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merelyadoptedthedark t1_j8znte8 wrote

Reply to comment by R0LL0T0MAS1 in Vince McMahon Wants $9 Billion for His WWE Wrestling Media Empire by Sisiwakanamaru

I think Disney bought Lucasfilm for $4b.

Which also included Indiana Jones.

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Couldnotbehelpd t1_j90hb4q wrote

To be fair, I think they got an extreme deal on Star Wars. They made back the money in merch before the first movie was out, or something insane like that.

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HunterXxX360 t1_j90m77n wrote

Yeah it was a steal! But I think the state of Star Wars back then was a burden for Lucas, who knew something bigger than Clone Wars had to be done in the next decade and he just wasn’t able to endure another trilogy (and seeing how difficult it seems to „just“ make a good trilogy and the hate that follows a bod one, I can see what his difficulties were). And he didn’t need to share with anyone, how many billions does one guy need in the latter half of his life?

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Particular_Sun8377 t1_j944aq1 wrote

He was getting old and I don't think any of his kids were interested in running his company.

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deathmouse t1_j90j251 wrote

In cash and stock. Lucas has made over $10 billion from the deal.

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no_name_left_to_give t1_j91pn5n wrote

Yeah, I think he's Disney's second largest shareholder after Steve Jobs' widow.

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Worthyness t1_j93cup5 wrote

I believe Steve's widow cashed put. Unfortunately I think Murdoch is now up there due to the fox sale

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bronxct1 t1_j94b3ts wrote

Murdoch doesn’t have a large Disney holding. Outside of the institutions which now have the biggest positions in Disney, the largest individual shareholders are now Iger, the CFO and board members.

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plaidtattoos t1_j91k2h4 wrote

And the company that made Candy Crush was bought for just under $6 billion, so I've definitely accepted the fact that I don't know how any of this works.

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smokeyjay t1_j9216ni wrote

The game pulled in 1-1.2 billion annual revenues. 6 billion is super reasonable considering the game likely has high margins.

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Khend81 t1_j92tzbm wrote

I don’t think anybody is questioning that it has made that much, as much as they are trying to question how the hell something so simple and useless can be worth so much money

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smokeyjay t1_j92uh8n wrote

Because an investment is judged by how quickly someone can get a return on their investment. Candy crush made 1.2 billion this year alone and is still growing. It turned out to be a great investment as they investment has paid back well over 6 billion.

I could sell a literal piece of shit but if ppl are willing to pay $100 for it, then thats how much its worth.

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Khend81 t1_j92urnh wrote

Nah I get it, I just can’t put myself in the minds of the people who contributed in 2022 to making candy crush 1.2 billion dollars.

It lost my interest after about a day or two over a decade ago. It’s wild that people are still shelling this ridiculous amount of cash out to a game that is basically identical to a multitude of free alternatives

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AmberDuke05 t1_j91vbdn wrote

People must understand this every time. Lucas didn’t get $4 billion in cash, he got $4 billion in Disney Stock. It only has gone up in value but also gave him stake at Disney.

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likwitsnake t1_j91uca6 wrote

That was 11 years ago, it would go for much more if it were to happen today.

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merelyadoptedthedark t1_j923pmk wrote

If Disney didn't buy it back then and pump loads of marketing into the brand and create new content, why would it be worth more now, aside from inflationary reasons, that is.

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Jasperbeardly11 t1_j92fpar wrote

Well that was 11 years ago so it would probably have another movie or two which would probably increase its value. It probably would actually be going for about 9 billion today and I say that haven't done no actual math and not standing behind my evaluation

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cmlucas1865 t1_j921p2v wrote

Yeah but all of that sale is assets & IPs.

WWE is assets, IPs, live broadcast, ticketing & a fan culture that still engages in pay-per-view.

Honestly, for the right leader with the right strategy, WWE is a Lucasfilm level asset with millions in ticket sales in any given week, with millions in residuals. From a pure revenue/cash flow perspective, WWE is one helluva business. It has an almost guaranteed weekly, monthly & annual cash flow regardless of whether or not the current storylines stick. Much easier for WWE to recover quickly from a Solo- or ROS-situation with no brand damage than for Star Wars to be exiled to TV with no box office revenue for 5 years while they figure out what to do with it.

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merelyadoptedthedark t1_j923fpb wrote

>that still engages in pay-per-view.

WWE hasn't done proper PPVs in ages. That strategy went away with the WWE Network, and they are no longer even called pay-per-views, they are now officially called premium live events.

Buying Lucasfilm also included Industrial Light and Magic and Skywalker Sound, so there were still tangible money generating assets included completely outside of the Star Wars brand.

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