member of Disney following the closing of Disney's purchase of Pixar.

"Disney and Pixar can now collaborate without the barriers that come from two different companies with two different sets of shareholders," said Jobs. "Now, everyone can focus on what is most important, creating innovative stories, characters and films that delight millions of people around the world."

As part of the deal, Jobs will become a board member of Disney, the companies said. And John Lasseter, the widely respected creative director at Pixar who had previously worked for Disney, will rejoin the House of Mouse as chief creative officer for the company's combined animated studios and will also help oversee the design for new attractions at Disney theme parks.

"The addition of Pixar significantly enhances Disney animation, which is a critical creative engine for driving growth across our businesses," said Disney CEO Robert Iger in a written statement.

According to the terms of the deal, Disney (Research) will issue 2.3 shares for each Pixar share. Based on Tuesday's closing prices, that values Pixar at $59.78 a share, about a 4 percent premium to Pixar's current stock price. Shares of Pixar (Research) fell slightly in regular trading on the Nasdaq Tuesday but the stock has surged more than 10 percent so far this year on takeover speculation. Disney's stock gained 1.8 percent in regular trading on the New York Stock Exchange but slipped about 0.5 percent after-hours.

Prior to the deal's announcement,.some Wall Street observers had speculated that Disney may be paying too much for Pixar. But one hedge fund manager said that the risk of Disney losing Pixar was too great.

"The question isn't did Disney pay too much but how expensive would it have been for Disney if Pixar fell into someone else's hands," said Barry Ritholtz, chief investment officer with Ritholtz Capital Partners, a hedge fund that focuses on media and technology stocks.

Pixar has yet to have a flop with its six animated movies, which include "Toy Story," "Finding Nemo" and "The Incredibles." Disney, however, has struggled in the computer-generated animated movie arena. Even though its most recent CG-animated film, "Chicken Little" performed better than many had expected at the box office, it was not as big a hit as any of the Pixar films.

That is a blessing for fans. The head of Pixar now overseeing ALL animated features. Igor & Jobs, deserve a round of applause for pulling this together.

I wonder what Michael Eisner is doing today.

Lasseter in charge of all Disney animation is a godsend for a company whose only good cell-animated film of the past seven years was Lilo and Stitch.

Great. Guess Pixar films will soon suck. :sad:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20060124/...ixar_disney_dc

Disney to buy Pixar for $7.4 billion
45 minutes ago

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The Walt Disney Co (NYSE:DIS - news) on Tuesday said it has agreed to acquire Pixar Animation Studios (Nasdaq:PIXR - news) in a $7.4 billion all-stock transaction that brings the leader in computer animation under the banner of the world's most famous name in cartoons.

Under the agreement, expected to close this summer, Pixar Chief Executive Steve Jobs will join Disney's board of directors.

"The price tag is a little more than people were expecting," said McAlpine Associates analyst Dennis McAlpine.

Disney locked up the creative talents of Pixar by installing Pixar's president and co-founder, Ed Catmull, as president of the combined Pixar and Disney animation studios, and Pixar's creative director John Lasseter as chief creative officer of the combined animation studios.

Lasseter will also become the principal creative director of the Walt Disney Imagineering group, which designs theme park attractions.

Both boards of directors have approved the deal, which calls for 2.3 Disney shares to be issued for each Pixar share.

"The addition of Pixar significantly enhances Disney animation, which is a critical creative engine for driving growth across our businesses," Disney Chief Executive Robert Iger said in a statement announcing the deal.


I work for Walt Disney Imagineering and I wonder if he is taking over for Marty Sklar?

Chris

Even though I'm at home on medical disability, we just got this e-mail at work.

Disney to Acquire Pixar

Long-time Creative Partners Form New Worldwide Leader in Quality Family Entertainment

--

Ed Catmull Named President of the Combined Pixar and Disney Animation Studios and John Lasseter Named Chief Creative Officer; Steve Jobs to Join Disney's Board of Directors

--

Disney Increases Stock Repurchase Authorization



Burbank, CA and Emeryville, CA (January 24, 2006) - Furthering its strategy of delivering outstanding creative content, Robert A. Iger, President and Chief Executive Officer of The Walt Disney Company (NYSE: DIS), announced today that Disney has agreed to acquire computer animation leader Pixar (NASDAQ: PIXR) in an all-stock transaction, expected to be completed by this summer. Under terms of the agreement, 2.3 Disney shares will be issued for each Pixar share. Based on Pixar's fully diluted shares outstanding, the transaction value is $7.4 billion ($6.3 billion net of Pixar's cash of just over $1 billion).*

This acquisition combines Pixar's preeminent creative and technological resources with Disney's unparalleled portfolio of world-class family entertainment, characters, theme parks and other franchises, resulting in vast potential for new landmark creative output and technological innovation that can fuel future growth across Disney's businesses. Garnering an impressive 20 Academy Awards, Pixar's creative team and global box office success have made it a leader in quality family entertainment through incomparable storytelling abilities, creative vision and innovative technical artistry.

