The New York Times > Business > Media & Advertising > Sony-Led Group Makes a Late Bid to Wrest MGM From Time Warner

The New York Times > Business > Media & Advertising > Sony-Led Group Makes a Late Bid to Wrest MGM From Time Warner "A consortium led by the Sony Corporation of America reached a tentative agreement yesterday to buy Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, the Hollywood studio famous for James Bond and the Pink Panther, for about $4.8 billion in cash, snatching it from Time Warner at the 11th hour.
The deal, which ends an auction that was filled with behind-the-scenes machinations for months, included one last surprise twist: Comcast, the cable giant, joined Sony's consortium as a strategic partner and a possible investor.
...
While MGM may be famous for making films like "The Wizard of Oz," under the plan being developed by the Sony-led group, most of the movie studio operation would be shut down. Sony would license and distribute MGM's most valuable asset, its library of more than 4,000 films. Only the studio's best-known film series, like James Bond, would continue to be produced under the MGM brand through Sony."

Go figure...