Restaurants and bars reopen at the Park MGM and NoMad
Restaurants and bars reopen at the Park MGM and NoMad
Park MGM on Las Vegas Strip to reopen Sept. 30 as smoke
Currently Closed - Park MGM
NoMad & Park MGM: 2 New Hotels Taking the Las Vegas Strip
Park MGM & NoMad Las Vegas Officially Reopen As The Strip
MGM Resorts sees regional properties helping fuel company
Welcome Back - MGM Resorts
Pools & Cabanas - Park MGM
Park MGM to Be First Entirely Non-Smoking Resort in Las Vegas
The Park Vegas - MGM Resorts
is park mgm open now
is park mgm open now - win
Funko (FNKO) - Stop Toying Around
Hi all, To celebrate the return of Undervalued to the Reddit community, I decided to put together a quick DD and post it on a stock that I have had my eye on for a little while. It's still a "work-in-progress" and I may potentially update it later on Reddit with more information or detail if I have time at some point in the future. If you have any opinions, thoughts, or additional information, please share it. Positive. Negative. Neutral. All information is helpful and informative to the community. (I thought the feedback received from my first DD posted to this sub was quite helpful and I look forward to what you have to say.) Thank you to u/BuyLowSellNever for turning the sub back on; allowing us to share and discuss ideas with the broader community in a thoughtful and respectful manner. Best wishes. - LA Funko (FNKO) Share Price (1/28/21) : $11.97 Share Price (09/16/19) : $27.86 Short Interest (1/26/21) : 14% Next Earnings Release: March 2021 Funko Inc. is an American company that manufactures licensed pop culture collectibles, best known for its licensed vinyl figurines and bobbleheads. They have over 1,000 licenses across music, video games, film, TV, sports and many other pop culture properties. Some of their most popular licensed brands include Marvel, Disney, Star Wars, Pokemon, Fortnite, NBA, NFL, MLB, DC Comics, and a variety of anime properties. Several points below support the belief that Funko’s revenue grew during the 2020 holiday season and could continue well into 2021: · Increasing search traffic for Funko products · Direct sales growth is driving increased revenue and profitability · Parents are buying more gifts for their kids due to COVID · People have more disposable income from staying at home and not going out · Expansion of new products and licensees continuing through 2021 · Collectible investments like Funko POP! figures are exploding in value and popularity · Recent analyst commentary, valuation, and financials are positive FUNKO’S SEARCH TRAFFIC REACHES AN ALL-TIME HIGH IN Q4 2020 “Funko” google trends search traffic was up 20-30% in Q4 2020 (vs. Q4 2019) Searches for “Funko” were up 2x in December vs the beginning of November 2020 After falling in December, “Funko” searches are trending back up to all-time-high levels FUNKO’S DIRECT SALES INITIATIVES DRIVING HIGHER REVENUE & MARGIN Funko Direct Sales (B2C) grew significantly in Q3 and likely to continue into Q4 · B2C business as a percentage of sales increased to 8% in Q3 2020 from 4% during the prior year. · Funko’s e-commerce site grew over 150% vs. the prior year in Q3 2020 · The number of SKU’s on Funko’s e-commerce site rose tenfold since June 2020 “We went from only 200 of our own products [on our website] as late as June this year, to now well over 2,000 products available on our website.” – Funko CEO, Brian Mariotti Funko’s first ever Selena Pop! sold out online in just 40 minutes. Funko’s Q3 2020 Gross Profit % and Operating Margin % were near all-time-highs for the company · Funko’s Q3 Gross Profit Percentage of 38.6% was its second highest ever (behind only Q1 2020) · Funko’s Q3 Operating Profit Percentage of 10.8% was its second highest ever (behind only Q4 2018) · As Funko continues to grow it’s B2C e-commerce sales in Q4 and beyond, it is possible that gross profit and operating profit percentages could rise as well Retail customers were able to shift their Brick & Mortar inventory to their e-commerce channels to Funko unit sales · Funko resellers who didn’t sell online were severely impacted by Brick & Mortar closures during COVID stay-at-home orders. As 2020 progressed, some of these retailers were able to create online stores (e.g.- Shopify, Amazon, eBay, etc.) through which they could sell their Funko inventory. · Larger retailers that already had an omni-channel presence were able to shift their sales inventory from their Brick & Mortar stores to online fulfilment. Funko has also created a mini-Pop! factory at its headquarters where customers can make their own custom Funko at a price of $25 each · According to Funko, you can customize your Pop! using thousands of combinations. It’s “Think Build-A-Bear meets Funko Pop!” according to CEO Brian Mariotti. · With a $25 price point, the margins are likely higher than the average Pop! figure that retails for between $10 to $15 PARENTS BUYING MORE GIFTS FOR THEIR KIDS DUE TO COVID Parents likely splurged on their kids out of guilt of having shelter at home because of restrictions and to keep them occupied while they had to work at home. · “Faced with rising transmission of the virus, state restrictions on retailers and heightened political and economic uncertainty, consumers chose to spend on gifts that lifted the spirits of their families and friends and provided a sense of normalcy given the challenging year. We believe President-elect Biden’s stimulus proposal, with direct payments to families and individuals, and further aid for small businesses and tools to keep businesses open, will keep the economy growing.” NRF President Matthew Shay · “2020 was an unprecedented year for the U.S. toy industry. The growth we’ve seen in the toy industry speaks to the fact that parents are willing to put their children’s happiness above all else. The industry’s resiliency is very much underpinned by the reality that, in times of hardship, families look to toys to help keep their children engaged, active, and delighted. Put simply, toys are a big part of the happiness equation.” Juli Lennett - VP, U.S. Toys at NPD Toy sales were strong in 2020 as US retail sales of toys was up 16% vs 2019; driven by pandemic spending · According to NPD, “Much of the growth in 2020 was directly correlated to the COVID-19 pandemic and the changing consumer behavior associated with widespread lockdowns and school closures, the disposable income diverted from other types of entertainment to toys, as well as the onset of federal stimulus checks.” Consumer spending on toys increased measurably due to lockdowns; with strong performance continuing through the holidays · Per NPD, “While toy sales through mid-March 2020 were flat vs. 2019, widespread lockdown measures led to an abrupt increase in sales. This was further amplified by the distribution of stimulus checks beginning in April, resulting in the strongest month of growth for the year in May (+38%). Toy industry growth peaked again in October with an increase of 33% when the holiday season kicked off with Amazon Prime Day along with other retailer deals the same week.” Key retail sources reporting significant sales growth during Q4 2020 suggest Funko sales performance was strong · Target Q4 sales were fantastic showing signs of retail strength with a consumer that overlaps well with the Funko > Overall comparable sales were up 17.2% > Comparable digital sales were up over 100% > Store-originated comparable sales were up 4.2% > Store traffic was up 4.3% > Average ticket size was up 12.3% · GameStop Q4 sales were solid; showing additional potential for Funko sales > Same store sales were up 4.8% in Q4 2020 > Online sales increased 309% in Q4 2020 · According to the NRF, 2020 Holiday Retail Sales were up 8.3% compared to the prior year despite the pandemic > A surge in online shopping drove the increase (rising 32% vs. 2019) > The increase of 8.3% was over double the average increase of 3.5% that the industry had seen over the last five years. MORE DISPOSABLE INCOME TO SPEND AT HOME BY NOT GOING OUT The National Retail Federation (NRF) says that strong retail performance has been driven by consumers with stimulus checks and extra savings from not going out or traveling · “There was a massive boost to consumer wallets this season. Consumers were able to splurge on holiday gifts because of increased money in their bank accounts from the stimulus payments they received earlier in the year and the money they saved by not traveling, dining out, or attending entertainment events” – NRF Chief Economist Jack Kleinhenz. Spending on “experiences” fell significantly in 2020 · The US Travel Association forecasts that spending on travel fell $500 billion in 2020 from $1.1 trillion in 2019 > The industry has lost about 40% of its direct travel jobs (about 3.5 million jobs) in 2020; driven by a reduction in business travel > Foreign visitors to the US fell about 75% in 2020; driving a $119 billion reduction in travel spending · Concert spending is down dramatically > Live Nation reported a 98% decline in concert revenue in Q2 2020 and a 95% decline in concert revenue in Q3 2020 > About 5.2 million tickets were refunded in Q3 2020 and 23.3 million tickets had been refunded so far in 2020 (as of the end of Q3) · Movie theater attendance is down substantially > AMC theaters saw a 97% decline in attendance and a 91% decline in revenue in Q3 2020 > Cinemark saw a 96% decline in revenue > Marcus Corporation (which also owns hotels and restaurants) saw a 84% decline in revenue > Studio Movie Grill filed for bankruptcy · Other anecdotal information points to more stay-at-home activity decreasing recreational spending > Chuck E Cheese’s declared bankruptcy > Dave & Busters is considering bankruptcy and plans layoffs of +1,000 > CiCi’s Pizza declares bankruptcy > Starbucks saw fewer customers, reduced store hours, increased store closures, and a 5% decline in revenues in Q4 2020. This has led them to plan a shift to more “to-go” formats > Many Las Vegas Hotels and Casinos have decided to close “part-time” during the week due to lower attendance and travel. These include Encore, Rio, Linq, Planet Hollywood, Mandalay Bay, Park MGM, and Mirage The majority of food buffets at the major hotels and casinos have been shuttered for the time being Stimulus checks and other government programs to support consumer spending provide tailwinds for retail activity · The US government authorized more than $10,000 per person in stimulus spending in 2020 over the course of five relief bills totaling $3.5 trillion · More stimulus spending is expected; including a potential $1.9 trillion package that could include an additional $1,400 in stimulus checks MORE SKUS / LICENSES ARE GROWING AND EXPECTED TO CONINUE STRONG Active properties continue to rise and are expected to grow well into the future · The number of active properties in Q3 2020 grew 15% over 2019 · Active properties grew from 644 in Q2 to 715 in Q3 2020 · The potential universe for Funko Pops! is limitless as new films, tv shows, musicians, anime characters, sports stars, and other media properties are created every year. Some of the hot properties for this year and beyond · Star Wars: Baby Yoda, Mandalorian, Rey, Valentine’s Day, etc. · Marvel: WandaVision, Deadpool, Lucha Libre, Spiderman, Venom · Anime: Dragon Ball Z, Naruto, Bakugan, My Hero Academia · Films: Harry Potter, The Goonies, The Mummy, Fast & Furious · TV: The Office, Umbrella Academy, The Queen’s Gambit, The Simpsons · Sports: NFL, NBA, MLB, WWE · Others: Disney, Pokemon, etc. COLLECTIBLE INVESTMENTS ARE GROWING IN VALUE & POPULARITY · Funko: The average Pops! Figure has a retail price from between $10 and $15 which allows most people an affordable entry point into collecting. Over time some Pops! Figures increase substantially in price; from $50 to $100 to even several thousand dollars. While some collectors buy Pops! as primarily an investment, many more buy them as a way to show their fandom. Whether they are avid Star Wars, Harry Potter, Pokemon, Sports, or Anime fans; collectors build large collections and show them off to friends. · Sports Cards: To those paying attention, sports cards have been on a massive run with some cards worth more than your parent’s house and your sister’s car. Since the pandemic started, the demand for sports collectibles from basketball to football to soccer (and many others) has skyrocketed. Countless videos of box-breaks and pack openings have become the norm on social media. Some of these boxes are being purchased for tens of thousands with “hits” ranging from several hundred to hundreds of thousands. · Collector’s Universe: This company that grades sports cards and other collectibles has tripled in value since June 2020. The number of sports collectors grading cards has exploded as demand rises. The popularity of grading sports cards is expected to maintain as prices continue to rise and the hobby becomes more mainstream. ANALYST COMMENTARY AND FINANCIALS ARE A POSTIVE FOR THE STOCK Piper Sandler: Upgraded Funko from “Neutral” to “Overweight” (raising their price target from $6 to $12). · Analyst Erin Murphy sees evidence of “subsequent revenue pillars” with their recent launch of Snapsies at 800 Target stores; along with an expansion into board games and its digital efforts, which include a newly launched website in six European countries. Valuation Comparison: Market Cap / Revenue (TTM) · Funko: MC - $604 million / Rev - $640 million (0.9x sales) · Mattel: MC - $6.27 billion / Rev - $4.43 billion (1.4x sales) · Hasbro: MC - $13.13 billion / Rev - $5.17 billion (2.5x sales) Key Financial Trends For Funko · Q3 2020 EPS (Adjusted) = $0.31 > Third highest ever (only Q4 2018 & Q3 2019 were higher) · Q3 2020 Revenue = $191 million > Fourth highest ever (only Q4 2018, Q3 2019, and Q4 2019 were higher) · Q3 2020 Revenue increase vs prior quarter of 94% > Q1 and Q2 2020 saw significant declines due to COVID > Q3 2020 only down 14% vs Q3 2019 despite Q2 2020 being down 49% > Q3 2020 strength driven by Funko adapting quickly to online in the US market. (Q4 2020 revenue growth could be aided substantially by Funko’s development of their e-commerce shop in Europe.) · Q3 2020 SG&A was reduced 20% vs. the prior year as Funko rationalizes costs and adjusts to focus more on D2C e-commerce TL;DR After a tough summer, Funko sales have rocketed back in Q3 to near where they were pre-pandemic; setting up a potentially historic earnings for Q4 2020. Google search activity suggests that Funko is as popular as ever and is set up well for a strong year in 2021. People are spending less on “going out;” instead buying things to use at home and presents for their kids. As time passes, Funko’s status as a popular collectible only continues to gain momentum. Their direct sales initiative allows Funko to capture additional margin by sidestepping traditional brick and mortar retail to reach their customers. Investments in collectible products like Pops! and sports cards continue to increase in popularity and price. And the company continues to release even more products beyond Pops!; including games and apparel. While some Wall Street Analysts have already begun to take notice, a strong Q4 earnings announcement can drive even more attention to the stock. Positions: Long Shares & Calls Disclosure: I am long FNKO. This is not investment advice. I reserve the right to buy or sell FNKO without updating this thread. Do your own research and share (or not share) with the community in this thread. Thank you to the others on Reddit that shared this idea earlier. Feedback: If you have any additional information, ideas, or critiques please make sure to comment. It is great to get the perspective of others when making an investment. Also that information can be incorporated into future posts and updates. 2/9/21 Update: Additional info posted here
2/9/21 Update: Additional info posted here Funko is a good company with solid performance that is still trading at a reasonable price. Check out my DD below: Funko (FNKO) Share Price (1/28/21) : $11.97 Share Price (09/16/19) : $27.86 Short Interest (1/26/21) : 14% Next Earnings Release: March 2021 Funko Inc. is an American company that manufactures licensed pop culture collectibles, best known for its licensed vinyl figurines and bobbleheads. They have over 1,000 licenses across music, video games, film, TV, sports and many other pop culture properties. Some of their most popular licensed brands include Marvel, Disney, Star Wars, Pokemon, Fortnite, NBA, NFL, MLB, DC Comics, and a variety of anime properties. Several points below support the belief that Funko’s revenue grew during the 2020 holiday season and could continue well into 2021: · Increasing search traffic for Funko products · Direct sales growth is driving increased revenue and profitability · Parents are buying more gifts for their kids due to COVID · People have more disposable income from staying at home and not going out · Expansion of new products and licensees continuing through 2021 · Collectible investments like Funko POP! figures are exploding in value and popularity · Recent analyst commentary, valuation, and financials are positive FUNKO’S SEARCH TRAFFIC REACHES AN ALL-TIME HIGH IN Q4 2020 “Funko” google trends search traffic was up 20-30% in Q4 2020 (vs. Q4 2019) Searches for “Funko” were up 2x in December vs the beginning of November 2020 After falling in December, “Funko” searches are trending back up to all-time-high levels FUNKO’S DIRECT SALES INITIATIVES DRIVING HIGHER REVENUE & MARGIN Funko Direct Sales (B2C) grew significantly in Q3 and likely to continue into Q4 · B2C business as a percentage of sales increased to 8% in Q3 2020 from 4% during the prior year. · Funko’s e-commerce site grew over 150% vs. the prior year in Q3 2020 · The number of SKU’s on Funko’s e-commerce site rose tenfold since June 2020 “We went from only 200 of our own products [on our website] as late as June this year, to now well over 2,000 products available on our website.” – Funko CEO, Brian Mariotti Funko’s first ever Selena Pop! sold out online in just 40 minutes. Funko’s Q3 2020 Gross Profit % and Operating Margin % were near all-time-highs for the company · Funko’s Q3 Gross Profit Percentage of 38.6% was its second highest ever (behind only Q1 2020) · Funko’s Q3 Operating Profit Percentage of 10.8% was its second highest ever (behind only Q4 2018) · As Funko continues to grow it’s B2C e-commerce sales in Q4 and beyond, it is possible that gross profit and operating profit percentages could rise as well Retail customers were able to shift their Brick & Mortar inventory to their e-commerce channels to Funko unit sales · Funko resellers who didn’t sell online were severely impacted by Brick & Mortar closures during COVID stay-at-home orders. As 2020 progressed, some of these retailers were able to create online stores (e.g.