Hasbro, Inc. has finalized its acquisition of Entertainment One Ltd. (eOne) in an all-cash transaction valued at some $3.8 billion, completing an agreement announced back in August.
eOne is a global independent studio that specializes in the development, acquisition, production, financing, distribution and sales of entertainment content. The company’s diversified expertise spans across film, television and music production and sales, family programming, merchandising and licensing, and digital content. eOne’s family includes international feature film distribution company Sierra/Affinity; Amblin Partners with DreamWorks Studios, Participant Media, and Reliance Entertainment; Makeready with Brad Weston; unscripted television production companies Whizz Kid Entertainment and Renegade 83; live entertainment leaders Round Room Entertainment; music labels Dualtone Music Group and Last Gang; and emerging content and technology studio Secret Location.
“We are excited about what we can do together and see tremendous opportunity for shareholder value creation through this acquisition,” said Brian Goldner, Hasbro chairman and CEO. “Our businesses are highly complementary with substantial synergies and a great cultural fit. The addition of eOne accelerates our blueprint strategy by expanding our brand portfolio with eOne’s beloved global preschool brands, adding proven TV and film expertise, and creating additional opportunities for long-term profitable growth.”
Darren Throop, president and CEO of eOne, will report to Goldner. In addition, eOne’s Olivier Dumont, president, family & brands, Steve Bertram, president, film & television, and Chris Taylor, global president, music, will also be joining Hasbro, reporting to Throop.
When the Hasbro-eOne deal was announced this past summer, Throop stated, “Hasbro’s portfolio of integrated toy, game and consumer products, will further fuel the tremendous success we’ve achieved at eOne. There’s a strong cultural fit between our two companies; eOne’s stated mission is to unlock the power and value of creativity which aligns with Hasbro’s corporate objectives. eOne teams will continue to do what they do best, bolstered by the access to Hasbro’s extensive portfolio of richly creative IP and merchandising strength. In addition, the resulting expanded Hasbro presence in Canada through eOne’s deep roots will bring world class talent and production capabilities to Hasbro.”
The acquisition was positioned in that initial announcement as advancing Hasbro’s position as a leading global play and entertainment company, adding global preschool brands with proven success and strong financial returns across platforms to Hasbro’s strong portfolio. eOne’s capabilities to bring high-quality content across platforms in turn strengthen Hasbro’s end-to-end ability to monetize and bring to market its IP in increasingly attractive new formats, including over-the-top (OTT) and premium platforms, music, location-based entertainment, AR and VR.
