MGM Up for Sale

November 16, 2009 World Screen

LOS ANGELES: Burdened by nearly $4 billion in debt, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) has announced it is looking for a buyer.

The Hollywood studio is exploring a number of options, which include selling, merging with another media company or remaining independent with new equity investors.

While Time Warner, News Corporation, the private equity firm Qualia Capital and Lionsgate have emerged as potential buyers of MGM.

Estimates for the studio range from a low of $1.5 billion to a high of almost $3 billion.
 
A consortium that includes Sony, Comcast, Providence Equity Partners and the Quadrangle Group took MGM private in 2004 for $5 billion.
 
MGM owns the world’s largest library of contemporary films with approximately 4,000 titles and more than 10,400 episodes of television programming, including the movie franchises James Bond, Pink Panther and Rocky.