- Shopify, Amazon, eBay, etc.) through which they could sell their Funko inventory. · Larger retailers that already had an omni-channel presence were able to shift their sales inventory from their Brick & Mortar stores to online fulfilment. Funko has also created a mini-Pop! factory at its headquarters where customers can make their own custom Funko at a price of $25 each · According to Funko, you can customize your Pop! using thousands of combinations. It’s “Think Build-A-Bear meets Funko Pop!” according to CEO Brian Mariotti. · With a $25 price point, the margins are likely higher than the average Pop! figure that retails for between $10 to $15 PARENTS BUYING MORE GIFTS FOR THEIR KIDS DUE TO COVID Parents likely splurged on their kids out of guilt of having shelter at home because of restrictions and to keep them occupied while they had to work at home. · “Faced with rising transmission of the virus, state restrictions on retailers and heightened political and economic uncertainty, consumers chose to spend on gifts that lifted the spirits of their families and friends and provided a sense of normalcy given the challenging year. We believe President-elect Biden’s stimulus proposal, with direct payments to families and individuals, and further aid for small businesses and tools to keep businesses open, will keep the economy growing.” NRF President Matthew Shay · “2020 was an unprecedented year for the U.S. toy industry. The growth we’ve seen in the toy industry speaks to the fact that parents are willing to put their children’s happiness above all else. The industry’s resiliency is very much underpinned by the reality that, in times of hardship, families look to toys to help keep their children engaged, active, and delighted. Put simply, toys are a big part of the happiness equation.” Juli Lennett - VP, U.S. Toys at NPD Toy sales were strong in 2020 as US retail sales of toys was up 16% vs 2019; driven by pandemic spending · According to NPD, “Much of the growth in 2020 was directly correlated to the COVID-19 pandemic and the changing consumer behavior associated with widespread lockdowns and school closures, the disposable income diverted from other types of entertainment to toys, as well as the onset of federal stimulus checks.” Consumer spending on toys increased measurably due to lockdowns; with strong performance continuing through the holidays · Per NPD, “While toy sales through mid-March 2020 were flat vs. 2019, widespread lockdown measures led to an abrupt increase in sales. This was further amplified by the distribution of stimulus checks beginning in April, resulting in the strongest month of growth for the year in May (+38%). Toy industry growth peaked again in October with an increase of 33% when the holiday season kicked off with Amazon Prime Day along with other retailer deals the same week.” Key retail sources reporting significant sales growth during Q4 2020 suggest Funko sales performance was strong · Target Q4 sales were fantastic showing signs of retail strength with a consumer that overlaps well with the Funko > Overall comparable sales were up 17.2% > Comparable digital sales were up over 100% > Store-originated comparable sales were up 4.2% > Store traffic was up 4.3% > Average ticket size was up 12.3% · GameStop Q4 sales were solid; showing additional potential for Funko sales > Same store sales were up 4.8% in Q4 2020 > Online sales increased 309% in Q4 2020 · According to the NRF, 2020 Holiday Retail Sales were up 8.3% compared to the prior year despite the pandemic > A surge in online shopping drove the increase (rising 32% vs. 2019) > The increase of 8.3% was over double the average increase of 3.5% that the industry had seen over the last five years. MORE DISPOSABLE INCOME TO SPEND AT HOME BY NOT GOING OUT The National Retail Federation (NRF) says that strong retail performance has been driven by consumers with stimulus checks and extra savings from not going out or traveling · “There was a massive boost to consumer wallets this season. Consumers were able to splurge on holiday gifts because of increased money in their bank accounts from the stimulus payments they received earlier in the year and the money they saved by not traveling, dining out, or attending entertainment events” – NRF Chief Economist Jack Kleinhenz. Spending on “experiences” fell significantly in 2020 · The US Travel Association forecasts that spending on travel fell $500 billion in 2020 from $1.1 trillion in 2019 > The industry has lost about 40% of its direct travel jobs (about 3.5 million jobs) in 2020; driven by a reduction in business travel > Foreign visitors to the US fell about 75% in 2020; driving a $119 billion reduction in travel spending · Concert spending is down dramatically > Live Nation reported a 98% decline in concert revenue in Q2 2020 and a 95% decline in concert revenue in Q3 2020 > About 5.2 million tickets were refunded in Q3 2020 and 23.3 million tickets had been refunded so far in 2020 (as of the end of Q3) · Movie theater attendance is down substantially > AMC theaters saw a 97% decline in attendance and a 91% decline in revenue in Q3 2020 > Cinemark saw a 96% decline in revenue > Marcus Corporation (which also owns hotels and restaurants) saw a 84% decline in revenue > Studio Movie Grill filed for bankruptcy · Other anecdotal information points to more stay-at-home activity decreasing recreational spending > Chuck E Cheese’s declared bankruptcy > Dave & Busters is considering bankruptcy and plans layoffs of +1,000 > CiCi’s Pizza declares bankruptcy > Starbucks saw fewer customers, reduced store hours, increased store closures, and a 5% decline in revenues in Q4 2020. This has led them to plan a shift to more “to-go” formats > Many Las Vegas Hotels and Casinos have decided to close “part-time” during the week due to lower attendance and travel. These include Encore, Rio, Linq, Planet Hollywood, Mandalay Bay, Park MGM, and Mirage The majority of food buffets at the major hotels and casinos have been shuttered for the time being Stimulus checks and other government programs to support consumer spending provide tailwinds for retail activity · The US government authorized more than $10,000 per person in stimulus spending in 2020 over the course of five relief bills totaling $3.5 trillion · More stimulus spending is expected; including a potential $1.9 trillion package that could include an additional $1,400 in stimulus checks MORE SKUS / LICENSES ARE GROWING AND EXPECTED TO CONINUE STRONG Active properties continue to rise and are expected to grow well into the future · The number of active properties in Q3 2020 grew 15% over 2019 · Active properties grew from 644 in Q2 to 715 in Q3 2020 · The potential universe for Funko Pops! is limitless as new films, tv shows, musicians, anime characters, sports stars, and other media properties are created every year. Some of the hot properties for this year and beyond · Star Wars: Baby Yoda, Mandalorian, Rey, Valentine’s Day, etc. · Marvel: WandaVision, Deadpool, Lucha Libre, Spiderman, Venom · Anime: Dragon Ball Z, Naruto, Bakugan, My Hero Academia · Films: Harry Potter, The Goonies, The Mummy, Fast & Furious · TV: The Office, Umbrella Academy, The Queen’s Gambit, The Simpsons · Sports: NFL, NBA, MLB, WWE · Others: Disney, Pokemon, etc. Retail exclusives can grow the potential universe of licenses and increase retailer buy-in · For example: A retailer like GameStop could lobby Funko to make a GameStop exclusive of the WallStreetBets Kid like this person suggested here. (The exclusive Pop! would be made into a limited edition and sold only to GameStop to sell at their stores) COLLECTIBLE INVESTMENTS ARE GROWING IN VALUE & POPULARITY · Funko: The average Pops! Figure has a retail price from between $10 and $15 which allows most people an affordable entry point into collecting. Over time some Pops! Figures increase substantially in price; from $50 to $100 to even several thousand dollars. While some collectors buy Pops! as primarily an investment, many more buy them as a way to show their fandom. Whether they are avid Star Wars, Harry Potter, Pokemon, Sports, or Anime fans; collectors build large collections and show them off to friends. · Sports Cards: To those paying attention, sports cards have been on a massive run with some cards worth more than your parent’s house and your sister’s car. Since the pandemic started, the demand for sports collectibles from basketball to football to soccer (and many others) has skyrocketed. Countless videos of box-breaks and pack openings have become the norm on social media. Some of these boxes are being purchased for tens of thousands with “hits” ranging from several hundred to hundreds of thousands. · Collector’s Universe: This company that grades sports cards and other collectibles has tripled in value since June 2020. The number of sports collectors grading cards has exploded as demand rises. The popularity of grading sports cards is expected to maintain as prices continue to rise and the hobby becomes more mainstream. ANALYST COMMENTARY AND FINANCIALS ARE A POSTIVE FOR THE STOCK Piper Sandler: Upgraded Funko from “Neutral” to “Overweight” (raising their price target from $6 to $12). · Analyst Erin Murphy sees evidence of “subsequent revenue pillars” with their recent launch of Snapsies at 800 Target stores; along with an expansion into board games and its digital efforts, which include a newly launched website in six European countries. Valuation Comparison: Market Cap / Revenue (TTM) · Funko: MC - $604 million / Rev - $640 million (0.9x sales) · Mattel: MC - $6.27 billion / Rev - $4.43 billion (1.4x sales) · Hasbro: MC - $13.13 billion / Rev - $5.17 billion (2.5x sales) Key Financial Trends For Funko · Q3 2020 EPS (Adjusted) = $0.31 > Third highest ever (only Q4 2018 & Q3 2019 were higher) · Q3 2020 Revenue = $191 million > Fourth highest ever (only Q4 2018, Q3 2019, and Q4 2019 were higher) · Q3 2020 Revenue increase vs prior quarter of 94% > Q1 and Q2 2020 saw significant declines due to COVID > Q3 2020 only down 14% vs Q3 2019 despite Q2 2020 being down 49% > Q3 2020 strength driven by Funko adapting quickly to online in the US market. (Q4 2020 revenue growth could be aided substantially by Funko’s development of their e-commerce shop in Europe.) · Q3 2020 SG&A was reduced 20% vs. the prior year as Funko rationalizes costs and adjusts to focus more on D2C e-commerce TL;DR After a tough summer, Funko sales have rocketed back in Q3 to near where they were pre-pandemic; setting up a potentially historic earnings for Q4 2020. Google search activity suggests that Funko is as popular as ever and is set up well for a strong year in 2021. People are spending less on “going out;” instead buying things to use at home and presents for their kids. As time passes, Funko’s status as a popular collectible only continues to gain momentum. Their direct sales initiative allows Funko to capture additional margin by sidestepping traditional brick and mortar retail to reach their customers. Investments in collectible products like Pops! and sports cards continue to increase in popularity and price. And the company continues to release even more products beyond Pops!; including games and apparel. While some Wall Street Analysts have already begun to take notice, a strong Q4 earnings announcement can drive even more attention to the stock. Positions: Long Shares & Calls Disclosure: I am long FNKO. This is not investment advice. I reserve the right to buy or sell FNKO without updating this thread. Do your own research and share (or not share) with the community in this thread. Thank you to the others on Reddit that shared this idea earlier. Feedback: If you have any additional information, ideas, or critiques please make sure to comment. It is great to get the perspective of others when making an investment. Also that information can be incorporated into future posts and updates. Previous DD:Herman Miller
2/9/21 Update: Additional info posted here Funko is a good company with solid performance that is still trading at a reasonable price. Check out my DD below: Funko (FNKO) Share Price (02/01/21) : $12.90 Share Price (09/16/19) : $27.86 Short Interest (1/26/21) : 14% Next Earnings Release: March 2021 Funko Inc. is an American company that manufactures licensed pop culture collectibles, best known for its licensed vinyl figurines and bobbleheads. They have over 1,000 licenses across music, video games, film, TV, sports and many other pop culture properties. Some of their most popular licensed brands include Marvel, Disney, Star Wars, Pokemon, Fortnite, NBA, NFL, MLB, DC Comics, and a variety of anime properties. Several points below support the belief that Funko’s revenue grew during the 2020 holiday season and could continue well into 2021: · Increasing search traffic for Funko products · Direct sales growth is driving increased revenue and profitability · Parents are buying more gifts for their kids due to COVID · People have more disposable income from staying at home and not going out · Expansion of new products and licensees continuing through 2021 · Collectible investments like Funko POP! figures are exploding in value and popularity · Recent analyst commentary, valuation, and financials are positive FUNKO’S SEARCH TRAFFIC REACHES AN ALL-TIME HIGH IN Q4 2020 “Funko” google trends search traffic was up 20-30% in Q4 2020 (vs. Q4 2019) Searches for “Funko” were up 2x in December vs the beginning of November 2020 After falling in December, “Funko” searches are trending back up to all-time-high levels FUNKO’S DIRECT SALES INITIATIVES DRIVING HIGHER REVENUE & MARGIN Funko Direct Sales (B2C) grew significantly in Q3 and likely to continue into Q4 · B2C business as a percentage of sales increased to 8% in Q3 2020 from 4% during the prior year. · Funko’s e-commerce site grew over 150% vs. the prior year in Q3 2020 · The number of SKU’s on Funko’s e-commerce site rose tenfold since June 2020 “We went from only 200 of our own products [on our website] as late as June this year, to now well over 2,000 products available on our website.” – Funko CEO, Brian Mariotti Funko’s first ever Selena Pop! sold out online in just 40 minutes. Funko’s Q3 2020 Gross Profit % and Operating Margin % were near all-time-highs for the company · Funko’s Q3 Gross Profit Percentage of 38.6% was its second highest ever (behind only Q1 2020) · Funko’s Q3 Operating Profit Percentage of 10.8% was its second highest ever (behind only Q4 2018) · As Funko continues to grow it’s B2C e-commerce sales in Q4 and beyond, it is possible that gross profit and operating profit percentages could rise as well Retail customers were able to shift their Brick & Mortar inventory to their e-commerce channels to Funko unit sales · Funko resellers who didn’t sell online were severely impacted by Brick & Mortar closures during COVID stay-at-home orders. As 2020 progressed, some of these retailers were able to create online stores (e.g.- Shopify, Amazon, eBay, etc.) through which they could sell their Funko inventory. · Larger retailers that already had an omni-channel presence were able to shift their sales inventory from their Brick & Mortar stores to online fulfilment. Funko has also created a mini-Pop! factory at its headquarters where customers can make their own custom Funko at a price of $25 each · According to Funko, you can customize your Pop! using thousands of combinations. It’s “Think Build-A-Bear meets Funko Pop!” according to CEO Brian Mariotti. · With a $25 price point, the margins are likely higher than the average Pop! figure that retails for between $10 to $15 PARENTS BUYING MORE GIFTS FOR THEIR KIDS DUE TO COVID Parents likely splurged on their kids out of guilt of having shelter at home because of restrictions and to keep them occupied while they had to work at home. · “Faced with rising transmission of the virus, state restrictions on retailers and heightened political and economic uncertainty, consumers chose to spend on gifts that lifted the spirits of their families and friends and provided a sense of normalcy given the challenging year. We believe President-elect Biden’s stimulus proposal, with direct payments to families and individuals, and further aid for small businesses and tools to keep businesses open, will keep the economy growing.” NRF President Matthew Shay · “2020 was an unprecedented year for the U.S. toy industry. The growth we’ve seen in the toy industry speaks to the fact that parents are willing to put their children’s happiness above all else. The industry’s resiliency is very much underpinned by the reality that, in times of hardship, families look to toys to help keep their children engaged, active, and delighted. Put simply, toys are a big part of the happiness equation.” Juli Lennett - VP, U.S. Toys at NPD Toy sales were strong in 2020 as US retail sales of toys was up 16% vs 2019; driven by pandemic spending · According to NPD, “Much of the growth in 2020 was directly correlated to the COVID-19 pandemic and the changing consumer behavior associated with widespread lockdowns and school closures, the disposable income diverted from other types of entertainment to toys, as well as the onset of federal stimulus checks.” Consumer spending on toys increased measurably due to lockdowns; with strong performance continuing through the holidays · Per NPD, “While toy sales through mid-March 2020 were flat vs. 2019, widespread lockdown measures led to an abrupt increase in sales. This was further amplified by the distribution of stimulus checks beginning in April, resulting in the strongest month of growth for the year in May (+38%). Toy industry growth peaked again in October with an increase of 33% when the holiday season kicked off with Amazon Prime Day along with other retailer deals the same week.” Key retail sources reporting significant sales growth during Q4 2020 suggest Funko sales performance was strong · Target Q4 sales were fantastic showing signs of retail strength with a consumer that overlaps well with the Funko > Overall comparable sales were up 17.2% > Comparable digital sales were up over 100% > Store-originated comparable sales were up 4.2% > Store traffic was up 4.3% > Average ticket size was up 12.3% · GameStop Q4 sales were solid; showing additional potential for Funko sales > Same store sales were up 4.8% in Q4 2020 > Online sales increased 309% in Q4 2020 · According to the NRF, 2020 Holiday Retail Sales were up 8.3% compared to the prior year despite the pandemic > A