Chapter 146: Chapter 146: Marvel
The day after Marvel' shareholder meeting, Charles received the stock sale agreement from the smaller shareholders. However, Charles was most concerned with Ike Perlmutter's shares in Marvel.
As long as Charles held 90% of the shares, he could apply for a forced privatization and reclaim the remaining shares.
However, in three days, Charles believed that Ike Perlmutter would make the right choice.
"Phyllis, have someone purchase the adaptation rights for Cecily von Ziegesar's bestselling teen novel Gossip Girl. Capet Television needs to develop more TV series, and a teen drama isn't a bad choice," Charles instructed, given that he had already discussed the topic with Megan Fox. It needed immediate action.
"Gossip Girl? It sold a lot of copies since its publication in '02," Phyllis Jones noted. The love stories of rich kids easily captivated teenage girls.
The teen romance genre had always been a niche market and wasn't particularly beloved in the film industry.
"What if the rights are already with another producer?" Phyllis inquired.
Charles glanced at her and smiled, "Then we'll just have Capet Television support them in development. A producer who eyes that adaptation right understands a lot!"
"By the way, George Martin's novel A Song of Ice and Fire published its fourth volume this year, right? I'd like to acquire the adaptation rights to this novel too."
Phyllis Jones was startled, "Boss, Martin has already refused many companies!"
A Song of Ice and Fire was incredibly popular. The first book, A Game of Thrones, the second, A Clash of Kings, and the third, A Storm of Swords, were all published before the year 2000.
This year, George Martin published the fourth volume, A Feast for Crows.
Such a popular, large-scale IP wasn't just about simple novel rights transactions anymore but required an in-depth collaboration with the author.
Film, TV, and merchandise profits all needed to be negotiated. The author would be involved in the preparation and adaptation process. Most crucially, the film company's budget for adapting the novel was a significant factor.
A Song of Ice and Fire had shades of The Lord of the Rings; it was an American epic fantasy novel.
"Looks like convincing George Martin won't be an easy task!" Charles murmured, rubbing his chin. "Go ahead and make contact first; we can propose a high production budget if necessary."
However, even though TV series with a per-episode budget of over a million dollars were not uncommon anymore, most series still did not reach that mark.
For instance, the first season of Prison Break had a per-episode budget of about $1.6 million, marking it as a high-quality production.
HBO, Showtime, and Starz were willing to invest heavily; they had broad content ranges and relied on subscription fees instead of ads.
ABC, NBC, and CBS primarily relied on advertising; channels like TBS, A&E, FX, and USA had some broader scopes and generated revenue from both ads and subscriptions.
To develop A Song of Ice and Fire with a $5 million per episode budget now felt unattainable for Charles. He didn't even own a TV network, and partnering with other networks seemed unprofitable!
Consider DreamWorks partnering with HBO to develop the epic war TV series Band of Brothers. DreamWorks did make a lot of money, but HBO's earnings from Band of Brothers were unimaginable to DreamWorks.
"Boss, should I have Mr. Winston get in touch with Mr. Martin?" Phyllis Jones suggested.
Charles nodded, deciding to have Henry Winston make initial contact, knowing he might have to step in personally later.
"Should we attend the premiere of Mr. & Mrs. Smith tonight at Mann's Theatre in Westwood District?" Phyllis Jones asked.
Charles shook his head, "Universal has set a $65 million distribution and promotion budget, plus the high popularity and rumors involving Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie. I'm not worried at all about the movie's marketing!"
Today was Tuesday. Mr. & Mrs. Smith was set to release in North America on Friday the 10th, along with some international simultaneous releases.
...
Meanwhile, at Disney, the Weinstein brothers, founders of Miramax, formally left the Disney Group.
Along with the Weinstein brothers left Dimension Films and 130 million dollars in cash, and the newly formed Weinstein International Pictures inked a distribution deal with MGM.
Furthermore, Disney Group CEO Michael Eisner stepped down early, with Disney COO Robert Iger taking over as CEO after a board meeting.
The battle over the new generation of high-definition DVD formats also intensified. The Blu-ray consortium, led by Sony and joined by Panasonic, Samsung, and Philips, was up against the HD-DVD alliance spearheaded by Toshiba, with support from Microsoft, Intel, and NEC.
Content-wise, the stance of Hollywood's six major studios was critical. Sony, controlling Columbia Pictures and MGM, also convinced Disney to support Blu-ray.
The main supporters of HD-DVD were Universal and DreamWorks, with Toshiba nearing a deal to bring Paramount into the fold.
Despite the six studios' support, many companies would still release high-definition DVDs in both formats.
In recent years, DVD sales in North America created a market worth around $25 billion annually, while the North American box office market brought in less than $10 billion a year!
Home entertainment remained the largest portion of film revenue, making it impossible for Hollywood studios to ignore.
The battle over the new generation of high-definition DVDs made the alignment of the six studios crucial. Exclusive format release agreements were a focal point of contention between the camps.
At the same time, Charles' pressure and incentives on Marvel shareholders bore fruit. Several shareholders, including Ike Perlmutter, agreed to sell their shares.
In Marvel's large conference room, Ike Perlmutter stared at the 460 million-dollar check for a moment and then cursed, "Fuck!"
Charles had acquired a majority of Marvel's shares, spending 850 million dollars and amassing 92% of the shares, allowing him to forcefully privatize the company and reclaim the remaining shares.
"Ike, I've made sure you can continue enjoying the Atlantic views from your beach house in Miami and that your children can attend Ivy League schools. At the very least, you should say thank you," Charles' piercing eyes scanned the room. "Instead of a damn 'fuck!'"
After a few seconds of silence, under Charles' gaze, Ike Perlmutter finally said, "Thank you!"
"No need," Charles said, taking a sip of coffee, "now get the hell out of my company."
A lack of realization about one's defeat always made Charles unhappy.
*****
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