Both The Hollywood Reporter and The Wall Street Journal reported that DreamWorks Animation is being targeted for acquisition by Japanese Telecom Giant SoftBank.
The Verge reports that DreamWorks Animations' stock prices are largely dependent on the success or failure of the animation movie it produces. The Animation studio produces two to three films a year. The same report also said that out of the five recent films it produced; only two were regarded as hits. The two recent hits were "Crood" and "How To Train Your Dragon 2"
Considered small by Hollywood standards, DreamWorks Animation has produced some of the most successful animated movie franchises. Over the years, the studio has produced popular animated movies such as Madagascar, Shrek and How to Train Your Dragon.
SoftBank may have plans to use DreamWorks Animation's contents to help improve the competitiveness of its newly acquired U.S. telecom company - Sprint. The Japanese Telecom giant is seeking ways to make Sprint the largest telecom company in the United States. Currently Sprint lags behind rival companies AT&T and Verizon.
A few months ago, SoftBank tried but failed in its negotiation to merge Sprint and another telecom company, T-Mobile. U.S. regulators did not approve the merger deal. T-Mobile is currently the fourth largest telecom company in the United States. SoftBank seems to be employing a different tack this time. The possible purchase of DreamWorks Animation will not only help Sprint, but may also be used in SoftBank's home market - Japan.
The details of the proposed deal have yet to be made public. But sources privy to the negotiation claims that SoftBank is prepared to buy DreamWorks Animation at $32 USD per share. The studio's shares are currently trading at $22 USD. There are no words yet if the propose purchase price is acceptable to DreamWorks Animation's shareholders.
DreamWorks Animation is originally a part of its mother company DreamWorks. SoftBank is currently one of the three top wireless telecom companies in Japan. SoftBank's Chief Executive Officer is Masayoshi Son.