surge in online shopping drove the increase (rising 32% vs. 2019) > The increase of 8.3% was over double the average increase of 3.5% that the industry had seen over the last five years. MORE DISPOSABLE INCOME TO SPEND AT HOME BY NOT GOING OUT The National Retail Federation (NRF) says that strong retail performance has been driven by consumers with stimulus checks and extra savings from not going out or traveling · “There was a massive boost to consumer wallets this season. Consumers were able to splurge on holiday gifts because of increased money in their bank accounts from the stimulus payments they received earlier in the year and the money they saved by not traveling, dining out, or attending entertainment events” – NRF Chief Economist Jack Kleinhenz. Spending on “experiences” fell significantly in 2020 · The US Travel Association forecasts that spending on travel fell $500 billion in 2020 from $1.1 trillion in 2019 > The industry has lost about 40% of its direct travel jobs (about 3.5 million jobs) in 2020; driven by a reduction in business travel > Foreign visitors to the US fell about 75% in 2020; driving a $119 billion reduction in travel spending · Concert spending is down dramatically > Live Nation reported a 98% decline in concert revenue in Q2 2020 and a 95% decline in concert revenue in Q3 2020 > About 5.2 million tickets were refunded in Q3 2020 and 23.3 million tickets had been refunded so far in 2020 (as of the end of Q3) · Movie theater attendance is down substantially > AMC theaters saw a 97% decline in attendance and a 91% decline in revenue in Q3 2020 > Cinemark saw a 96% decline in revenue > Marcus Corporation (which also owns hotels and restaurants) saw a 84% decline in revenue > Studio Movie Grill filed for bankruptcy · Other anecdotal information points to more stay-at-home activity decreasing recreational spending > Chuck E Cheese’s declared bankruptcy > Dave & Busters is considering bankruptcy and plans layoffs of +1,000 > CiCi’s Pizza declares bankruptcy > Starbucks saw fewer customers, reduced store hours, increased store closures, and a 5% decline in revenues in Q4 2020. This has led them to plan a shift to more “to-go” formats > Many Las Vegas Hotels and Casinos have decided to close “part-time” during the week due to lower attendance and travel. These include Encore, Rio, Linq, Planet Hollywood, Mandalay Bay, Park MGM, and Mirage The majority of food buffets at the major hotels and casinos have been shuttered for the time being Stimulus checks and other government programs to support consumer spending provide tailwinds for retail activity · The US government authorized more than $10,000 per person in stimulus spending in 2020 over the course of five relief bills totaling $3.5 trillion · More stimulus spending is expected; including a potential $1.9 trillion package that could include an additional $1,400 in stimulus checks MORE SKUS / LICENSES ARE GROWING AND EXPECTED TO CONINUE STRONG Active properties continue to rise and are expected to grow well into the future · The number of active properties in Q3 2020 grew 15% over 2019 · Active properties grew from 644 in Q2 to 715 in Q3 2020 · The potential universe for Funko Pops! is limitless as new films, tv shows, musicians, anime characters, sports stars, and other media properties are created every year. Some of the hot properties for this year and beyond · Star Wars: Baby Yoda, Mandalorian, Rey, Valentine’s Day, etc. · Marvel: WandaVision, Deadpool, Lucha Libre, Spiderman, Venom · Anime: Dragon Ball Z, Naruto, Bakugan, My Hero Academia · Films: Harry Potter, The Goonies, The Mummy, Fast & Furious · TV: The Office, Umbrella Academy, The Queen’s Gambit, The Simpsons · Sports: NFL, NBA, MLB, WWE · Others: Disney, Pokemon, etc. Retail exclusives can grow the potential universe of licenses and increase retailer buy-in · For example: A retailer like GameStop could lobby Funko to make a GameStop exclusive of the WallStreetBets Kid like this person suggested here. (The exclusive Pop! would be made into a limited edition and sold only to GameStop to sell at their stores) COLLECTIBLE INVESTMENTS ARE GROWING IN VALUE & POPULARITY · Funko: The average Pops! Figure has a retail price from between $10 and $15 which allows most people an affordable entry point into collecting. Over time some Pops! Figures increase substantially in price; from $50 to $100 to even several thousand dollars. While some collectors buy Pops! as primarily an investment, many more buy them as a way to show their fandom. Whether they are avid Star Wars, Harry Potter, Pokemon, Sports, or Anime fans; collectors build large collections and show them off to friends. · Sports Cards: To those paying attention, sports cards have been on a massive run with some cards worth more than your parent’s house and your sister’s car. Since the pandemic started, the demand for sports collectibles from basketball to football to soccer (and many others) has skyrocketed. Countless videos of box-breaks and pack openings have become the norm on social media. Some of these boxes are being purchased for tens of thousands with “hits” ranging from several hundred to hundreds of thousands. · Collector’s Universe: This company that grades sports cards and other collectibles has tripled in value since June 2020. The number of sports collectors grading cards has exploded as demand rises. The popularity of grading sports cards is expected to maintain as prices continue to rise and the hobby becomes more mainstream. ANALYST COMMENTARY AND FINANCIALS ARE A POSTIVE FOR THE STOCK Piper Sandler: Upgraded Funko from “Neutral” to “Overweight” (raising their price target from $6 to $12). · Analyst Erin Murphy sees evidence of “subsequent revenue pillars” with their recent launch of Snapsies at 800 Target stores; along with an expansion into board games and its digital efforts, which include a newly launched website in six European countries. Valuation Comparison: Market Cap / Revenue (TTM) · Funko: MC - $604 million / Rev - $640 million (0.9x sales) · Mattel: MC - $6.27 billion / Rev - $4.43 billion (1.4x sales) · Hasbro: MC - $13.13 billion / Rev - $5.17 billion (2.5x sales) Key Financial Trends For Funko · Q3 2020 EPS (Adjusted) = $0.31 > Third highest ever (only Q4 2018 & Q3 2019 were higher) · Q3 2020 Revenue = $191 million > Fourth highest ever (only Q4 2018, Q3 2019, and Q4 2019 were higher) · Q3 2020 Revenue increase vs prior quarter of 94% > Q1 and Q2 2020 saw significant declines due to COVID > Q3 2020 only down 14% vs Q3 2019 despite Q2 2020 being down 49% > Q3 2020 strength driven by Funko adapting quickly to online in the US market. (Q4 2020 revenue growth could be aided substantially by Funko’s development of their e-commerce shop in Europe.) · Q3 2020 SG&A was reduced 20% vs. the prior year as Funko rationalizes costs and adjusts to focus more on D2C e-commerce TL;DR After a tough summer, Funko sales have rocketed back in Q3 to near where they were pre-pandemic; setting up a potentially historic earnings for Q4 2020. Google search activity suggests that Funko is as popular as ever and is set up well for a strong year in 2021. People are spending less on “going out;” instead buying things to use at home and presents for their kids. As time passes, Funko’s status as a popular collectible only continues to gain momentum. Their direct sales initiative allows Funko to capture additional margin by sidestepping traditional brick and mortar retail to reach their customers. Investments in collectible products like Pops! and sports cards continue to increase in popularity and price. And the company continues to release even more products beyond Pops!; including games and apparel. While some Wall Street Analysts have already begun to take notice, a strong Q4 earnings announcement can drive even more attention to the stock. Positions: Long Shares & Calls Disclosure: I am long FNKO. This is not investment advice. I reserve the right to buy or sell FNKO without updating this thread. Do your own research and share (or not share) with the community in this thread. Thank you to the others on Reddit that shared this idea earlier. Feedback: If you have any additional information, ideas, or critiques please make sure to comment. It is great to get the perspective of others when making an investment. Also that information can be incorporated into future posts and updates. Previous DD:Herman Miller
2/9/21 Update: Additional info posted here Hi everyone. Funko is a great stock that I believe will do well this year. Internet search traffic for Funko has been increasing and is at all-time highs over the last couple of months. The company is selling more of their toys directly to customers through their e-commerce shop (which allows them to capture higher retail revenues than wholesale revenues). And demand for collectibles and toys continues to be strong. Here is a DD I wrote on the company below. I would love to get your thoughts. Funko (FNKO) Share Price (1/28/21) : $11.97 Share Price (09/16/19) : $27.86 Short Interest (1/26/21) : 14% Next Earnings Release: March 2021 Funko Inc. is an American company that manufactures licensed pop culture collectibles, best known for its licensed vinyl figurines and bobbleheads. They have over 1,000 licenses across music, video games, film, TV, sports and many other pop culture properties. Some of their most popular licensed brands include Marvel, Disney, Star Wars, Pokemon, Fortnite, NBA, NFL, MLB, DC Comics, and a variety of anime properties. Several points below support the belief that Funko’s revenue grew during the 2020 holiday season and could continue well into 2021: · Increasing search traffic for Funko products · Direct sales growth is driving increased revenue and profitability · Parents are buying more gifts for their kids due to COVID · People have more disposable income from staying at home and not going out · Expansion of new products and licensees continuing through 2021 · Collectible investments like Funko POP! figures are exploding in value and popularity · Recent analyst commentary, valuation, and financials are positive FUNKO’S SEARCH TRAFFIC REACHES AN ALL-TIME HIGH IN Q4 2020 “Funko” google trends search traffic was up 20-30% in Q4 2020 (vs. Q4 2019) Searches for “Funko” were up 2x in December vs the beginning of November 2020 After falling in December, “Funko” searches are trending back up to all-time-high levels FUNKO’S DIRECT SALES INITIATIVES DRIVING HIGHER REVENUE & MARGIN Funko Direct Sales (B2C) grew significantly in Q3 and likely to continue into Q4 · B2C business as a percentage of sales increased to 8% in Q3 2020 from 4% during the prior year. · Funko’s e-commerce site grew over 150% vs. the prior year in Q3 2020 · The number of SKU’s on Funko’s e-commerce site rose tenfold since June 2020 “We went from only 200 of our own products [on our website] as late as June this year, to now well over 2,000 products available on our website.” – Funko CEO, Brian Mariotti Funko’s first ever Selena Pop! sold out online in just 40 minutes. Funko’s Q3 2020 Gross Profit % and Operating Margin % were near all-time-highs for the company · Funko’s Q3 Gross Profit Percentage of 38.6% was its second highest ever (behind only Q1 2020) · Funko’s Q3 Operating Profit Percentage of 10.8% was its second highest ever (behind only Q4 2018) · As Funko continues to grow it’s B2C e-commerce sales in Q4 and beyond, it is possible that gross profit and operating profit percentages could rise as well Retail customers were able to shift their Brick & Mortar inventory to their e-commerce channels to Funko unit sales · Funko resellers who didn’t sell online were severely impacted by Brick & Mortar closures during COVID stay-at-home orders. As 2020 progressed, some of these retailers were able to create online stores (e.g.- Shopify, Amazon, eBay, etc.) through which they could sell their Funko inventory. · Larger retailers that already had an omni-channel presence were able to shift their sales inventory from their Brick & Mortar stores to online fulfilment. Funko has also created a mini-Pop! factory at its headquarters where customers can make their own custom Funko at a price of $25 each · According to Funko, you can customize your Pop! using thousands of combinations. It’s “Think Build-A-Bear meets Funko Pop!” according to CEO Brian Mariotti. · With a $25 price point, the margins are likely higher than the average Pop! figure that retails for between $10 to $15 PARENTS BUYING MORE GIFTS FOR THEIR KIDS DUE TO COVID Parents likely splurged on their kids out of guilt of having shelter at home because of restrictions and to keep them occupied while they had to work at home. · “Faced with rising transmission of the virus, state restrictions on retailers and heightened political and economic uncertainty, consumers chose to spend on gifts that lifted the spirits of their families and friends and provided a sense of normalcy given the challenging year. We believe President-elect Biden’s stimulus proposal, with direct payments to families and individuals, and further aid for small businesses and tools to keep businesses open, will keep the economy growing.” NRF President Matthew Shay · “2020 was an unprecedented year for the U.S. toy industry. The growth we’ve seen in the toy industry speaks to the fact that parents are willing to put their children’s happiness above all else. The industry’s resiliency is very much underpinned by the reality that, in times of hardship, families look to toys to help keep their children engaged, active, and delighted. Put simply, toys are a big part of the happiness equation.” Juli Lennett - VP, U.S. Toys at NPD Toy sales were strong in 2020 as US retail sales of toys was up 16% vs 2019; driven by pandemic spending · According to NPD, “Much of the growth in 2020 was directly correlated to the COVID-19 pandemic and the changing consumer behavior associated with widespread lockdowns and school closures, the disposable income diverted from other types of entertainment to toys, as well as the onset of federal stimulus checks.” Consumer spending on toys increased measurably due to lockdowns; with strong performance continuing through the holidays · Per NPD, “While toy sales through mid-March 2020 were flat vs. 2019, widespread lockdown measures led to an abrupt increase in sales. This was further amplified by the distribution of stimulus checks beginning in April, resulting in the strongest month of growth for the year in May (+38%). Toy industry growth peaked again in October with an increase of 33% when the holiday season kicked off with Amazon Prime Day along with other retailer deals the same week.” Key retail sources reporting significant sales growth during Q4 2020 suggest Funko sales performance was strong · Target Q4 sales were fantastic showing signs of retail strength with a consumer that overlaps well with the Funko > Overall comparable sales were up 17.2% > Comparable digital sales were up over 100% > Store-originated comparable sales were up 4.2% > Store traffic was up 4.3% > Average ticket size was up 12.3% · GameStop Q4 sales were solid; showing additional potential for Funko sales > Same store sales were up 4.8% in Q4 2020 > Online sales increased 309% in Q4 2020 · According to the NRF, 2020 Holiday Retail Sales were up 8.3% compared to the prior year despite the pandemic > A surge in online shopping drove the increase (rising 32% vs. 2019) > The increase of 8.3% was over double the average increase of 3.5% that the industry had seen over the last five years. MORE DISPOSABLE INCOME TO SPEND AT HOME BY NOT GOING OUT The National Retail Federation (NRF) says that strong retail performance has been driven by consumers with stimulus checks and extra savings from not going out or traveling · “There was a massive boost to consumer wallets this season. Consumers were able to splurge on holiday gifts because of increased money in their bank accounts from the stimulus payments they received earlier in the year and the money they saved by not traveling, dining out, or attending entertainment events” – NRF Chief Economist Jack Kleinhenz. Spending on “experiences” fell significantly in 2020 · The US Travel Association forecasts that spending on travel fell $500 billion in 2020 from $1.1 trillion in 2019 > The industry has lost about 40% of its direct travel jobs (about 3.5 million jobs) in 2020; driven by a reduction in business travel > Foreign visitors to the US fell about 75% in 2020; driving a $119 billion reduction in travel spending · Concert spending is down dramatically > Live Nation reported a 98% decline in concert revenue in Q2 2020 and a 95% decline in concert revenue in Q3 2020 > About 5.2 million tickets were refunded in Q3 2020 and 23.3 million tickets had been refunded so far in 2020 (as of the end of Q3) · Movie theater attendance is down substantially > AMC theaters saw a 97% decline in attendance and a 91% decline in revenue in Q3 2020 > Cinemark saw a 96% decline in revenue > Marcus Corporation (which also owns hotels and restaurants) saw a 84% decline in revenue > Studio Movie Grill filed for bankruptcy · Other anecdotal information points to more stay-at-home activity decreasing recreational spending > Chuck E Cheese’s declared bankruptcy > Dave & Busters is considering bankruptcy and plans layoffs of +1,000 > CiCi’s Pizza declares bankruptcy > Starbucks saw fewer customers, reduced store hours, increased store closures, and a 5% decline in revenues in Q4 2020. This has led them to plan a shift to more “to-go” formats > Many Las Vegas Hotels and Casinos have decided to close “part-time” during the week due to lower attendance and travel. These include Encore, Rio, Linq, Planet Hollywood, Mandalay Bay, Park MGM, and Mirage The majority of food buffets at the major hotels and casinos have been shuttered for the time being Stimulus checks and other government programs to support consumer spending provide tailwinds for retail activity · The US government authorized more than $10,000 per person in stimulus spending in 2020 over the course of five relief bills totaling $3.5 trillion · More stimulus spending is expected; including a potential $1.9 trillion package that could include an additional $1,400 in stimulus checks MORE SKUS / LICENSES ARE GROWING AND EXPECTED TO CONINUE STRONG Active properties continue to rise and are expected to grow well into the future · The number of active properties in Q3 2020 grew 15% over 2019 · Active properties grew from 644 in Q2 to 715 in Q3 2020 · The potential universe for Funko Pops! is limitless as new films, tv shows, musicians, anime characters, sports stars, and other media properties are created every year. Some of the hot properties for