The deadline to place a bid to buy Midway is passed. Turns out, Warner Brothers was the only bidder, this there will be no auction.
As this article explains:
Times up! The deadline for submitting bids to buy Midway Games passed Wednesday afternoon with just one offer -- a $33-million deal from Warner Bros. to purchase most of the bankrupt Chicago company's assets.
After Warner Bros. lobbed its offer in May, Midway had hoped to spark a bidding war that would jack up the price. A Chicago investment group and several game publishers had been kicking the tires at Midway, according to a source familiar with the discussions. But none pulled the trigger on a deal.
"No other bids came in, so there's not going to be an auction," confirmed Midway's spokesman, Geoff Mogilner.
Before the deal goes through, the Delaware court overseeing Midway's bankruptcy will have to resolve complaints by several creditors about the acquisition process. One of those is producer Larry Kasanoff's Threshold Entertainment, which produced two previous "Mortal Kombat" films and claims it has exclusive big-screen and TV rights to the series. Also objecting to the sales process is Tigon Studios, a production company controlled by Vin Diesel, which claims it is owed $200,000 for the star's work on the recently released game "Wheelman."
The next court hearing to address those and other issues will be July 1. As soon as they are resolved and the bankruptcy court officially approves Warner Bros.' bid, the acquisition will close 10 days later, Mogilner said.
Warner Bros. declined to comment. An acquisition would buttress Warner's growing game portfolio, according to a report today in the Times.
The offer includes most, though not all, of Midway's assets, including the company's Mortal Kombat, Spy Hunter, Joust and Wheelman franchises. It also includes two of Midway's four development studios -- one in Chicago and another in Seattle. It remains unclear what will happen to the company's studio in Newcastle, U.K., which makes the Wheelman games, and its studio in San Diego, which is developing a wrestling game based on a license with TNA Entertainment. Those assets could potentially be sold to another buyer
The man who directed both MK movies is suing Midway for IP right, as this article explains:
The man who brought Mortal Kombat to the big screen has sued Midway in U.S. Bankruptcy Court over what he claims are his intellectual property interests in the franchise. The suit may interfere with a proposed $33 million sale of Midway assets to Warner Bros.
In a complaint filed yesteday, Lawrence Kasanoff, through his company, Threshold Entertainment, asked the Court to preserve his IP rights including copyrights to certain MK series characters. Kasanoff also wants to retain the right to create derivative film and television projects based on the popular fighting game franchise.
Kasanoff claims that it was he who made Mortal Kombat more than just a video game:
In 1993, Kasanoff visited Midway... with an idea to launch the Mortal Kombat concept in a totally new direction. Specifically, Kasanoff proposed to develop... a full feature-length motion picture, a television series, and other productions. Midway was initially skeptical, as Kasanoff's idea was revolutionary at the time...
The Mortal Kombat series, as it stands today, is far more a creation of Threshold and Kasanoff than of Midway. Midway's creative input was almost entirely limited to the videogames. On their own, the videogames provided only minimal back-story and mythology, and only flat, "stock" characters... Kasanoff and Threshold were responsible for virtually all of the creative input that went into turning the videogame concept into a multimedia enterprise.
In his lawsuit, Kasanoff also claims credit for making MK characters like Liu Kang, Sonya Blade and Scorpion into recognizable names. The suit estimates that the franchise has grossed more than $4 billion over the years.
In petitioning the Bankruptcy Court, Kasanoff seeks to block the proposed sale of Mortal Kombat assets to Warner Bros.
TStockley: @noobde What kind of soundtrack are you goin for this time? I'm kinda hoping for something with alot more guitar riffs ^_^
noobde: I'm psyched cuz Dan Forden is returning to do tunes for MK9.
For those who don't know who he is, Dan Forden is the one who created the music for the first several Mortal Kombat games. He's also the guy who screams, "Toasty!" and pops up on the screen after well-placed attacks, such as an uppercut.
Ed mentions it in his Twitter account, one post specifically saying, "You are absolutely right. People want an M-rated MK....dammit we will give them an M-rated MK."
Midway may not have been at this year's E3 expo, but Mortal Kombat creator Ed Boon has updated his twitter account, noobde, with some details on the future of the fighting franchise.
According to Boon, "[Mortal Kombat 9] is over a year away." The game, which has been said will not be a crossover game like the recent Mortal Kombat vs DC Universe, was announced in January. Although which platforms it will appear on is still a mystery. Boon would go on to say that it's probably too early to start discussing specific details about the game.
Due to their recent bankruptcy, all of Midway's assets (including the Mortal Kombat franchise) will go up for auction sometime in June. Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment (Midway's publishing partner on MK vs DCU) is expected to purchase the company. It's likely we'll find out more about Mortal Kombat 9 after the acquisition is complete.
MIDWAY ANNOUNCES TIMEFRAME FOR SECTION 363 SALE PROCESS
Assets for Sale Include Four Studios, European and North American Publishing Groups,
Iconic Mortal Kombat, TNA Wrestling License, Open World Games, Casual Games, and
Full Classic IP Library
Bid Groupings Can Be Formed with Multiple Interested Parties
to Compete with Stalking Horse Bid
CHICAGO � May 28, 2009 � Midway Games Inc. has established the timeline for the expected sale of Midway's assets to the highest bidders in accordance with the sale and bid procedures motion filed with the Bankruptcy Court pursuant to Section 363 of the United States Bankruptcy Code.
Midway recently announced a "stalking horse" asset purchase agreement, which is expected to receive court approval, subject to higher or better bids, in a hearing on June 2, 2009. Following this hearing, there will be a period during which Midway, through its financial advisor, Lazard, will accept binding offers up to June 24th, 2009, to acquire some or all of the Company's assets. An auction will be held on June 29th to determine the bid or combination of bids that achieves the highest value, followed by a court hearing to approve the sale to the winning bidder or bidders on July 1st, and then a final closing. All bids must comply with the bid procedures order to be issued at the hearing on June 2, 2009.
The "stalking horse" asset purchase agreement includes a significant portion of Midway's assets, however not all of the assets were included in the agreement. The bidding process allows for interested parties to bid on sets of assets including those not in the agreement, and multiple bidders can be formed into a group whose bids in the aggregate constitute a greater value than the initial stalking horse bid. Successful bidders will be buying only Midway's assets, and will not assume nor be responsible for any of the company's debt or liabilities, including any secured or unsecured notes, credit facilities, or trade obligations.
Midway's considerable intellectual property assets span some of the most successful sectors in the video game industry. Midway is well known for fighting games, with its more than $1.5 billion franchise, Mortal Kombat, as well as the video game license for the fastest-growing wrestling league, Total Nonstop Action (TNA) Wrestling. Midway's development teams are known worldwide for their expertise in fighting game mechanics, motion-capture integration, and AAA production values.
Midway also has strong capabilities in open-world... [Read More]
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