Amazon has recently confirmed its second largest acquisition ever, buying MGM Studios at the cost of £5.97 billion. This will be the tech giant’s most significant foray into the entertainment industry. Amazon’s most hefty purchase was of Whole Foods in 2017 where it was set back by £10.7 billion.
As competition in the streaming space gets increasingly fierce, companies like Amazon, HBO, Disney and Netflix are looking for new ways to stand out. To this end, they are dedicating bigger portions of their annual budget towards programme licensing and original content development.
Such content, referred to Jeff Bezos, Amazon CEO, as MGM’s ‘much beloved intellectual property’ will boost Amazon’s portfolio by 4000 films and 17,000 TV shows.
Bezos believes that the combined talent of Amazon and MGM, Amazon will be able to ‘reimagine and develop IP for the 21st century.’
The commercial fallout of the acquisition, however, is set to be so disruptive to the market that it is due an antitrust review. This is is a level of protection provided by US competition laws in cases where large market players engage in mergers and acquisitions. This is to ensure such moves do not make the marketplace less competitive and negatively impact consumers.
At Scintilla, we help innovative companies get a grip on their intellectual property. Our unique commercial approach combines registration of patents and trade marks with strategic input so that IP can be a springboard for business growth. If you would like to discuss your IP needs, do contact us or book a free initial consultation!