this year and beyond · Star Wars: Baby Yoda, Mandalorian, Rey, Valentine’s Day, etc. · Marvel: WandaVision, Deadpool, Lucha Libre, Spiderman, Venom · Anime: Dragon Ball Z, Naruto, Bakugan, My Hero Academia · Films: Harry Potter, The Goonies, The Mummy, Fast & Furious · TV: The Office, Umbrella Academy, The Queen’s Gambit, The Simpsons · Sports: NFL, NBA, MLB, WWE · Others: Disney, Pokemon, etc. COLLECTIBLE INVESTMENTS ARE GROWING IN VALUE & POPULARITY · Funko: The average Pops! Figure has a retail price from between $10 and $15 which allows most people an affordable entry point into collecting. Over time some Pops! Figures increase substantially in price; from $50 to $100 to even several thousand dollars. While some collectors buy Pops! as primarily an investment, many more buy them as a way to show their fandom. Whether they are avid Star Wars, Harry Potter, Pokemon, Sports, or Anime fans; collectors build large collections and show them off to friends. · Sports Cards: To those paying attention, sports cards have been on a massive run with some cards worth more than your parent’s house and your sister’s car. Since the pandemic started, the demand for sports collectibles from basketball to football to soccer (and many others) has skyrocketed. Countless videos of box-breaks and pack openings have become the norm on social media. Some of these boxes are being purchased for tens of thousands with “hits” ranging from several hundred to hundreds of thousands. · Collector’s Universe: This company that grades sports cards and other collectibles has tripled in value since June 2020. The number of sports collectors grading cards has exploded as demand rises. The popularity of grading sports cards is expected to maintain as prices continue to rise and the hobby becomes more mainstream. ANALYST COMMENTARY AND FINANCIALS ARE A POSTIVE FOR THE STOCK Piper Sandler: Upgraded Funko from “Neutral” to “Overweight” (raising their price target from $6 to $12). · Analyst Erin Murphy sees evidence of “subsequent revenue pillars” with their recent launch of Snapsies at 800 Target stores; along with an expansion into board games and its digital efforts, which include a newly launched website in six European countries. Valuation Comparison: Market Cap / Revenue (TTM) · Funko: MC - $604 million / Rev - $640 million (0.9x sales) · Mattel: MC - $6.27 billion / Rev - $4.43 billion (1.4x sales) · Hasbro: MC - $13.13 billion / Rev - $5.17 billion (2.5x sales) Key Financial Trends For Funko · Q3 2020 EPS (Adjusted) = $0.31 > Third highest ever (only Q4 2018 & Q3 2019 were higher) · Q3 2020 Revenue = $191 million > Fourth highest ever (only Q4 2018, Q3 2019, and Q4 2019 were higher) · Q3 2020 Revenue increase vs prior quarter of 94% > Q1 and Q2 2020 saw significant declines due to COVID > Q3 2020 only down 14% vs Q3 2019 despite Q2 2020 being down 49% > Q3 2020 strength driven by Funko adapting quickly to online in the US market. (Q4 2020 revenue growth could be aided substantially by Funko’s development of their e-commerce shop in Europe.) · Q3 2020 SG&A was reduced 20% vs. the prior year as Funko rationalizes costs and adjusts to focus more on D2C e-commerce TL;DR After a tough summer, Funko sales have rocketed back in Q3 to near where they were pre-pandemic; setting up a potentially historic earnings for Q4 2020. Google search activity suggests that Funko is as popular as ever and is set up well for a strong year in 2021. People are spending less on “going out;” instead buying things to use at home and presents for their kids. As time passes, Funko’s status as a popular collectible only continues to gain momentum. Their direct sales initiative allows Funko to capture additional margin by sidestepping traditional brick and mortar retail to reach their customers. Investments in collectible products like Pops! and sports cards continue to increase in popularity and price. And the company continues to release even more products beyond Pops!; including games and apparel. While some Wall Street Analysts have already begun to take notice, a strong Q4 earnings announcement can drive even more attention to the stock. Positions: Long Shares & Calls Disclosure: I am long FNKO. This is not investment advice. I reserve the right to buy or sell FNKO without updating this thread. Do your own research and share (or not share) with the community in this thread. Thank you to the others on Reddit that shared this idea earlier. Feedback: If you have any additional information, ideas, or critiques please make sure to comment. It is great to get the perspective of others when making an investment. Also that information can be incorporated into future posts and updates.
The timeshare presentations in Nevada are gettimg out of hand...
“...and walk away with a trip to beautiful Las Vegas Nevada! Enjoy a complimentary 5 day 4 night stay at any MGM casino resort all on us! No nonsense, no gimmicks. Just a bit of your precious time! Call today!” Yes. A vacation extravaganza all on the arm. Courtesy of the Hibou Timeshare Corporation. All it cost was your time and cooperation for a timeshare presentation. Simple enough yes? I wish I would have realized how much better a couple of overtimes would have served me, than taking myself to that horrid building. I was living in Phoenix AZ with my parents. Still half way bullshitting my final semester at college. I’ve got to be honest, I was checked out. It was summer..I was going to graduate and I had these final two classes in the bag. I could have failed my finals and still walked out with a C. Yes but that kind of luxury came at a price. My social life was the casualty in all of this. While I did have a tight knit of pals, my attendance to social gatherings were...well..less than punctual. I was usually doing work for one of my advanced classes. If not that, then I was pulling a shift at either of my jobs. Yeah..you could say I gave up the glamour of late night pizzas, puking in my friends car and hooking up with a random ASU frat sluts for a heavier wallet...except I was paying everything out of my own pocket. My gas, insurance, cell, college. I wasn't exactly hiding cash in the walls. My parents worked hard but..never did make a living to give me and my siblings an extravagant lifestyle. We were grateful though. So when I heard that AD of how I could get a long needed vacation to party central Las Vegas, all for watching some BS timeshare I knew I wasn’t going to buy into, you bet your ass off I made that call. The phone only rang once before I got an answer, “Thank you for calling the Hibou Timeshare Corporation, how can we help you?” a voice rang through the phone. The voice sounded shrill and sickly. “Hi, I'm calling about the vacation in Vegas? Says that you need people for a presen..” “Yeessss.” the voice interrupted “The timeshare presentation, well...we would be so honored to have you” “Uhh..yeah...anyway I’d like to sign up? Is there a form online or do you take the information here?” I said..now feeling a bit tense. “Well I'll tell you what...pack your things for the vacation. When we are finished presenting..we can send you on our way to Vegas. We just need..a bit of your time.” That was that. He gave me the address, date and time of the meeting. The area was in a place called Amargosa Valley in Nevada. Luckily it was just about an hour away from Vegas. Before we parted ways on the phone, the operator said something...he said something that should have been a MAJOR red flag. “Okay then, you’re all set...we will see you July 28th at 4:30pm. Not a moment later” he laughed “Oh..and..one more thing, if you have some more specimens like yourself that might be interested in the free vacation...bring them along. They’ll all receive the same prize and you will receive $100 cash for every person you bring. We look forward to presenting you, Austin. Good day.” I never gave him my name. Still, my young dumb brain didn’t hear anything past $100 dollars. So I rounded up a few of my best pals and we were set to meet the reps over at the timeshare. The days leading up to the trip I couldn't get a hold of myself. It was so exciting. My first real vacation in...i couldn't remember how long. I longed for this type of adventure with my friends. We packed a truck full and set off to Amargosa Valley. I brought Luke, Larry and Adam. We’d been friends since the 3rd grade. We all moved to AZ from different parts of the country that summer, so being new kids we naturally ganged up together. Luke was from Texas..we called him Tex. Real big guy. Loved to work out but definitely was a bit of a boozebag. Larry was from Ohio. Quiet in public but probably the loudest of us all. Always had some political conspiracy to talk about. Then Adam..Adam was interesting. He was from Florida...or Georgia...or Nebraska. Adam never could keep it straight about where he was from. He always had some sort of story and backtrack about where he’d come from. I personally thought he was probably from another part of AZ and just wanted to fit in...so we humor him and let him be the nomad of our group. I myself was originally from California...things got pricey so we made the move to blistering AZ. That was my crew. No matter how long it had been, we were always as tight as ever. The ride was filled with laughing and gags. Stops at fast food joints and all around bullshitting. Yes it was an amazing time just driving there, we couldn't wait to get on with the meeting and head down to Boozeville USA. As we approached our destination...something felt off. Amargosa Valley had been a bit of a ghost town the whole drive. A gas station here. A small outlet there...but otherwise unpopulated. When we hit our destination we were met by a Chrome building. Smack center in the middle of the highway. As we parked at the only stall..we all took a look at each other. “Well this is...odd.” Luke said plainly. “Yeah man...are we really going there?” Adam shook out. Barely containing his fear. “Look guys, I know it looks weird. This place is really clean and bright in the middle of a dusty desert but c’mon. It's like what...an hour of our time? Within 2 hours we’ll be on our way to the dopest guys trip ever.” I said...selfishly. The guys all agreed. We got out, locked the car up and walked in through the sliding glass doors. The cool air hit us like a wave. Each of us breathing in the refreshingly cold air. The inside of this lobby..was also immaculate. Chrome everywhere. Right down to the sofas and chairs. A woman came from around the front desk. “You must be here to be presented. I see you brought more specimens! What a joy! Will you gentlemen please follow me?” She said. Specimens. Ugh. Her tone. That word still makes me shutter. Me and the boys looked at each other..all with the same should we do it look on our faces. Maybe it was the cold air enticing our sweaty brows. We’d been a poorly AC’D truck for a couple hours. Or maybe it was the ice cold drinks she presented in front of us. Whatever the case we followed her through a door behind the front desk and were met with a grand auditorium. It looked as if it could hold maybe 50 people. And all they had was me and my knucklehead friends. As we sat down, sucking down sodas and waters, a mans voice came over the intercom. “Welcome my friends to the Hibou Timeshare Corporation presentation. Today you will be examining the lifetime of these vessels. Determine whether or not you think they are a smart investment and make a choice if you would like to partake!” I recognized the voice. It was the same shrill tone that I set up the appointment with. “Now my dear friends, it's time to sit back with your favorite drink...and listen..” With that, a large projector screen came down from the celine. An old timey countdown began winding down. BEEP3...BEEP2...BEEP1 From what I can remember, I heard the screams of something...unnatural. A scream so high tone that I felt as if my ears would burst with blood. I tried clasping my hands over my ears but to no avail. The screams were too overpowering. As soon as it started, I passed out. I awoke looking at the lights on the celine. Unable to sit up. I could tell I was bareass naked on a metal table. I moved my head, the little that i could to see Adam next to me on another table. Naked as the day we were born. He was encased in what looked like a light purple energy field. Looking more in depth, I too had this field in front of me. Before I could speak the tables raised up. Bringing me upright. Bringing me face to face with Tex. To the left of me..Larry. “My friends, I present to you: Terramite 99-0 specimens.” a voice rang out. The same voice from the auditorium. “They are..of the male species. Strong. Cunning and above all loyal...if raised properly.” “HEY, you bastards. WTF is this! LET US GO!” Tex cried out. Before he could continue, the energy field tightened around him. Tex let out a scream that will haunt me for the rest of my life. The smell of burned flesh and hair filled the area. I would have puked had the horror of seeing my best friend being burned alive wasn't keeping my attention away from the smell. When the field lifted, Tex was stripped down to the muscle fibers. Hair burned down to the scalp. Tex convulsed until he finally relaxed into a hanging position on the table. “Now see..specimen is now sedated. Reduced to a weaker position. With the energy field keeping him contained and the Auto-Reversal Time Warp engaging, we can have this specimen back into working shape immediately.” There was an electrical hum in the air. As before my eyes, Tex’s skin began to heal. His hair growing back. And all burns subsiding. It was as if nothing had happened to him. He still hung in limbo, but we could see the breath return to his chest.The rest of us let out bits of gasps of horror and astonishment. I could see Adam crying a bit in the corner of my eyes. A figure appeared from behind me. A tentacle graced my shoulder, not even phased by the force field. I caught sight of the creature. It stood around 7foot tall. Skin that looked human but a head that was elongated. No nose. And eyes that were black as coal. It had two tentacles for hands. I could not see its feet, as it was covered by a long gown. Larry screamed in anger. “Your...your...a...a…” he managed to get out before the creature silenced him. “Shhhh….I am...a salesman is all. Now my friends I will demonstrate the life cycle of the Terramite 99-0’s.” With that, Larry's forcefield began to hum. Right before my eyes Larry began to get...smaller. Not in stature necessarily, no, but in age. He went from being a young man..to a teenager..to that kid i met in 3rd grade..to an infant. His cries were extremely loud. Unaware of the horrors around him. At that moment I could hear Adam's field begin to hum. “Please no! Please!” Adam begged. “If you will direct your attention to our third pod:” Adam then began to scream as he went from a young man..to middle aged man...to retirement age and finally...to a decrepit old man. Hair as white as snow. Wrinkled beyond recognition. Each breath looking to nearly be his last. “From birth to the declining ages of 70 and beyond the Auto-Reversal Time Warp pods are the perfect tool to use when training your armys, your children, your slaves. Imagine...never having to replace workers. Never worrying if your training methods or punishments might go too far. Never losing a prisoner to death. And though the Terramites look to be difficult to control, I can guarantee their cooperation once put through the proper training.” The creature said. Full of glee in his dead eyes. Between the crying of baby larry and incoherent babbling of old man adam, the room felt like it was spinning. Just when I thought things couldn't get any stranger, the rest of the lights came to life. The room we were in were surrounded by seats, similar to the ones we sat in. However, sitting in these seats were ghastly creatures of different varieties. Some looked like the salesman creature. Others were ogreish. Large bodied creatures covered in a film of slime. Some of them even looked human. It was the eyes though...their eyes were a teal color with white pupils. Many many creatures looked up me and my friends. All of them began clapping their hands and cheering in unison. The claps were deafening. The cries of the baby felt as if a baseball bat was ramming my head. Adams babbling was terrifyingly disturbing. And Tex...hanging there. Eyes rolled back into his skull. I couldnt imagine the hell he began to feel. At this point I wondered what awaited my fate. The clapping stopped abruptly. “Oh...Austin...yes, well if you want to know what fate awaits you just shut your eyes. Shut your eyes and quietly count back from 3.” the creature said...was he reading my mind? Suddenly the urge to close my eyes overtook me. Almost as if I had no choice, I began counting down. 3….2….1…. Everything went black. I wasn't sure if i was alive or dead...or somewhere in between. I saw nothing but black for what felt like a lifetime. And in an instant...I heard that same shrill scream. Only this time I could not cover my ears. I couldn’t feel my body but I felt an unimaginable amount of pain. As the scream grew to its peak, I slammed my eyes open. Trying to catch my breath. I was back in the car...we were all back in the car. The engine was on. Shitty ac blasting. The others were still out. I sat up in my seat. Not wanting to move too suddenly. The sun was beating down on us. I looked over at the time on the dash…July 28th 4:34 pm. I reached into my shirt pocket and I found several vouchers for the MGM hotels in Vegas along with $300 dollars. I also found a card that simply read “Hibou Timeshare Corp. would like to thank you for a bit of your time” The boys came too. All feeling rather groggy. “We all fell asleep huh?” Adam laughed. “We here?” They didn't remember a thing. Not one thing. Not going in...not the reception area...not the freaky timeshare presentation...not one bit. I lied...i told them that while they were sound asleep, we arrived a little earlier than expected. The presenter had an emergency and left our vouchers at the front desk and apologized profusely. “Wow, what a gentleman!” Tex laughed. “We definitely owe it to him to sit through another timeshare, probono.” Larry added. I think it's safe to say that I will not be returning to this or any other timeshare. As I drove away I could see the building disappear in the rear view mirror. So if you’re traveling deep within the southwest of the United States and hear an ad for a free vacation that's too good to be true...do yourself a favor..turn off the radio, call into work and ask for some overtime..because nothing is ever given for free.
