It’s Bezos’s second biggest acquisition ever: Amazon has snatched up film production company Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) for around 8.5 billion US dollars, paying a lot more than industry experts have said the storied company is worth today. Only the takeover of the organic supermarket chain Whole Foods in 2017 was more expensive for Amazon, costing the e-commerce giant around $13.7 billion.
Yet, the investment in MGM could pay off for Amazon. The film studio with the roaring lion in its logo not only offers the possibility of producing new movies, but also holds the rights to over 4,000 existing films. The portfolio includes the James Bond and Rocky Balboa franchises as well as the critically acclaimed series The Handmaid’s Tale. The acquisition will therefore significantly expand Amazon's streaming service Prime Video both quantitatively and qualitatively, once more heightening the already cut-throat competition among streaming services.
