Hollywood.com (HOLL)
is looking to make waves with its latest planned acquisition that’ll take
it from the big-screen to Broadway.
Straight from the cut-ups that created the wildly popular Sci-Fi Channel,
the newcomers are on the move to add a little sophistication to a otherwise
steady diet of Captain Kirk and Mr. Spock.
For a cool two and half million bucks, Hollywood.com has unveiled plans to
scoop up BroadwayTheater.com, expanding from theater to theatre.
The latest addition anchors a newly launched Broadway.com portal that’s smartly
devoted to the wide world of live stage entertainment. The hybrid will host
show info, ticket sales, and bios on your favorite Broadway stars.
Don’t look now, but Hollywood.com is headed from the doghouse to the
penthouse, with strategic moves that include the handy acquisition of
CinemaSource, an online source for movie showtimes. And add
CBS’ (CBS)
longstanding practice of swapping equity for air time that led to a $100
million ad exchange for a 35% equity stake in Hollywood.
The company hit the new issues market pre-Internet back in 1994 as Big
Entertainment. Started as an offline memorabilia biz that included hawking
movie studio trinkets, action figures, and T-shirts, Big E burst onto the
Web with its $31 million land-grab of movie supersite Hollywood.com from
Times Mirror (TMC).
Not surprisingly, the company scrambled to adopt the far sexier, snazzy
Hollywood.com nomenclature as its own. Overnight, the up-and-comer added
movie reviews, trailers, and an extensive collection of cinema content to
its basket of offerings.
There’s plenty of rivals competing for investor dollars, but this latest
deal looks like a step in the right direction to add an additional revenue
stream, and boost its sagging share price.
Despite struggling near its 52-week low, Hollywood has a full plate ahead.
With its soon-to-launch ambitious MovieTickets.com joint venture
alongside AMC Entertainment scheduled to launch this summer, investors
should get an eye-full of this rising star coming to a theater near you.
Any questions or comments, love letters or hate mail? As always, feel free
to forward them to kblack@internet.com.
DealTracker scorecard: Hollywood.com/BroadwayTheater.com | |
| Investor sentiment | A- |
| Terms of the deal | A- |
| Industry outlook | B+ |
| Overall scorecard | A- |