(Offer) Solo: Star Wars Story 4K, Secret Life of Pets 2 4K, Fight Club, Whiplash, Wreck it Ralph 4K, The Lion King 4K, Black Panther 4K,Ant-Man 4K, Spider-Man Far from Home 4K, Brightburn 4K, Men in Black International 4K, Iron Man & Hulk Heroes United, and more....(Request) Anything I don't have
I have the following below for trade. MY REQUESTS/WANTS: Vudu Credits, iTunes gift cards, The Invisible Man 2020 4K, Mulan 2020 4K, Unhinged HD, Force of Nature HD, Downhill HD, Underwater HD, Cats & Dogs 3 HD, The Good Liar HD, Motherless Brooklyn HD, Antebellum 4K, Return of Jedi 4K, Scream 2 and 3 HD, Indiana Jones Raider of Lost Ark HD ( old blue and white codes redeem via Vudu now) and anything I don't have. Open to all offers! *4K UHD* Avengers: Age of Ultron Full Code Avengers: Infinity War Full Code Avengers: Endgame iTunes 4K ports Black Panther Full code Thor: Ragnorak Full Code Ant-Man iTunes 4K ports Guardians of the Galaxy iTunes 4K ports Captain America: Civil War iTunes 4K ports Finding Dory iTunes 4K ports Home Alone iTunes 4K ports Deadpool iTunes 4K ports War for the Planet of Apes iTunes 4k ports John Wick Chapter 3 iTunes 4K no port The Lion King 4K Full Code Wreck it Ralph 4K Full Code Solo: Star Wars Story 4K Full Code Star Wars: Force Awakens iTunes 4K ports Star Wars: Rise of Skywalker 4K MA A Wrinkle in Time 2018 4K Full Code Incredibles 2 4K Full Code Pirates of Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales iTunes 4K ports Atomic Blonde 4K MA or Vudu Get Out 4K MA or Vudu The Secret Life of Pets 1 2016 4K MA or Vudu The Secret Life of Pets 2 2019 4K MA or Vudu Terminator Genisys 4K Vudu Holms & Watson 4K The Dark Tower 4K Gemini Man 4K Vudu Annihilation 4K Vudu Ghost in the Shell 2017 4K Vudu Jason bourne 4K MA or vudu The LEGO Movie 4K MA The Fate of the Furious Theatrical 4K MA or Vudu Alpha 4K MA The Star 2017 4K MA The Night Before 4K MA Zombieland 4k MA The Angry Birds Movie 2016 4K MA The Possession of Hannah Grace 4K MA *Disney* Avengers: Age of Ultron 4K Full Code Avengers: Infinity War 4K Full Code Avengers: Endgame iTunes 4K ports Black Panther 4K Full Code Thor: Ragnarok 4K Full Code Captain America: Civil War HD MA or iTunes 4K ports Ant-Man HD MA or iTunes 4K ports Captain Marvel HD GP Iron Man 3 HD MA Guardians of the Galaxy HD MA or iTunes MA 4K ports 4K Guardians of the Galaxy HD GP Ant-Man HD MA Doctor Strange HD Ma Iron Man & Hulk: Heroes United HD MA Iron Man & Hulk: Heroes United HD GP Super Buddies HD GP Solo: A Star Wars Story 4K MA Full Code Solo: A Star Wars Story HD GP Star Wars: Rise of Skywalker 4K MA Star Wars: Force Awakens iTunes 4K ports Star Wars: Rise of Skywalker HD GP Incredibles 2 4K MA Full Code A Wrinkle in Time 2018 4K MA Full code Aladdin 1992 HD MA Aladdin 1992 HD GP Planes HD MA Full Code Finding Dory HD MA or iTunes 4k ports Christopher Robin HD MA Christopher Robin HD GP Mary Poppins MA Bridge of Spies MA The Jungle Book 1967 HD GP Bambi HD GP Toy Story 2 HD GP Toy Story 3 HD GP Toy Story 4 HD MA or iTunes 4K ports Maleficent HD GP Maleficent 2: Mistress of Evil HD GP Peter Pan HD MA Peter Pan HD GP Pete's Dragon 2016 LA HD MA Pete's Dragon 2016 LA HD GP Moana HD GP Coco HD GP Cars 3 iTunes 4K ports Cars 3 HD GP Tangled HD GP The Jungle Book 2016 HD MA Zootopia HD MA Mulan 1998 HD MA Pirates of Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales iTunes 4K ports Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days HD MA Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Long Haul HD MA Home Alone HD MA or iTunes 4K ports War for the Planet of Apes HD MA or iTunes MA 4K Deadpool iTunes MA 4K ports Deadpool 2 HD MA includes Super Duper Cut 12 Rounds 2: Reloaded HD MA The Heat HD MA Fight Club HD MA The Secret Life of Walter Mitty HD MA Atlas Shrugged Trilogy SD MA Bundle Atlas Shrugged Part 1 HD MA Edward Sissorhands HD MA *HD Vudu or MA* The Dark Knight vuduredeem includes bonus features ports to MA Fight Club Atlas Shrugged Part 1 The Incredible Hulk Beetlejuice Halloween: The Curse of Michael Meyers Unrated Grown Ups 1 2010 Stuart Little Searching 2018 Don't Breathe 2016 Minions Edward Scissorhands 12 Rounds 2: Reloaded The Heat Diary of a Wimpy Kid 3: Dog Days Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Long Haul Home Alone HD MA or iTunes MA 4K War for the Planet of apes HD MA or iTunes MA 4K The Secret Life of Walter Mitty Deadpool HD MA or iTunes MA 4K Deadpool 2 2 Fast 2 Furious Ender's Game ( possibly redeems in 4k via vudu) Power Rangers 2017 HD vudu or iTunes 4K no port The Magnificent 7 2016 Fist Fight The LEGO Batman Movie 2017 The Smurfs 2 Crawl No Strings Attached Jersey Boys Divergent HD vudu or iTunes 4K no port The Divergent Series: Insurgent HD vudu or iTunes 4K no port Argo Valerian and City of Thousand Planets The Hobbit: Desolation of Smaug Extended Edition Hugo Paranormal Activity 1 Paranormal Activity 2 Paranormal Activity 3 Extended HD or SD? The Devil Inside HD or SD? True Grit 2010 Jackass 3 Terminator Genisys Terminator: Dark Fate Pet Sematary 2019 G.I. Joe Retaliation Annihilation Ghost in Shell 2017 The Mummy 1999 The Mummy: Returns Rango Justin Beiber: Never Say Never Titanic 1997 The Fighter The LEGO Batman Movie 2017 The LEGO Movie vuduredeem will ports includes bonus features Barbie: Video Game Movie Now You See Me Grudge Match Get Hard Snitch Alex Cross The Cabin in the Woods Kevin Hart: Let Me Explain Jurassic Park the Lost World: Jurassic Park Jurassic Park 3 Jurassic World The Campaign Sherlock Holmes 1 2009 Get Smart Fifty Shades of Grey Unrated Fifty Shades Darker Unrated Snow White & the Huntsman Extended Edition The Hobbit: an Unexpected Journey The Hobbit: Desolation of Smaug Man of Steel Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice Ultimate Edition The Secret Life of Pets 1 2016 The Secret Life of Pets 2019 Downtown Abbey: The movie 2019 Daddy's Home Noah Terminator Dark Fate How to Train Your Dragon 2 Turbo Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted Whiplash The Amazing Spider-Man 2 Robocop 2014 The House 2017 Chips 2017 Twilight: Breaking Dawn Part 2 HD vudu or iTunes 4k no port Warm Bodies HD vudu or iTunes 4K no port Jason Bourne The Bourne Supremacy Harry Potter Order of the Phoenix Harry Potter and Half-Blood Prince Harry Potter and Deathly Hallows Part 1 Harry Potter and Deathly Hallows Part 2 Sex & the City: The Movie The Fast and the Furious 1 2001 Fast Five Extended Fast & Furious 6 Extended Furious 7 Extended The Fate of the Furious Theatrical The Fate of the Furious Extended The Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw Hercules 2014 Magic Mike Magic Mike XXL The Last Stand The Grinch 2018 The Grinch Who Stole Christmas 2000 A Dog's Purpose Journey 2: The Mysterious Island Pacific Rim Gravity Super 8 The Hunger Games The Hunger Games: Catching Fire the Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1 Surf's Up Anger Management The 6th Day Safe 2012 Spider-Man: Homecoming Pitch Perfect Hail, Caesar The Young Messiah Happy Feet 2 Ted Unrated HD MA doesn't redeem via vudu only MA or FN Ted 2 Unrated HD MA same as Ted 1, doesn't redeem via Vudu only MA or FN John Wick HD vudu or iTunes 4K no port john Wick Chapter 2 HD vudu or iTunes 4K no port Mission Impossible 4: Ghost Protocol Mission Impossible 5: Rogue Nation Non-Stop Cloud Atlas Hours 2014 film Dirty Grandpa Unrated The Expendables 2 The Expendables 3 theatrical Wrath of the Titans Riddick Unrated Director's Cut London has Fallen Mechanic Resurrection HD or SD? Warcraft Hansel & Gretel: witch Hunters Unrated World War Z The Last Witch Hunter HD Vudu or iTunes 4K no port God's Not Dead 2 2016 TMNT 2014 Transformers: Dark of Moon Transformers: Age of Extinction Transformers: The Last Knight Star Trek 1 2009 Star Trek: Into Darkness Star Trek: Beyond Chappie Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close The Great Gatsby Inception The Dark Knight Rises *TV Shows & Movie Bundles* Game of Thrones Season 1 vudu/GP or iTunes Game of Thrones Season 3 vudu/GP or iTunes Game of Thrones Season 7 vudu/GP or iTunes Game of Thrones Seasons 1-7 HD vudu Bundle 1 code redeems all season 1-7 Game of Thrones Season 8 vudu/GP or iTunes Arrow Season 3 SD vudu Saw 1-7 Unrated Bundle HD vudu 1 code, 7 movies Atlas Shrugged Trilogy SD MA bundle 1 code, 3 movies How to Train Your Dragon Trilogy HD MA bundle or vudu 1 code, 3 movies The Secret Life of Pets 1 & 2 2 Film Collection HD MA or vudu 1 code, 2 movies Mamma Mia 1 & 2 2 Film Collection HD MA or vudu 1 code, 2 movies *MA Google Play, all will ports* Alien 1979 Alien: Covenant X-Men: Days of Future Past X-Men: Apocalypse The Wolverine The Heat The Other Women How to Train Your Dragon 2 The Croods Turbo Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron The Secret Life of Walter Mitty Rio 2 A Good Day to Die Hard Deadpool 2 Taken Taken 2 Ice Age *SD MA or vudu* Fury 2014 22 Jump Steet Olympus has Fallen The Vow 1 Direction: This is Us Dead Man Down No Good Dead Concussion Don't Breathe The Shallows Neighbors Fast Five Extended Sausage Party Think Like a Man 2 Sherlock Holmes 2: A Game of Shadows Aloha *Canadian MA Google Play, all should port* Mortal Engines 4K ports HD only Starship Troopers 4K ports HD only Dunkirk 4K ports HD only Passengers 2016 4K ports HD only The LEGO Movie 4K ports HD only The LEGO Ninjago Movie 4K ports HD only Batman V superman: Dawn of Justice Ultimate Edition 4K ports HD only J.Edgar Edge of Tomorrow Ghostbusters 1984 Spider-Man: Homecoming Jurassic World 2: Fallen Kingdom Angry Birds Movie 1 2016 Goosebumps 2015 Doctor Sleep Ted Unrated Ted 2 Unrated Jurassic Park The Lost World Jurassic Park Jurassic Park 3 Jurassic World The Fast and Furious 1 2001 Fast Five Extended Fast & Furious 6 Extended Furious 7 Extended The Fate of the Furious Theatrical The Fate of the Furious Theatrical Split 2017 Minions The Secret Life of Pets 1 2016 The Grinch Who Stole Christmas 2000 The Bourne Supremacy Jason Bourne Barbie: Video Game Movie The Mummy 1999 The Mummy: Returns 007: Skyfall MGM, Will not port to MA Pitch Perfect Hail, Caesar The Young Messiah We're the Millers Resident Evil 6: The Final Chapter The LEGO Batman: Heroes United 2013 animated film Man of Steel Argo Beautiful Creatures American Sniper The Great Gatsby Halloween 2018 Ready Player One Sex & City: The Movie Get Smart The Hobbit: an Unexpected Journey The Hobbit: Desolation of Smaug Extended Edition The Hobbit: Desolation of Smaug Theatrical The Hobbit: Battle of Five Armies The Wizard of Oz Jack the Giant Slayer Batman: The Dark Knight Returns Part 2 Pacific Rimg Godzilla 2014 The Hangover Part 3 300: Rise of an Empire Elysium A Very Harold & Kumar Christmas The Good Lie The Incredible Burt Wonderstone The Grinch 2018 Extremely Loud & Incredible Close Son of God foxredeem doesn't port Joy Ride 3 foxredeem doesn't port Justice League: Throne of Atlantic Justice League: Doom White House Down Keanu 2016 *iTunes redeem* The Boss MA Ratchet & Clank MA Scarface 4K MA The Mummy 2017 4K MA The Mummy 1999 4K MA The Mummy Returns 4K MA Back to the Future 4K MA Back the the Future Part 2 4K MA Back to the Future Part 3 4K MA The Great Wall 4K MA psycho 4K MA The Girl on the Train 4k MA Lucy 4K MA Battleship 4K MA Deadpool 4K MA War for the Planet of Apes 4K MA Home alone 4K MA Avengers: Endgame 4K MA Captain American: Civil War 4K MA Ant-Man 4K MA Star Wars: Force Awakens 4K MA Finding Dory 4K MA Toy Story 4 4K MA Cars 3 4K MA Pirates of Caribbean: Dead Men tell No Tales 4K MA Dr. Seuss's: The Lorax 2012 HD MA The Secret Life of Pets 1 2016 4K MA The Grinch Who Stole Christmas 2000 4k MA Schindler's List 4k MA Love Actually HD MA Girls Trip HD MA Neighbors HD MA Ride Along HD MA Ride Along 2 HD MA Holiday Inn HD MA The Huntsman: Winter's War 4K MA Get Out 4K MA Split 4K MA Jurassic Park 4K MA The Lost World: Jurassic Park 4k MA Jurassic Park 3 4K MA Jurassic World 4K MA Straight Outta Compton 4k MA The cult of Chucky HD MA Krampus HD MA London has Fallen HD MA Paul 2011 HD MA The Purge 4K MA The Purge: Anarchy 4K MA The Purge: Election Year 4K MA Dead Again in Tombstone HD MA Sinister 2 HD MA Non-Stop HD MA The Grey HD MA Warcraft 4K MA The Bounre Legacy 4K MA The bourne Supremacy 4K MA The Bourne Identity 4K MA Jason Bourne 4K MA The Bourne Ultimatum 4K MA Atomic Blonde 4K MA Oblivion 4K MA Serenity 2005 4K MA Shaun of the Dead 4K MA A Dog's Purpose HD MA ports The Nightmare Before Christmas SD MA Family Guy: Blue Harvest SD MA Finding Nemo SD MA The Fast and the Furious 1 2001 4K MA 2 Fast 2 Furious 4K MA The Fast and Furious: Tokyo Drift 4K MA Fast & Furious 4 2009 4K MA Fast Five HD MA Fast & Furious 6 4K MA Furious 7 4K MA The Fate of Furious Theatrical and Extended Edition 4K MA Oblivion 4K MA Serenity 2005 4K MA The Incredible Hulk 4K MA Jaws 4K MA Megan Leavy HD MA ports Despicable Me 1 2010 4K MA ports Despicable Me 2 4K MA ports Despicable Me 3 4K MA ports Smokey and Bandit HD MA ports Fifty Shades of Grey 4K MA ports Fifty Shades Darker 4K MA ports Barbie Starlight Adventure HD MA ports Barbie video Game Movie HD MA ports Pitch Perfect 4K MA ports Pitch Perfect 2 4K MA ports The Young Messiah HD MA ports Barbie: Pony Tale HD MA ports Hail, Caesar HD MA ports Sing 4K MA ports Everest 4K MA ports Contraband HD MA ports Snow White & The Huntsman 4K MA ports Ghost in Shell 2017 4K no port Now You See Me 4K no port Now You See Me 2 4K no port Star Trek: Into Darkness 4K no port Star Trek: Beyond 4K no port The Hunger Games 4K no port The Hunger Games: Catching Fire 4K no port The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1 4K no port The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 2 4K No port John Wick 4K No port John Wick Chapter 2 4K no port John Wick Chapter 3 4K no port The Last Stand HD no port Official Secrets HD no port Gemini Man 4K no port 3022 HD no port Rogue Warfare HD no port Light of my Life HD no port Pet Sematary 1989 4K no port Bumblebee 4K no port Killerman HD no port
Going through old issues of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter and posting highlights in my own words, continuing in the footsteps of daprice82. For anyone interested, I highly recommend signing up for the actual site at f4wonline and checking out the full archives. • PREVIOUS • 1987 FUTURE YEARS ARCHIVE: The Complete Observer Rewind Archive by daprice82
The big stories this week really won’t hit until late in the issue, so read down I guess.
