Amazon to buy iconic Hollywood movie studio MGM?

With the advent of streaming services, independent movie studios in Hollywood have found themselves getting absorbed by OTT behemoths to keep up with the times. MGM, the last big independent Hollywood movie studio, might be the latest addition to this list with Amazon reportedly in talks to acquire the studio.

The deal is reported to help build on the content that Amazon’s Prime Video service already offers. The purpose of this acquisition is to cater to the swift-paced changes in the world of digital streaming platforms, especially in the times of a pandemic. If Amazon is able to cement the deal, the streaming giant will add over 4,000 movies like James Bond, Rocky, Pink Panther, the Hobbit franchise and Legally Blonde to its catalogue. MGM has already faced difficulties in finding the right window to release No Time To Die due to the pandemic.

Keeping in mind the scale of MGM as a studio in Hollywood, Amazon has apparently agreed to shell out $5 billion to $10 billion for the deal according to the New York Times and The Information. Reports have also stated that the deal has been orchestrated by Amazon Studios and Prime Video senior vice president Mike Hopkins, along with MGM board chairman Kevin Ulrich.

Amazon Prime Video, which is in close competition with Netflix, could possibly dominate the landscape of streaming services by acquiring the digital rights to MGM movies. The news of this apparent deal has come soon after AT&T’s WarnerMedia and Discovery announced that the two would merge.

In December 2020, The Wall Street Journal had reported that MGM was exploring its options and planning on selling the digital rights to its films, after having fired its chief executive in 2018 for entering into unapproved talks with Apple to sell the studio for $6 billion. Both MGM and Amazon Prime Video are yet to confirm the terms and conditions of the deal.