Bagdasarian Productions, owner of the iconic Alvin and the Chipmunks franchise, is seeking a buyer, people with knowledge of the matter have told CNBC, as it looks to cash in on the premium prices that media companies and private equity investors have been willing to pay for intellectual property.
 |
| Alvin and the Chipmunks pose on their just unveiled Hollywood Walk of Fame Star during a ceremony in Hollywood, California on March 14, 2019 in celebration of their 60th anniversary. Frederic J. Brown | AFP | Getty Images |
The company, owned and operated by Ross Bagdasarian Jr. and his wife, Janice Karman, has held talks with several potential buyers, including ViacomCBS, but hasn’t come to an agreement on terms, said the people, who asked not to be named because the negotiations are private.
Bagdasarian Productions is working with a financial advisor and has been looking for a price of about $300 million, two of the people said.
Streaming services such as ViacomCBS’ Paramount+, WarnerMedia’s HBO Max, and Netflix have been on the hunt for intellectual property to bulk up their subscription offerings. Netflix said in September it acquired the catalog of Roald Dahl, author of children’s books including Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, James and the Giant Peach and Matilda. Bloomberg reported the deal cost more than $700 million.
Private equity firms including Carlyle, Providence Equity, Apollo Global and Blackstone have also expressed interest in acquiring content.
Alvin and the Chipmunks was created by Bagdasarian Jr.’s father, Ross Bagdasarian Sr., in 1958 as a children’s music act. The Alvin Show began in 1961, featuring the three animated singing chipmunks — Alvin, Simon and Theodore — with sped-up voices to give them their trademark high-pitched sound. Several iterations of TV shows and films followed, including an Alvin and the Chipmunks movie in 2007 and three sequels. The current series, ALVINNN!!! and The Chipmunks, airs on Nickelodeon channels globally and is available to stream on Paramount+ in the U.S. The series has been renewed up until at least season 7.
Bagdasarian Jr. and Karman have both long been involved with the franchise. In addition to running Bagdasarian Productions, they have both also voiced the characters as well, with Bagdasarian Jr. taking over the voices following his father's death in 1972.
Bagdasarian Jr. and Karman run the franchise from their home in Santa Barbara, California. They engaged financial firms to sell the company about four years ago, according to a person familiar with the matter, but ultimately scrapped those discussions.
CNBC called the phone number on the Bagdasarian Productions Facebook page to seek comment. The person who took the call said, “There’s no one here that can speak to you about that” and then hung up.
Original source: ComicBook.com.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Have your say by leaving a comment below! NickALive! welcomes friendly and respectful comments. Please familiarize with the blog's Comment Policy before commenting. All new comments are moderated and won't appear straight away.