[NWA] The Midnight Rider angle lasted just a whole two weeks after his initial arrival. The whole thing began just four or five weeks back with a baseball bat and punching Magnum T.A., and all that work was wasted when they pulled the plug. The Midnight Rider gimmick just wasn’t working, so they did an official announcement that Paul Boesch convinced the NWA board to reinstate Dusty. All the panicked decisions lately leave Dave with the impression that the NWA is in worse shape than they seemed to be a few weeks back, and things don’t look likely to change any time soon. More of a surprise to Dave than the fact that it wasn’t working is the fact that they did it so quickly when the angle was supposed to last through the summer. He thinks that has to be hard on Dusty’s ego. So them setting up a feud between Dusty and Barry Windham when the logical feud should be Luger and Windham seems a desperate move to placate Dusty. And there’s no predicting what the NWA will do next, because the people in charge don’t seem to know what they’re doing week to week.
Ex-NFL star Steve Courson makes his pro wrestling debut this week at a Pennsylvania independent show. He’s barely trained and being rushed into the ring to capitalize off his NFL fame. The guy was a heavy steroid user back in the NFL and admitted as much, and his career ended due to health issues a couple years ago. Nevertheless, he’s got an anti-steroid book about to hit bookshelves. Seems carny enough for the business.
Roddy Piper showed up at Don Owen’s April 30 card in Portland. Billy Jack Haynes’ rival promotion debuted on May 7 and starts its tv program on May 14. Haynes claims he didn’t delay a week due to Piper’s April 30 appearance, but because his ring lights were late in arriving. They were lighting Chris Adams’ ring, I’m sure. Anyway, Piper showed up in the interview area and never entered the ring, and when Mike Golden told Piper to scram during his interview, Piper acted passive and backed off to help put Golden over. Golden then produced a contract for a match on May 7 and tried to goad Piper into a match, to which Piper retorted he’s lost a lot of weight and isn’t a fighter anymore, only to finally get into it with Golden after more taunting and Golden spitting on him. Fans left with the idea that Piper would fight Golden, but Piper never appeared on May 7 and no announcement of them having a match took place.
Variety Magazine reports that all the weekly pro wrestling shows have dropped out of the top 15 in syndicated ratings. So the real story is the way that the wrestling shows made it into the top 15 in the first page. The WWF network had 5 shows, Crockett network had 4, and All-Star Wrestling network had at least 6, and each of those packages added up the ratings of all the shows in them and reported that rating. Compare to say, Wheel of Fortune, which is just the one show, and so you had the combined ratings of anywhere from 4-6+ shows trying to act like all the shows in that package were competitive ad space to a show like Wheel or Jeopardy, which is unfair to those single shows that pull in massive ratings. Anyway, those who calculate ratings have done away with those network packages in their calculations to level the playing field, so WWF isn’t getting ahead of Oprah and her single show’s 9 rating by combining five shows to pull a 10 rating anymore. Superstars, which is definitely WWF’s most watched show, doesn’t even come close to the top 15 on its own. For Dave, this isn’t a big deal, other than that it’ll be harder to track ratings, which are the best way to measure interest at the moment. Dave’s tv industry contacts think this is a big blow to wrestling as an industry, however, and more damaging to Crockett than McMahon since Vince has sold most of his ad slots for the year already. Nothing has materially changed, but advertisers are going to see wrestling as less hot, and their places in the top 15 have been taken by shows like Love Connection, Star Search, and Hollywood Squares. A wrestling network package might offer the same number of viewers, but advertisers look at the rankings to decide what’s hot, and wrestling’s not going to appear there anymore, and their ads in trade publications won’t be able to boast WWF or NWA as among the highest rated networks in syndication. Long story short, Promoters are going to have to chase advertising dollars rather than advertisers chasing promotions, and that spells an eventual downturn for the business.
[NWA] Clash of the Champions II, called Miami Mayhem, has been announced for June 8. Dave gets the feeling that it won’t be as hot a show as the first Clash and that those in the company think they might have given away too much on the first and thus hurt themselves at the gate. Dave thinks they did indeed give a lot, but they also failed to take advantage of a lot. Like, the barbed wire match was the end of a feud and they didn’t even know it because despite the heels being beaten quick and clean, they’re still running the match when there’s no point in continuing the feud. Dave thinks they had a lot of momentum coming off the first clash and they squashed it by downplaying everything in favor of the now-aborted Midnight Rider angle.
Randy Savage is now being billed as Undisputed WWF Champion. They’ve dropped the word “heavyweight” and Dave’s been told they’re planning to no longer use it, for whatever that’s worth.
WWF is working on a bunch of non-wrestling specials. Kind of like the Slammy Awards in the way they’ll sell the shows and in their hopes for ratings. Dave hopes not similar in terms of quality, at least.
Managers Mr. Fuji, Jimmy Hart, and Frenchy Martin appeared on WWF’s May 7 Boston house show. No idea if it’s just certain New England cities they’ll appear in or what, but yeah, that’s the update on the managers at house shows thing.
Dave and his friends were joking that Ultimate Warrior vs. Andre the Giant would be the worst possible match this generation. Lo and behold, Dave found out that they put that match on a few weeks back in Switzerland on a European tour. Dave asks “What did the Swiss ever do to Vince McMahon?” I can't find anything from Switzerland, but I did find a clip from Italy on that same tour.
Dave saw the program for the Central States April 28 show in Kansas City and it’s the funniest thing he’s seen in a while. The program talks about the Freebirds (supposed to be coming in) and says they’re managed by Michael Hayes, and it has a picture of Hayes taken from their original heel days in Georgia in 1980. Bob Geigel runs the promotion and makes his own programs, and it’s good to see how up to date he’s managed to be.
Ken Mantell sent a letter to every promotion except WWF and NWA offering for World Class to work with them. World Class isn’t running a full-time schedule, so Mantell’s looking for ways to get his guys out there, but they only have a couple guys with any significant name value. Michael Hayes, Terry Gordy, Terry Taylor, and maybe Chris Adams could give a boost to a promotion getting into things with a local babyface, but just sending Taylor and Adams to have a match against each other won’t help anyone (they did that for the May 2 show in Memphis). Talent sharing isn’t helpful to the other promotions unless they can do a tv angle or work several shows rather than a one-off date (with the rare exception of a Michael Hayes date in Atlanta, or Gordy doing an independent show with a match against Brody or Abdullah).
[Memphis] Eddie Gilbert beat Jerry Lawler on May 2 to keep Missy Hyatt’s hair on her head. The finish saw Lawler punch Paul E. Dangerously (who manages Gilbert in Continental) after Missy failed to distract Lawler with her open shirt trick. Dangerously showed up when Lawler went after her, and then Kenny Dee, who was managing Lawler, threw powder in Lawler’s eyes, leading to Gilbert getting the pin. Money wound up changing hands from Dangerously to Hyatt to Dee after the match, so Kenny Dee is a newly minted heel manager.
Also in Memphis, the Iceman King Parsons vs. Kerry Von Erich match from the same show got little reaction. People came to see Lawler and Gilbert, not them, and Dave still doesn’t understand putting this match on and billing Parsons as a world champion when the next show is Lawler vs. Hennig for the AWA World Title. It’s just undercutting that match to act like the WCCW title is a world title and then turn around and go “Well here’s a different world title” and being very inconsistent in their recognition of world championships.
More on the special referee poll for the May 9 LawleHennig match. They’re running the poll from a 1-900 number (which means a cost of $1 per phone call), so the company was profiting off the poll. That explains the amount of promotion they were doing saying that Larry Hennig was winning the poll by a narrow margin due to fans in Minnesota flooding the line with votes for Hennig. They were doing no such thing, but it’s a smart way to bilk the local fan base. In Memphis, they run their tv show live, so when it started at 11 am, they did a segment where they said the poll would close at noon (Hennig still leading the results) to keep fans voting until the last minute, even doing another segment at 11:45 am. At noon, Lawler came out and acted all serious with his best Bad News Barrett impression and said he was afraid he had some bad news. “Bad news for Curt Hennig, that is,” and announced Jackie Fargo was the winner of the referee poll. Dave guesses the reason for the charge is probably to drum up enough money to pay Curt Hennig enough to be happy, but this sure is a new way to try and make money off wrestling.
There’s a newcomer in the Oregon territory named Steve Austin. No, he’s not stone cold, but he’s also used the name Steve Winters (Dave believes this is his real name), and he’ll wind up wrestling for Stampede in the future under the name Lance Idol. Dave’s seen him a bit before in his early days in the Bay area and recalls him being a good worker trying to emulate Ray Stevens in style.
Don Owen’s May 7 show had the best case for allowing blading that Dave has ever heard of. They had a Northwest Tag Title cage match with Steve Doll and Scott Peterson beating Avalanche and Mike Golden to regain the titles. Owen believes you need blood in a cage match, while the Oregon commission has banned blading, so how do you suppose Owen got around the issue? Mike Golden got bloody hardway, and they wanted Peterson to bleed too, so they had Golden and Avalanche try to hardway Peterson with potatoes to the forehead. Dave hears they did some 14 hard punches to Peterson’s head and none of them opened him up. One did bust up his nose a bit, though. This is what happens when blading is banned and wrestlers feel the need to get color - they’re going to be really unsafe and hurt themselves.
Tatsumi Fujinami beat Vader by countout on April 27, in a show that drew 5,000 in Osaka. For comparison, All Japan’s Brody/Tenryu match there last month drew 4,000. Fujinami had vowed to retire if he couldn’t beat Vader, so they kind of had to have that finish if they wanted Vader to keep his monster aura without honoring a retirement. Anyway, Dave isn’t sure if this is legit or just an angle, but Fujinami is being reported as trying to make a play for the top spot now that Inoki’s foot is broken. He’s even got a new haircut to symbolize his change from being a young disciple of Inoki to being his own man.
All Japan Women’s May 15 show has a hell of a triple main event lineup. At the top of the card you have the Crush Girls vs. the Jumping Bomb Angels. Then you have Mika Suzuki vs. Kaoru Maeda for the jr. championship (not a weight class, but rather a title exclusively for wrestlers with under 2 years experience). Lastly, Erika Shishido and Nobuko Kimura defend the AJW tag titles against two of the standout rookies from the class of 1987 who are getting their first crack at major exposure, Manami Toyota and Toshiyo Yamada. Erika Shishido, by the way, is a 17 year old from the class of 1986 and the company has big plans for her as a future heel star and partner for Bull Nakano. You may know her better as Aja Kong.
Windy City Wrestling drew remarkably well, drawing $40,000 at International Amphitheater in Chicago. It’s the largest gate Dave’s ever heard of for an independent promotion. The card had Col. DeBeers, Candi Divine and Debbie Combs, Paul E. Dangerously, Buddy Rose and Doug Somers, and a bunch else going on. Based on ticket prices, they pulled an audience of over 4,000 people. The promoter sold the show to the venue for $10,000, so they made a big profit on the event. WWF has taken notice and already there’s talk of them running the same venue, because they believe it may tap into a different crowd than the Rosemont Horizon.
[Stampede] Owen Hart’s reign as North American champion has ended as of May 6. He dropped the title to Makhan Singh, whom he beat for the title on April 10, 1987. Definitely a step toward Owen’s departure from the promotion here, as his last match with Stampede if he does go to the WWF will be on May 14 before he does the IWGP series for New Japan. Owen did agree to go to the WWF for a masked gimmick, either a Tiger Mask or Mighty Mouse type, but he’s apparently having second thoughts, perhaps related to a personal goal he supposedly has of having the match of the year with Ric Flair. Sadly, Owen’s never going to get that match. Bret and Davey Boy Smith are pushing hard for Owen to come to WWF.
Heading to Stampede is Steve Blackman. Blackman’s done some jobs for WWF in the past and is kind of a powerlifter type. He’s being paired with Brick Bronsky, whom Dave describes as an untalented lifter type (Dave rates the May 7 Edmonton match between Kerry Brown and Bronsky at -3.5 stars and calls it one of the worst matches Stampede will ever have), and their team name is the Abortion Alliance. Jeezus, Bruce.
A new women’s wrestling promotion is supposed to start up, doing tapings at Caesar’s Palace in Las Vegas. Wendi Richter and Misty Blue are said to be the top stars and Gordon Solie is said to be on board for announcing, and there’s supposedly tv contracts lined up.
Ted Turner is working on a new cable station called TNT. It’s gonna have a lot of MGM movies and sports events, and probably eventually some Crockett wrestling. The FCC is expected to change some regulations, which would put WTBS back to only being Atlanta-local and all the superstations will revert to local tv.
Looks like a lock that Financial News Network will be taking on Continental by the end of the month or early June. As for a deal with New Japan, that seems to be on hold, as neither side could come to an agreement.
Lawsuits corner. WWF is suing FNN over their Hulkamania package. Larry Sharpe is suing Bam Bam Bigelow for breach of contract. Sharpe was Bigelow’s real manager back in Japan.
The best match on an independent show in Brooklyn on April 29 saw Lou Fabiano (a former WWF jobber) team with Cactus Jack against George Skaaland and Tom Brandi. Cactus Jack is a trainee of Dominic DeNucci, and Dave hears that he’s a top flight worker.
Word is that Futahaguro (real name Koji Kitao), the yokozuna who got kicked out of sumo, is reporting to the Monster Factory in New Jersey to train under Larry Sharpe. He’s in New York this week on other business (mostly talk shows), so no definite word, but that’s the rumor coming out of the area.
The Von Erich Parade of Champions drew an estimated 7,000 fans. Dave anticipates a more accurate estimate and gate next week. The show was… Let me just give some highlights. The first match was terrible. The second match was mostly rest holds and had no heat, and after winning the match Mike George grabbed the mic to make sure the fans knew he was recognized as World Champion in Kansas City. Nobody cared because nobody cares about the Kansas City promotion. Steve Casey was supposed to challenge Eric Embry for the light heavyweight title, but he came in 1.5 pounds over the weight limit. After the crowd heckled Embry, he agreed to a non-title match, which Casey won in 19 seconds. That extra weight made all the difference, I reckon. Bill Irwin vs. Black Bart was fair. Then you had Michael Hayes vs. Terry Gordy in a triple tower of doom and Dave says that while there was heat, the gimmick’s a total dud because you can’t do any moves or take any bumps the way it’s all structured. They then gave the crowd something good, as Terry Taylor beat Chris Adams to keep the Texas title in a great match. The Texas roundup in the triple tower of doom, on the other hand, was the opposite of great. If Dusty plans to actually use this concept, he’s got a lot of work cut out for him, because not one fan in the building understood what the hell was going on. Bruiser Brody carried his match teaming with Kevin Von Erich against Buddy Roberts and Solomon Grundy, and nobody cared about Kevin. They had to replace Schaun Simpson with Terry Gordy due to injury suffered in the Texas roundup for the Wild West/Texas tag title unification match, and Gordy/Simpson won by disqualification. It’s unclear if that makes the Simpsons Wild West tag champs and Gordy/Simpson Texas tag champs, or if it unifies the titles on the Simpsons, or what. In the end, Kerry Von Erich regained the WCCW title. Nobody cares. World Class is every bit as fucked as WCW in 2000.
Dave’s got the lineup for the second Clash, and he thinks the NWA is now afraid to put on a hot show. Windham vs. Ricky Santana, Koloff vs. Al Perez, Dusty vs. Larry Zbysko, the Garvins vs. Rotunda and Rick Steiner, the Fantastics vs. Sheepherders for the U.S. Tag Titles, and Blanchard/Anderson defending the NWA tag titles against Sting and Steve Williams. No Flair, Luger, or Road Warriors in sight.
