It’s a done deal: classic albums by the likes of Snoop Dogg, Tupac and Chuck Berry now have a new home, with US-based toy giant Hasbro officially confirming today (December 30) that it has completed its acquisition of Entertainment One.
The final deal price was slightly smaller than initially anticipated at the US dollar level: the all-cash transaction is valued at approximately £2.9bn. Converted at a rate of 1.31 USD/GBP on December 30, 2019, that makes the buyout worth approximately US$3.8 billion.
Following the acquisition, Darren Throop, President and CEO of eOne, will report to Brian Goldner, Hasbro Chairman and CEO.
Chris Taylor, eOne’s Global President, Music, will also be joining Hasbro, reporting to Throop.
“We are excited about what we can do together and see tremendous opportunity for shareholder value creation through this acquisition,” said Goldner. “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. We are pleased to welcome the incredibly talented eOne team to our Company.”
Today’s announcement comes a month after the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) began inviting comments from interested parties (including rival companies) to determine whether the eOne buyout warranted a full scale review.
eOne’s music assets include Death Row Records, home to recordings from the likes of Snoop Dogg, Dr. Dre and Tupac Shakur. It also owns the likes of Dualtone Music Group (home to The Lumineers’ catalog) and Last Gang Entertainment, in addition to controlling catalog recordings from Brandy, Wu Tang Clan, Chuck Berry and more.
eOne Music acquired UK-based production music house, Audio Network, for approximately $215m in April this year.
That, at prevailing exchange rate, was worth GBP £165m, which, in turn, represented a 17-times multiple on Audio Network’s annual operating income (£9.62m) in 2018, according to the British company’s latest annual filings.
In 2018, according to eOne’s latest annual report – prior to its Audio Network acquisition – eOne Music turned over £64.4 million ($78.7m).
That comprised just 6.8% of eOne’s company-wide total FY revenue of £941.2m ($1.15bn).
eOne’s lucrative non-music IP includes the likes of kids’ TV shows Peppa Pig and PJ Masks.Music Business Worldwide
