The sale of Marvel comics to Disney was recently approved by Marvel shareholders. Each share owned by the shareholders brought in $54.03. The final purchase price of Marvel by Disney was $4.24 billion. The purchase by Disney is their largest since they purchased the animation company, Pixar Animation Studios, the maker of Cars, Up and Toy Story.
Isaac ‘Ike’ Perlmutter, Marvel Chief Executive, will maintain his position at Marvel where he oversees all business and he will have to report to Disney CEO Robert Iger. Iger was quoted saying that the sale can help Disney increase profits.
Some 6,000 Marvel characters were included in the sale. Some of the more popular Marvel characters included are Captain America, Spiderman, Daredevil, Wolverine, Cyclops, Iron Man, Hulk, Thor, Dr. Strange, Ghost Rider, Sub Mariner, Green Goblin, and King Pin.
In a separate deal, Disney took 10% control of POW! Entertainment for $2.5 million. POW! is run by Stan Lee, who created many of the popular Marvel characters. Lee said that they agreed upon a three-year relationship with Disney where they will provide Disney greater rights to their creative output & exclusive consulting services. Stan Lee is considered the creator of Spiderman.