When the NWA announced Dusty’s reinstatement, the reaction was pretty negative. After a moment of silence, one woman cheered and two more joined her, and they were swiftly drowned in a chorus of boos.
Night 2 of the Crockett Cup grossed $115,000 at the gate. The Cup as a whole managed a combined gate equal to the merch sales gross at Wrestlemania.
They’re building a new Coliseum in Charlotte, North Carolina, and it’s supposed to open in the fall. Word is that WWF will get the first two shows there and Crockett will be relegated to the 2,500 seat Charlotte Park Center, since the old Coliseum building will be torn down. WWF can’t run the existing Coliseum for the same reasons Crockett can’t touch Madison Square Garden, but the new Coliseum has different management with no relationship to Crockett, so they’re going to give WWF a chance.
Gordon Solie and Mike Graham’s new Florida Championship Wrestling has opened up and did their first tv taping on April 30. They’re looking to run five days a week in central Florida starting real soon.
Antonio Inoki’s injury has led to New Japan declaring the IWGP Title vacant. Tatsumi Fujinami battles Vader on May 7 for the title. Seems to be a lot of behind the scenes tension between Fujinami and Choshu as well. Fujinami walked out after the April 27 show, leaving only Choshu of the original four top draws in the company.
Tiger Mask (Mitsuharu Misawa) is getting married on May 10 and will unmask for the wedding. He’s marrying movie star Tomomi Shiina. After the wedding he may stop wrestling as Tiger Mask and go back to his real name.
As soon as TNT is available in 30 million homes, Crockett’s tv will be moved there. All kinds of rumors are swirling about Crockett and Turner, but as far as Dave’s aware no firm deal of any kind has been reached.
The NWA, Mike Rotunda, Kevin Sullivan, and the city of Albany are all being sued for “torturous acts and personal injury” by 16 year old Mike Strickland. Strickland alleges that on February 9 he was patting wrestlers on the back when city police officers working security for the show seized him and arrested him, then took him to a secluded area where Rotunda and Sullivan “wilfully, intentionally and purposefully assaulted and attempted to commit violent and illegal physical injury” on him and that the police did nothing to stop the beating.
Dave wants us to know that although it was extremely predictable, he found the Midnight Express’s party on the WTBS show really entertaining. Yeah, when you have a cake in wrestling it winds up in the heel or announcer’s face, but the banter between Cornette and Stan Lane was really fun.
Ted Turner’s got some kind of package deal he’s pitching, using the July NWA ppv as incentive to get cable systems to buy in on TNT. Or maybe it’s the other way around. Dave understands that the cable companies will likely get a higher share of revenue for the PPV from the show than the usual 50/50 split, and Dave says this show is really do or die for Crockett.
Abdullah the Butcher and Kamala no-showed Jerry Blackwell’s May 8 show. They had turned down a spot at the Von Erich Memorial Parade of Champions to do that show, so that’s ironic.
”JERRY LAWLER PINNED CURT HENNIG TO WIN THE AWA TITLE ON 5/9 IN MEMPHIS BEFORE 9,500 FANS." The match was apparently “not great” and saw Lawler win by grabbing Hennig by the knees and kangaroo flipping him headlong into the ring post for the pin. Great reaction to the finish, but yeah, Lawler is the new AWA champion. More on this next week.
One letter writer chimes in that “loser groups” like GLOW and POWW don’t deserve time in the Observer. In fact, he hopes they lose their time slots in New York and Boston to Continental and Memphis to give WWF real competition. Yeah, because those groups are going to be able to do that.
Still a bunch of letters sniping back and forth about Clash vs. Wrestlemania. One says they can’t believe anyone could think FlaiSting was the best match they’ve seen in years. Another says that for “Vince McMahon to put WWF fans through that show constitutes cruel and unusual punishment.” As usual, wrestling fans are level-headed and gracious in their disagreements. It warms my soul to see us carrying on this proud tradition of sober discourse on reddit in 2020.
NEXT WEEK:AWA Champion Jerry Lawler, reports from Texas Stadium, Fujinami becomes IWGP champion, Oregon-Washington Wrestling Federation debut show, and more
A Look Into Universal 2021: These Movies Won't Dolittle at the Box Office
In this post, I will focus on Universal Pictures, the studio that made sure Trolls World Tour made history by being a large film without a wide theatrical release. Besides that, this studio is well known for Jaws, E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial, Jurassic Park, The Fast and the Furious, Despicable Me, and The Secret Life of Pets. Some of the best films of all time were made by Universal like Touch of Evil, To Kill a Mockingbird, Back to the Future, Do the Right Thing, and Schindler’s List. Most recently, the studio is well known for Cats, 1917, The Invisible Man, and Trolls World Tour.
The Current Situation of Universal Pictures
Universal has been doing very well since 2015. 2015 was the year they dominated the box office with Jurassic World, Furious 7, and Minions. 2015 proved that those were Universal’s largest franchises. However, they seem to be coming to an end with the new decade. In a way, the COVID-19 pandemic delayed the inevitable that these three main franchises are looking to end by 2026. Let’s take a look at how Universal did this year and how they can possibly do next year.
2020
Dolittle - The year started with Dolittle (considering that 1917 is a 2019 film, even if it didn’t release nationwide until January 10, 2020), which blew up in Universal’s face. The film made $223M on a budget of $175M, making the film one of the biggest box office bombs and losing Universal $100M. The extremely high budget killed the film’s chances of success to begin with. Either this film shouldn’t have been made or it should’ve been animated, similar to Universal's Cats (which also bombed). The Turning - This is the film that got people TURNING away from the film and watching Bad Boys for Life instead. It makes sense as The Turning is said to be one of the worst films of 2020, alongside The Grudge (both the Grudge and the Turning got F Cinemascores). In terms of financially the film didn’t fare any better, making $19M on a budget of $14M, making this film an underperformance. The Photograph - This romantic drama was just there when it came out. Sure, it got good reviews, but Sonic the Hedgehog came out the same day and topped the box office. The Photograph made $21M on a budget of $16M, making this film an underperformance. Theatrical romantic movies just aren’t getting as much traction now as they have before, unless it’s based on a book with a sizable audience to begin with, like Fifty Shades of Grey and Crazy Rich Asians. Universal’s slate up to the Photograph wasn’t looking too good. Fortunately, things were starting to turn around for Universal. We just couldn’t see it. The Invisible Man - The Invisible Man was amazing. And many other people felt the same way. The film made $126M on a budget of $7M, which is a huge win for Blumhouse and Universal. While COVID-19 prevented the Invisible Man from being more profitable, the film still did well enough. If COVID-19 didn’t happen, I’d say the film would’ve made at least $80M domestically and could’ve possibly broke the $100M mark in the US and Canada. The film would’ve made at least $160M worldwide and could’ve possibly broke the $200M mark worldwide. Regardless, the Invisible Man is a success.. The Hunt - This film was unfortunate to release on March 13, 2020, alongside Lionsgate’s I Still Believe and Sony’s Bloodshot. The film was only around for one weekend in theaters before COVID-19 prevented the film from making any more money. The film only made $7M on a budget of $14M, which would mean that it lost money in normal circumstances. The question is: How well would the Hunt have done without COVID-19 ending its box office run right after opening weekend? The film was projected to make $8-11M on opening weekend. Let’s take the most optimistic number, $11M and consider that the opening weekend. I’d say the Hunt makes $30M domestically at most. Throw in about $5M from international markets (I don’t know how well this film will do outside of the US), and you get $35M worldwide on a budget of $14M. It would be an okay performance, but nothing to be proud of like the Invisible Man’s performance. Trolls World Tour - This was the movie that pissed off movie theaters. It had a simultaneous release in theaters (mostly drive-in theaters) and on VOD. On a budget of $110M, it made $38M theatrically. While VOD sales aren’t made clear, it was reported by IndieWire that the film made about $150M from rentals. Let’s say in total, the film made about $190M on a budget of $110M, which means that the film didn’t do great, or at least as well as the original Trolls’ $347M. Sure, it broke records on VOD, but that doesn’t mean it was able to succeed like the original. Had Trolls World Tour released under normal circumstances, I think this film could’ve made $360M WW, more than the original. The King of Staten Island - This was the second film that Universal also put on VOD, but this time exclusively. The film made $2.2M in theaters in countries that gave it a theatrical release. It was reported by the Hollywood Reporter that the film made about $40M for Universal. Let’s say in total, the film made about $42M on a budget of $35M. Regardless of where the film was released, I don’t think this film would’ve been able to be profitable for Universal. Comedy films haven’t done so well in recent years, and I really don’t see The King of Staten Island making at least $80M if it went theatrical. Freaky - This is supposedly the first film under the Universal-AMC (and most recently Cinemark) deal where Freaky will be released exclusively in theaters for 17 days before also releasing on VOD. AMC and Cinemark are expected to make about 10% of Freaky’s VOD sales, but Freaky could still play in theaters after its VOD release if it’s successful enough. As of this post, the film has made $5.4M on a budget of $6M (should be able to hit $6M before the film’s second Friday). I’d say by the end of its run, the film would make at least $15M (at least theatrically), making this film profitable. The possible success of Freaky could convince other film studios to release any low budget films (maybe ones that cost $10M or less) in theaters sometime before the year ends. 2020 Films That Haven’t Been Released Yet There are three films that haven’t been released yet that are still slated to come out in 2020: The Croods: A New Age, All My Life, and News of the World. Let’s see how well these films could do, assuming they stay in 2020. The Croods: A New Age - It’s a Dreamworks Animation adventure comedy film directed by Joel Crawford and is the sequel to The Croods. With the pandemic still an issue, this will definitely make less than its predecessor. Even without the pandemic, the seven year gap is going to hurt the film. I’d say this film makes $60M DOM and $160M WW. Fortunately, Universal only spent $65M compared to $175M spent on the original Croods, or the film would’ve been a major box office bomb. The Croods: A New Age should be a moderate success for now. Under normal circumstances, I think the film would’ve made $150M DOM and $400M WW. DISCLAIMER - This editorial will most likely not adapt based on future delays due to the COVID-19 pandemic. I’m detailing the current situation as it is as of November 21, 2020. I’m assuming that everything should be fine enough for All My Life to release theatrically on December 4, 2020. All My Life - It’s a romantic drama film directed by Marc Meyers. This probably won’t make its money back during a pandemic. I’d say this makes $30M DOM and $40M WW, but that’s being very optimistic. News of the World - It’s a western drama film directed by Paul Greengrass and stars Tom Hanks. The only places this film is getting a theatrical release is in the United States and China. I doubt China would give this western drama much attention, and I’m not entirely sure how the US will be by Christmas. Being very optimistic, the film should make $40M DOM and $50M WW.
2021
The next year is coming, and it’s time to look at what Universal has in store for everyone next year. I’ll try to keep it short (with a basic description of each one if necessary and how well it might do). The numbers I have won’t be accurate, so take it with a grain of salt.
The 355
It’s a spy film directed by Simon Kinberg. This seems like a movie that could bring moviegoers back to the theaters. I could see this being one of the first box office hits of 2021. I’d say this makes $110M DOM and $250M WW.
Nobody
It’s an action thriller film directed by Ilya Naishuller. Not much is known about the film, except that it stars Bob Odenkirk. This will do less than Universal’s previous film, The 355, and it’s okay to compare the two because they're both action films. I’d say this makes $80M DOM and $200M WW.
The Boss Baby: Family Business
It’s a comedy film directed by Tom McGrath and is a sequel to Dreamworks Animation’s The Boss Baby back in 2017. Reception of the previous film seems lukewarm, but the film somehow made $175M domestically and $528M worldwide. Dreamworks doesn’t have many properties to work with after Kung Fu Panda and How to Train Your Dragon finished their trilogy, so it makes sense that this would get a sequel. However, I see the film making slightly less than the first one as the first film seems more of a novelty than something that can successfully be replicated. I’d say it makes $160M domestically and $500M worldwide.
No Time to Die
It’s a spy film directed by Cary Joji Fukunaga and is the final 007 film starring Daniel Craig as James Bond. While there were rumors that No Time to Die could be sold off to streaming, let’s assume it doesn’t (and it most likely won’t). Along with The 355, it could be one of the first action films to bring people back into movie theaters. I’d say this makes $220M DOM and $1.07B WW, less than Skyfall but more than Spectre and every other James Bond film.
BIOS
It’s a science fiction drama film directed by Miguel Sapochnik. Not much is known about the film, except the plot which is about the last man on Earth going on a journey with his dog. This seems like it could be a moderate success. I’d say it makes $70M DOM and $150M WW.
Marry Me
It’s a romantic comedy film directed by Kat Coiro. Not going to lie, I was a little interested in the plot of this film, in which a well known singer decides to marry a stranger after realizing her partner is having an affair. I don’t expect this to do gangbusters, but it could do a little better than modern romantic comedies. I’d say this makes $40M DOM and $50M WW.
F9
It’s an action film directed by Justin Lin and is the ninth film in the mainline Fast & Furious franchise. It looks to be as crazy, if not crazier than the previous films. But that’s okay, as this seems like a fun popcorn flick that a lot of people will go out to see. I’d say this makes $240M DOM and $1.25B WW, slightly more than The Fate of the Furious, but not as much as Furious 7, which I doubt will ever be surpassed.
Spirit Untamed
It’s a Dreamworks animated film directed by Elaine Bogan and Ennio Torresan and is based on the Spirit Riding Free series and a sequel to Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron. As long as the budget is low ($70M or below), I can see this being a moderate success. I’d say this makes $100M DOM and $150M WW.
Minions: The Rise of Gru
It’s a comedy film and is made by Illumination. Ever since The Secret Life of Pets 2, this film has become a little more like a wildcard. I don’t see this hitting $1B, with Despicable Me 3 barely being able to do so and the Minions craze mostly being dead. I’m sure this will decrease from Despicable Me 3, but it’s unknown by how much. Would it decrease by a few hundred or by half? I’d say this makes $220M domestically and $550M worldwide. Regardless, I don’t see this hitting $1B at all. I don’t think Universal should even make a Despicable Me 4. Minions: The Rise of Gru should be the last one in the series for now. Get another franchise Illumination.
The Forever Purge
It’s a dystopian action science fiction horror film directed by Everado Gout and is the final film in the Purge series. With the pattern that the Purge movies keep doing better, I’d say this one will follow that pattern, especially if it ends the series on a high note. I’d say this film makes $80M DOM and $150M WW.
Old
It’s a thriller film directed by M. Night Shyamalan. The poster of this film has me intrigued, despite not knowing the plot of the film. I don’t expect this film to do as well as Split or Glass, but as long as the movie is good, I can see this making $100M DOM and $220M WW.
Respect
It’s a biographical drama film directed by Liesl Tommy and is based on the life of Aretha Franklin. Music biopics have been on the rise since Bohemian Rhapsody hit theaters in 2018. I’d expect this film to perform similarly to Rocketman. With that in mind, I’d say this makes $110M DOM and $210M WW.
Candyman
It’s a supernatural slasher film directed by Nia DaCosta and is a sequel to Candyman (1992). As a sequel, it shouldn’t share the same name as the first film, but that’s just me. With Jordan Peele’s production company attached to this film, I could see this film doing a lot better than the 1992 film. I’d say this film makes $70M DOM and $120M WW.
The Bad Guys
It’s a Dreamworks animated heist comedy film directed by Pierre Perifel. Not much is known about this film except the plot, which is about a group of misunderstood villains that try to be better. I think this film can be a success and will make similar numbers to Abominable. I’d say this makes $80M DOM and $200M WW.
The Addams Family 2
It’s a black comedy film directed by Conrad Vernon and Greg Tiernan and is a sequel to 2019’s The Addams Family. The first one did surprisingly well, and I expect the second one to do slightly better. I’d say this makes $120M DOM and $250M WW.
Halloween Kills
It’s a slasher film directed by David Gordon Green and is the second film in the Halloween 2018 trilogy. This one looks to follow the same footsteps that Halloween 2018 did, which is a good thing. I’d say this makes $170M DOM and $270M WW.
Sing 2
It’s a musical comedy film directed by Garth Jennings and is the sequel to Illumination’s Sing. The five year gap from 2016 to 2021 may come to the film’s detriment but not by a lot. Regardless, I don’t see this film surpassing its predecessor, especially seeing The Secret Life of Pets 2 dropping significantly from the original’s $876M to the sequel’s $430M. Sing 2’s drop won’t be as brutal as The Secret Life of Pets, but I wouldn’t expect an increase. I’d say this makes $250M DOM and $600M WW.
