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Luke
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I just read what Jim said, and while IMO i think there is some accuracy, on the whole i think his 'inside info' is WAY off. For a start i don't believe negotiations with Disney were so far that the Henson and Disney press offices were discussing where to hold the press conference to announce the sale - thats just plain kooky.
However this time around he's saying that EMTV changed the terms of the deal at the last minute and i don't believe thats true either - as far as i knew the companies were free to pitch whatever they liked and the ones that couldn't get the financing for 100% were pitching for part ownership deals. I agree with him that Disney wouldn't have gone for part ownership but i also don't think there was any dramatic dropping of their bid - it just wasn't happening - i know there were some media reports but then they aren't always entirely accurate or just a result of some strategic leaking of info. In any case - how on earth does he suppose Disney goes from being interested and negotiating 'in' on the bidding one minute, to a practically completed deal the next ? Just doesn't make sense at all that. I think he's right that Disney dropped their interest because they would have heard hints that EMTV preferred a co-ownership deal because the company was selling for such a low price and also they'd probably have a good idea of what Valentine was proposing, but i also think they'd have been hesitant from the 'get go' to get involved with EMTV and their messy deals - the Haffa trial will be getting EMTV a lot of bad press this year. I just think most big companies want to stay away from the German media right now - it's too fragile.
The other thing i've gotta laugh about is when he says the smart money has always been on Valentine getting the Muppets and taking them back to Disney and co-producing videos and maybe theme park rides. Ummm - hasn't he been saying for ages that the Mouse was gonna be the ones to clinch the deal ? Wierd !
It's true what he says about the Valentine/Disney connections obviously and if they did need a co-producer then they might knock on Disney's door but with Valentine moving in at Henson rather than the Muppets being incorporated into some licensing company he doesn't actually need a co-production deal, Henson have a sound stage in the UK and studio space in Hollywood - all they need to do is negotiate the distribution deals and Valentine would be more than experienced to do that - it'd be nice maybe to see them work with Disney though. This is exactly the same situation you would have had, and he would have said if it had been Saban though - it's nothing new and definitely nothing solid.
So yeah it's a smart move for both Disney and EMTV. Disney wouldn't have worked well with EMTV, and by paying off the 'Junior Loan' AND retaining 50.1% in Henson they stand to profit from the future stuff if the Muppets take off under the new owners. There's still all the anniversary money to come in, and maybe a large sum of money from Sesame Workshop. It's way better than making such a loss on selling 100% for $80 million and saying goodbye to future profits. However, i think if Disney were to have offered $130 Million rather than the $80 Million that other companies were looking to offer they wouldn't have exactly been stopped from bidding !
So yeah IMO there's some elements of accuracy and truth in it from what i've heard, but he still has to find ways to cover up all the really innacurate stuff he's told or re-told in previous articles so thats been woven into it all as if he was never wrong in the first place.
