Speculation- Would Disney buy Bandai Namco?

[HellCat]

So obviously this week news was announced that Disney now own Lucasfilm, home stable of Star Wars. Prior to this they had purchased Marvel with most reports commenting on Disney being on an active streak of wanting to own strong, long term boys brands.
With the announcement of Bandai putting out a Disney combiner robot I have to wonder- could we in the next few years see Disney purchasing Bandai Namco for its own popular brands?

[JulieYBM]

If Disney were interested in moving into the video game business then picking up Nintendo would be a much better choice, even if Namco Bandai also have a merchandise component, Nintendo is more internationally relevent.

[Chris]

No. I don't think Bandai has anything that Disney would want. Like Jacob said, if they want a Japanese game company to expand into that world, Nintendo is the obvious choice.

[Arbiter GUNDAM]

And hasn't Nintendo said words to the effect of "We'd rather self-destruct than have anyone else own the company?"

[Destiny_Gundam]

Is Disney even in the habit of buying foreign companies?

[NastyNate]

Good topic idea. Disney has anime like naruto so it does not seem too impossible. I would like it so we could ginally get some gundam games and .Hack. They could make it succeed by advertising and airing their animes. I wonder how well these titles could do with disneys marketing.

[Destiny_Gundam]

Disney doesn't 'have' Naruto. They just have the broadcasting rights to it.

[2NA Fish]

Probably not a great move for Disney. Only a few of Bamco's IP's have anything close to mainstream appeal in the US, and it would be a waste to get the whole company just for those few.

They would do better to grab Square Enix though. Sqeenix aren't in a particularly strong position and thus would probably be cheaper than Bamco or Nintendo. And yet they still do have enough of a reputation in the games market that their name value would exceed their actual worth. Plus, they have ongoing collaborations with Disney.

[teslashark]

I think Sony should buy BN.

[Chris]

And hasn't Nintendo said words to the effect of "We'd rather self-destruct than have anyone else own the company?"

People say lots of things that change when obscene amounts of money are placed in front of them.

[bullethead]

Maybe... but I doubt it. On the one hand, there's tons of benefits for both sides. Disney gets some nice new IPs that have appeal in the East, tons of gaming stuff, and some anime IPs that have potential to appeal to the US. Banrise gets access to Disney's new tech for making 3D CG look more like 2D, more Western appealing IPs they make games for, and possible distribution of western appealing anime IPs through Disney (which means a better chance for dubs with more diverse casts).

The disadvantages? Disney will have to deal with tons of resistance from the Japanese end on just about anything, a lot of the Banrise back-catalog doesn't really fit any of Disney's current distribution channels (even Disney XD, which airs the surprisingly brutal Tron Uprising), and there's only a few IPs that have proven they have cross cultural appeal. For Banrise, the problem is basically Disney will probably try to stick their people in high places, want some more family friendly material by Western standards, a lot of their existing games aren't really going to be selling unless they make them digital games (which will cost money), and the fact that their own people will cause problems because of a difference in mindsets.

It would be better for Disney and Square Enix to get together and maybe get one anime studio - maybe Production IG, Madhouse, Gonzo, something like that. Sunrise is the biggest game in town, but anyone of those other studios would kill to get the kinds of resources Disney has and the chance to get a bigger market through working for Disney would make that kind of deal highly appealing.

[DuelGundam2099]

Sega would probably be much cheaper for Disney than Nintendo.

[Gisol888]

If Disney would buy Bandai, this would be the end of gundam as we know it.
But maybe it wouldn't be bad if gundam would be with real persons and real actors!
In the avatar movie there were these robots with humans who controlled them from the inside. That was pretty cool.

But i think Disney will buy Hollywood! Or maybe Hollywood Disney!^^

greetings gisol!

Ps. This forum is awesome!

[Amion]

If Disney would buy Bandai, this would be the end of gundam as we know it.
But maybe it wouldn't be bad if gundam would be with real persons and real actors!
In the avatar movie there were these robots with humans who controlled them from the inside. That was pretty cool.

But i think Disney will buy Hollywood! Or maybe Hollywood Disney!^^

greetings gisol!

Ps. This forum is awesome!

Heh, somehow I don't see the RX-78 fitting in too well in Disney Parks. And as far as live action, I get the feeling Disney would do research long enough to come across a certain live action Gundam production. Unlike Star Wars, which has always been a hit live action production, Gundam....Bandai's request we forget Savior exists sums it up nicely, and I feel Disney would probably take the hint.

Besides, the idea of Gundam being bought out by a western media giant like Disney seems vaguely absurd to me. After imagining what will happen with Star Wars (not that I really care at this point in its life) I don't want to fantasize Mickie's silhouette transforming into Haro before the show starts (they do look similar with the whole ears thing you know) *munches as chocolate bar for emphasis*

[Outlaw]

And hasn't Nintendo said words to the effect of "We'd rather self-destruct than have anyone else own the company?"

I believe the statement you're referring to is when they said they would sooner shut down the company than stop making consoles.

People say lots of things that change when obscene amounts of money are placed in front of them.

If this were any other company I would probably agree but, Nintendo is just so... Nintendo. Besides I think the whole venture would just be too financially risky for the normally cash conservative Nintendo.



I think Disney would be more likely to buy a third party developer and sell their games on multiple consoles rather than buying Nintendo and go first party. So, I think Namco/Bandai is more likely than Nintendo but, either is rather unlikely. If they wanted to do video games I think they'd purchase a small to mid sized developer and fold it into Disney Interactive. If they wanted to pick up an anime company I'd say the obvious choice would be Ghibli.

[Gisol888]

Well, i agree with the outlaw

greetings Gisol!

[Destiny_Gundam]

In the first place it's pretty silly to be going "Disney should buy this next!" They're not going to buy up every single thing just because they can (and they sure as hell can). Especially not some Japanese company that has little relevance to the west (not talking about Nintendo). Both Marvel and Star Wars are huge cultural icons that are a pretty big deal over here. They are worth owning are sure to bring Disney even more money in the future.

[HellCat]

In the first place it's pretty silly to be going "Disney should buy this next!"

I don't think anyone has actually said that. I myself floated the question of would they do it based on current trends. I never said I actually wanted it to happen and I don't think anyone else in the thread has either. Me asking if it might happen was based on Disney's stated goal to buy out established boys brands and the fact they're a very global minded company. There may well be brands that are massive in certain regions which benefit them to have a lockdown on.

[Kratos]

The thing is, Star Wars and Marvel (as of its grossly successful film franchise) are both a big deal not just here, but internationally as well. What does Bandai have that can claim anywhere near the success of either? The vast majority of its properties are only big in Asia/Japan, and are niche at best elsewhere.

[HellCat]

Apparently Disney are now looking to buy Hasbro. So I guess if they wanted a toy company with global brands, that's an answer.