Rumor: Apple holding talks with MGM over possible acquisition

MGM has reportedly been courting Apple and Netflix over a potential acquisition deal, going so far as to hold preliminary talks reports CNBC.

This isn’t the first such rumor about such an acquisition. In December 2019,  The Wall Street Journal said Apple was looking into deals for rights to MGM Holdings (as well as Pac-12 college sports content) for its Apple TV+ streaming service. A deal with MGM Holdings would apparently give Apple rights to stream such properties as the James Bond films, movies such as The Silence of the Lambs, and TV shows such as Fargo. 

So far Apple has focused exclusively on original content for its streaming service. Negotiations with MGM and the Pac-12 suggest the company is at least considering making other TV shows and movies available (a la Netflix, Amazon Prime, and Hulu), as well live sports.

Deadline says a deal MGM could fetch as much as $10 billion, some of these people said. The company is owned by several private-equity firms, including Anchorage Capital.vApple could offer the shows and films on demand or create new versions of them without having to pay licensing fees.

Chances the rumor is true, according to the Sellers Research Group (that’s me): 75%. Once I would have said no way, but, as CNBC notes, “buying an existing studio with experienced media executives may make sense [for Apple], especially if the company, such as MGM, is heavy on intellectual property and light on people.