The rivalry between streaming services continues to heat up, as Amazon announced its successful US$8.5 billion acquisition of movie studio Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM), which marks the company’s biggest takeover in five years.
The news comes two days after the European Union’s antitrust regulator greenlit the deal, noting that the “transaction would raise no competition concerns” since the “overlaps” between both business are “limited”. Amazon agreed in May last year to buy MGM to expand its library offerings, but the pact has since been trapped in the regulatory process till now.
“The storied, nearly century-old studio—with more than 4,000 film titles, 17,000 TV episodes, 180 Academy Awards, and 100 Emmy Awards—will complement Prime Video and Amazon Studios’ work in delivering a diverse offering of entertainment choices to customers,” reads an Amazon post on the acquisition.
What this means is that fans can expect classics such as The Silence of the Lambs, Raging Bull, and The Magnificent Seven, alongside franchise favourites like James Bond, Rocky, Creed, and RoboCop on Amazon’s video streaming service. The show catalogue, meanwhile, includes Fargo, The Handmaid’s Tale, and Vikings.
The addition of MGM’s huge collection may just be the edge Amazon needs to stand its ground against the likes of Netflix, HBO Max, and Disney+, especially with the possibility for more original works. Content, after all, is gold when it comes to the consumer.
Si Jia is a casual geek at heart – or as casual as someone with Sephiroth’s theme on her Spotify playlist can get. A fan of movies, games, and Japanese culture, Si Jia’s greatest weakness is the Steam Summer Sale. Or any Steam sale, really.