"With this transaction, we welcome and embrace Pixar's unique culture, which for two decades, has fostered some of the most innovative and successful films in history. The talented Pixar team has delivered outstanding animation coupled with compelling stories and enduring characters that have captivated audiences of all ages worldwide and redefined the genre by setting a new standard of excellence," Iger said. "The addition of Pixar significantly enhances Disney animation, which is a critical creative engine for driving growth across our businesses. This investment significantly advances our strategic priorities, which include - first and foremost - delivering high-quality, compelling creative content to consumers, the application of new technology and global expansion to drive long-term shareholder value."

Pixar President Ed Catmull will serve as President of the new Pixar and Disney animation studios, reporting to Iger and Dick Cook, Chairman of The Walt Disney Studios. In addition, Pixar Executive Vice President John Lasseter will be Chief Creative Officer of the animation studios, as well as Principal Creative Advisor at Walt Disney Imagineering, where he will provide his expertise in the design of new attractions for Disney theme parks around the world, reporting directly to Iger. Pixar Chairman and CEO Steve Jobs will be appointed to Disney's Board of Directors as a non-independent member. With the addition of Jobs, 11 of Disney's 14 directors will be independent. Both Disney and Pixar animation units will retain their current operations and locations.

"Disney and Pixar can now collaborate without the barriers that come from two different companies with two different sets of shareholders," said Jobs. "Now, everyone can focus on what is most important, creating innovative stories, characters and films that delight millions of people around the world."

"Pixar's culture of collaboration and innovation has its roots in Disney Animation. Our story and production processes are derivatives of the Walt Disney 'school' of animated filmmaking," said Dr. Catmull. "Just like the Disney classics, Pixar's films are made for family audiences the world over and, most importantly, for the child in everyone. We can think of nothing better for us than to continue to make great movies with Disney."

The acquisition brings to Disney the talented creative teams behind the tremendously popular original Pixar blockbusters, who will now be involved in the nurturing and future development of these properties, including potential feature animation sequels. Pixar's 20-year unrivaled creative track record includes the hits Toy Story, Toy Story 2, A Bug's Life, Monsters, Inc., Finding Nemo and The Incredibles. Disney will also have increased ability to fully capitalize on Pixar-created characters and franchises on high-growth digital platforms such as video games, broadband and wireless, as well as traditional media outlets, including theme parks, consumer products and live stage plays.

"For many of us at Pixar, it was the magic of Disney that influenced us to pursue our dreams of becoming animators, artists, storytellers and filmmakers," said Lasseter. "For 20 years we have created our films in the manner inspired by Walt Disney and the great Disney animators - great stories and characters in an environment made richer by technical advances. It is exciting to continue in this tradition with Disney, the studio that started it all."

"The wonderfully productive 15-year partnership that exists between Disney and Pixar provides a strong foundation that embodies our collective spirit of creativity and imagination," said Cook. "Under this new, strengthened animation unit, we expect to continue to grow and flourish."

Disney first entered into a feature film agreement with Pixar in 1991, resulting in the release of Toy Story, which was hailed as an instant classic upon its release in November 1995. In 1997, Disney extended its relationship with Pixar by entering into a co-production agreement, under which Pixar agreed to produce on an exclusive basis five original computer-animated feature films for distribution by Disney. Pixar is currently in production on the final film under that agreement, Cars, to be distributed by Disney on June 9.

The Boards of Directors of Disney and Pixar have approved the transaction, which is subject to clearance under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antritrust Improvements Act, certain non-United States merger control regulations, and other customary closing conditions. The agreement will require the approval of Pixar's shareholders. Jobs, who owns approximately 50.6% of the outstanding Pixar shares, has agreed to vote a number of shares equal to 40% of the outstanding shares in favor of the transaction.

The Disney Board was advised by Goldman, Sachs & Co. and Bear, Stearns & Co. The Pixar Board was advised by Credit Suisse.

Separately, the Disney Board approved the repurchase of approximately 225 million additional shares, bringing the Company's total available authorization to 400 million shares. Since August 2004 through the end of December 2005, Disney has invested nearly $4 billion to purchase nearly 155 million shares. Disney anticipates further significant share repurchases going forward, reflecting Disney's continued commitment to returning value to shareholders over time.

* Based on Disney's closing share price of $25.52 as of 1/23/06.



About The Walt Disney Company:
The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS), together with its subsidiaries and affiliates, is a leading diversified international family entertainment and media enterprise with four business segments: media networks, parks and resorts, studio entertainment and consumer products. Disney is a Dow 30 company, had annual revenues of nearly $32 billion in its most recent fiscal year, and a market capitalization of approximately $50 billion as of January 23, 2006.


Chris

Yeah, Pixar films are great not because of but in spite of their Disney involvement. I guarantee you that Disney will royally screw up Pixar. The executives are already creaming at the thought of meddling with the company. And that's ok, because another creative startup will rise up to challenge Disney just as Pixar did. In the interim I hope that Pixar employees get a piece of the 7.4B before they jump ship to build the next mouse slayer.

I was at Pixar on Saturday for a screening of The New World. our friend who works there was talking about this on the way over.

So....is this a good thing? Or a bad thing? On the other hand, I really hope Lasseter sets up another "hand-drawn" animation studio.

So, how long do you think it'll be before we hear news about Pixar starting work on Toy Story 3?