If The Film Needs To Be Rescheduled, Where Should They Move To?
All My Life - Should move from December 4, 2020 to January 8, 2021 News of the World - Should move from December 25, 2020 to January 29, 2021 The 355 - Should move from January 15, 2021 to February 19, 2021 (Replacing Nobody) Nobody - Should move from February 19, 2021 to March 19, 2021 The Boss Baby: Family Business - Should move from March 26, 2021 to May 21, 2021 (Replacing Spirit Riding Free) No Time to Die - Should move from April 2, 2021 to May 28, 2021 (Replacing F9. I hope this film doesn’t move again. MGM has no time to die) BIOS - Should move from April 16, 2021 to June 4, 2021 (Replacing Spirit Untamed) Marry Me - Should move from May 14, 2021 to June 18, 2021 Spirit Untamed - Should move from June 4, 2021 to July 9, 2021 (Replacing The Forever Purge) F9 - Should move from May 28, 2021 to July 16, 2021 The Forever Purge - Should move from July 9, 2021 to August 13, 2021 Old - Should move from July 23, 2021 to August 27, 2021 (Replacing Candyman) Respect - Should move from August 13, 2021 to September 17, 2021 (Replacing The Bad Guys) The Bad Guys - Should move from September 17, 2021 to October 1, 2021 Candyman - Should move from August 27, 2021 to October 8, 2021 The Addams Family 2 - Should move from October 8, 2021 to October 15, 2021 (I can see Universal trying to keep this film in October, and I doubt Universal would want to push this film back to 2022 unless it’s really necessary) Halloween Kills - Should move from October 15, 2021 to October 22, 2021 (Like with The Addams Family 2, Universal will try to keep this film in October. Hopefully it doesn’t get pushed back again to 2022 unless it’s really necessary) Minions: The Rise of Gru - Should move from July 2, 2021 to December 22, 2021 (Replacing Sing 2, but I’m sure Universal will try to keep this release date unless the movie theater industry is still uncertain by May) Sing 2 - Should move from December 22, 2021 to July 1, 2022 Thoughts on 2021 Slate - Universal’s 2020 Slate walked so Universal’s 2021 Slate could run. And run it will. Universal is going all out with this 2021 Slate. The Boss Baby 2, No Time to Die, F9, Spirit Untamed, Minions: The Rise of Gru, The Forever Purge, The Addams Family 2, Halloween Kills, and Sing 2 are all a part of strong franchises that Universal has (No Time to Die and The Addams Family 2 has United Artists Releasing distributing the film domestically, but still). I believe Universal will have a strong 2021. The 355 could hypothetically be a new franchise for Universal, which is what Universal needs for the future after Jurassic World, Fast & Furious, and Minions are done. Speaking of the future, let’s see what Universal’s future is. Universal on Streaming - Peacock was released on July 2020. It's free with ads and $5 without ads. I think it's a good service, but I still see Universal pulling films from the service from time to time instead of just keeping it there like with Disney+. The Future - The mainline Fast & Furious series will end after two more installments. A female-led Fast & Furious and a Hobbs & Shaw sequel are currently in development, but they probably won’t be released until as early as 2023. Halloween Kills will get a sequel in the form of Halloween Ends, which is meant to be the last Halloween film in a while. Universal and Illumination are partnering with Nintendo to make a Mario film, which I’m cautiously optimistic about. After 2022, it seems like Universal doesn’t have any much strong franchises to rely on. Jurassic World: Dominion is said to be the last Jurassic World film (for now, but I’d expect there to be at least a five year gap before another Jurassic Park film). Minions: The Rise of Gru will most likely be the last Despicable Me film in a while and it should be. I know a Despicable Me 4 is in development, but I really think Universal shouldn’t make the film in order to not milk the franchise too dry. Universal’s best bet at new franchises will most likely come from Nintendo. If the Mario film is a critical and financial success, I’m sure Universal would want to make sequels to the Mario film and make other films based on Nintendo franchises (I’m assuming that Nintendo would keep partnering with Universal to make films from other Nintendo franchises, especially since they are partnering with Universal for Super Nintendo World). Video game franchises like The Legend of Zelda and Metroid (I’d love to see that) could possibly become films.
Media Merger/Acquisition Predictions for 2021 and beyond
Let’s face it: 2020 has not been the best of years. We‘ve been having to learn how to live in the midst of a devastating global pandemic; one which has caused severe disruption to economies all over the place. This, for a known fact, may explain why we haven’t been hearing the word “mass media merger“ as much as we used to. In the past year alone, the media landscape underwent significant drastic changes when Disney completed its mammoth acquisition of 21st Century Fox, CBS Corp. and Viacom were reunited to form ViacomCBS, and Hasbro expanded its media footprint with its purchase of Entertainment One. With a lot of smaller companies struggling to keep pace, I've decided to make my first post about a list of predictions regarding acquisitions and mergers that could occur over the next couple of years. So without further ado, here's my picks for the media mergeacquisition predictions for 2021 and beyond! Note:My picks will range from small-scale film studios to video game companies to publishing houses and so on. The possibilities here are straight-up endless!
Hasbro acquires MGM
https://preview.redd.it/2xd8pl71cmv51.png?width=2071&format=png&auto=webp&s=9cd81f8950280c98e8ab47e76413644a4ecffe94 Hasbro is undoubtedly the world's leading toy manufacturer, with such popular IPs including Transformers, G.I. Joe, My Little Pony, Power Rangers, Monopoly, Nerf, Twister, and so much more, and coming off its purchase of Entertainment One, the leading international film/TV distributor home to notable family-fare brands include Peppa Pig and PJ Masks, as well as the libraries of record labels such as Death Row Records, the prolific toy giant has truly diversified further into the realm of content production, but what if the time came to take a step further? Well, that's where Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) comes in. Sure, the lion's been having some discussions with several parties, including Apple and Netflix about a possible takeover, but I reckon one of those suitors could be Hasbro itself. If a Hasbro-MGM merger went through, Hasbro would own several iconic film series including the James Bond, Rocky, RoboCop, Bill & Ted franchises, among others, critically-acclaimed TV series including the Stargate franchise, Fargo, The Handmaid's Tale, etc., and popular unscripted formats including Survivor, The Voice USA and The Apprentice. Above all, I think Hasbro's content production arm could benefit dramatically with labels such as the main MGM banner and the Orion Pictures sister studio, combined with eOne's global film production/distribution/sales divisions, so yeah, could a Hasbro deal finally be the moment where MGM regains its status as a major film studio? Only time will tell.
Comcast acquires Electronic Arts (EA)
https://preview.redd.it/y9dcntu3cmv51.png?width=1830&format=png&auto=webp&s=698b27c49463e6d7c9c6ebbe8395bc6655065f59 EA is one of the leading video game companies in the industry, and perhaps in recent years, the most reviled, with many gaming buffs citing its desire to shut down development studios and its overabundance on micro-transactions, all in the name of greed. Comcast, a fellow previous "Worst Company in America" recipient, is defined by the properties owned through its media subsidiary NBCUniversal, which includes the Universal Pictures film studio, the NBC TV network, Universal theme parks, and most recently, the Peacock streaming service. Corporate negativity aside, I personally think that in acquiring EA, Comcast could establish a third pillar in its media holdings alongside NBCUniversal and Sky (which it bought back in 2018), with several major video game franchises including Need for Speed, The Sims, Battlefield, Medal of Honor, Mass Effect, Plants vs. Zombies, and the EA Sports family of games (FIFA and so on) under its umbrella. These gaming IPs would fit pretty well with NBCUniversal's existing IP which includes film franchises such as Jurassic Park, Fast & Furious, Despicable Me, Shrek, How to Train Your Dragon, and much more. Comcast certainly wouldn't be the only mass media conglomerate with video game holdings, though. WarnerMedia, owned by AT&T of course, stands as the only leading mass media conglomerate that owns a leading video game publishedeveloper (in Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment). Under the Comcast umbrella, I'd expect some serious changes in management, so EA can earn newfound respect, after years of brutal flack from gaming fans.
Microsoft acquires Netflix
https://preview.redd.it/p9pn3zb6cmv51.png?width=2496&format=png&auto=webp&s=e84e08f5648d97cd534cbe29140e87034a4213c8 For years, Netflix has been the world’s leading direct-to-consumer entertainment platform, with critically acclaimed original series under its roof including House of Cards, Orange is the New Black, Stranger Things, and many more, as well as three Best Picture-Oscar nominees in Roma (2018), Marriage Story and The Irishman (both 2019). With all of that success in mind, one question has clouded it for a predominantly long time: Is Netflix an acquisition target? Many analysts have suggested countless times that either Disney or Apple should buy the streaming giant, but since then, both companies have launched streamers of their own (Disney+ and Apple TV+, respectively) to prove which streamer’s the best. Which raises the question on who else could swoop in and take it. Well, as this section suggests, the honor of buying Netflix goes to another tech giant, Microsoft. The prolific corporation is best known for its Windows computer operating systems, its Office suite of programs, and its Xbox line of video game consoles. The acquisition of Netflix, of course, would be a historic moment in Microsoft’s 45-year history, as it would give the company significant media holdings, as well as a new flagship brand in its ranks. If that were the case, anyone who buys a new Microsoft hardware product (Windows, Surface or Xbox) could get a year’s subscription for free. Now that’s watching with power!
Amazon acquires Ubisoft
https://preview.redd.it/7d51d6w6cmv51.png?width=2363&format=png&auto=webp&s=15b849cf0448627fb84e706c466ff36376db37af Amazon, without question, is the world's leading online marketplace, second-largest streaming player (through Prime Video). But did you know it has some gaming assets under its belt, too? That's where Luna, its upcoming cloud gaming service, comes in. It also has a gave development/publishing arm - Amazon Game Studios, which publishes first-party titles; but here's the problem: it's not big enough in scale - or IP - yet. What game company is it probably most likely to purchase, though? That honor goes to Ubisoft. With Ubisoft's franchises including the Rayman, Raving Rabbids, the Tom Clancy's games (Splinter Cell, Ghost Recon, The Division), Assassin's Creed, Far Cry, Just Dance and more, Amazon's profile in the gaming market could truly skyrocket, and benefit Luna even more, seeing as they have a gaming channel with Ubisoft. Could Amazon use Ubisoft to break the code to compete with Sony and Microsoft in the gaming market? Well, if an acquisition like this goes through, I'd say it would.
ITV plc acquires Lionsgate
https://preview.redd.it/8tpjuwiacmv51.png?width=2364&format=png&auto=webp&s=79d8ecc9ede2bc4c942a89efe73270250620934d Remember back in 2016 when eOne, prior to its acquisition by Hasbro, rejected a bid to be acquired by British television broadcaster ITV? That's a unique example of ITV trying to diversify, with very little luck. In the age of streaming, ITV is currently trying to expand its horizon's a bit. So, what better way to do that than buying out a little mini-major film studio? This is where Lionsgate comes in. Lionsgate's future has been in deep question since January 2018. At that point, Amazon, Verizon, Comcast, and even the future ViacomCBS were being looked at as potential suitors. As speculation continues to mount about who could possibly buy it, I imagined recently what would happen if ITV decided to buy Lionsgate in an effort to diversify into film production. Now I know this prediction sounds odd, seeing as ITV is a British company, but ITV Studios - the company's content production/distribution arm, does operate internationally (most notably in the United States, where it's the like the largest unscripted producer in the country) could do with some well-established IP, namely a couple on the cinematic front. I believe that Lionsgate's films and franchises, most notably the Saw, The Hunger Games, and John Wick franchises, as well as Lionsgate's sister studios (like Roadside Attractions, for example) could benefit under the ITVS fold. If that were to happen though, Lionsgate's TV arm would be folded into ITVS's US division, inheriting the existing TV programs currently produced by Lionsgate. Of course, Lionsgate also owns a handful of TV channels, including the U.S. premium network Starz, which brings us to a crossroads of sorts. Starz (as well as Lionsgate's stake in Celestial Tiger Entertainment) may continue to be owned by ITV, but the most likely option is this: both networks may need to be divested due to rules on foreign companies owning U.S. TV channels. This is where suitors like Disney, NBCUniversal, Sony Pictures and Discovery may come in. Regardless though, Acquiring Lionsgate's studios, combined with it's large film library, would prove a truly significant boost to ITV's content production efforts!
Verizon acquires Hearst('s media assets)
https://preview.redd.it/trigqz3bcmv51.png?width=2496&format=png&auto=webp&s=1488e273efd5b3ceba1fe6da773828e67939ad3c Verizon is a pretty underrated company in comparison to larger conglomerates, with key assets including its bespoke Wireless and FiOS services, and internet brands like AOL and Yahoo!. Hearst, on the other hand, is home to a number of magazines and newspapers (with a couple of web properties in between), along with a 50% stake in A+E Networks, which it owns with Disney. (Fun fact: Hearst and Verizon already have a partnership in Verizon Hearst Media Partners, but now may be the time to go further) Verizon CEO Hans Vestberg already stated that the company has no ambition in joining the media-merger race any time soon, but now may be the time to reconsider. With Hearst's publishing and entertainment under its disposal, Verizon Media can benefit significantly. Which brings us to its broadcasting assets. Hearst also owns affiliates to major U.S. broadcasting networks like ABC, CBS, NBC and so on. Hearst may scale down and focus on those stations (similar to the likes of Nexstar and Sinclair Broadcasting), but keep some companies like Litton Entertainment (which owns some early-morning blocks on ABC and CBS). I do have a feeling that Verizon may acquire Disney's share in A+E, which would lead to Disney acquiring Hearst's 20% stake in ESPN to take full ownership. This alone could increase Verizon's international holdings dramatically - and for good reason!
Liberty Global acquires ErosSTX
https://preview.redd.it/81ebgvtfcmv51.png?width=2071&format=png&auto=webp&s=edbce0a9846d8e5978635ecc2198521eeb1fbc65 Well, as it turns out, some miracles can happen in a year of economic uncertainty! In that case, the surprise merger between STX Entertainment, the newest mini-major studio in Hollywood, and Eros International, a leading Indian film studio. The result? ErosSTX. A relative newcomer to the public stock exchange, its film unit (STX Films) has released a modest slate of mid-budgeted films - most recently Hustlers, 21 Bridges and The Gentlemen, with a few flops (eg. Uglydolls) in between. Ripe for immediate takeover? maybe. The suitor most likely? Liberty Global - the largest cable/broadband provider outside the U.S., with its brands containing the likes of UPC, Virgin Media (in the UK and Ireland) and Telenet (in Belgium). While it does own small stakes in ITV and Lionsgate, The John C. Malone-controlled firm's footprint in content production is relatively small, but with film operations in both the U.S. and India, Liberty, if it bought ErosSTX, could have an unrivalled global outreach in terms of other mini-major studios. By extension, this might be the time for Liberty to buy Discovery's half of All3Media, which could give them an even larger content library of sorts...
Discovery: Let's start out with the most draconian scenario, shall we? Of course, if Discovery bought out AMC, this would result in the dominant independent owner of cable television networks, given the amount of networks Discovery owns globally, even before its 2018 merger with Scripps Networks Interactive. An AMC-Discovery merger would also open the doors for Discovery to boost scripted programming, as most of Discovery's channels (like the namesake Discovery Channel, Animal Planet, TLC and more) are mostly factual-oriented.
Hasbro: Hasbro (via eOne) and AMC already have a lot of common, as the former distributes The Walking Dead internationally. Question is: could Hasbro expand into broadcasting to fit better in line with larger conglomerates? This deal could be a potential scenario, one in which Hasbro may buy Discovery's 60% stake in Discovery Family, if lucky.
RTL Group: Bertelsmann-owned RTL is an established digital broadcaster across Europe, with key operations in Germany, the Netherlands, and France, not to mention its content arm Fremantle - whose notable programming includes The X Factor, [insert here]'s Got Talent, The Price is Right, among others. But what if it expanded to the Americas? Maybe AMC would be its answer - and Fremantle would gain distribution rights to almost all of its programming.
ProSiebenSat.1 Media: PSS1 is perhaps regarded as a leading broadcaster in German-speaking territories, though its namesake Sat.1 and ProSieben networks in Germany. Internationally, its content arm, Red Arrow Studios (which was itself up for sale until COVID got in the way), has a number of programming at its disposal including Love is Blind, Bosch and A League of Their Own to name a few. Maybe buying an established cable company like AMC Networks could boost their international recognition a bit...
Sony Pictures: Sony has a predominantly low key presence when it comes to owning notable TV channels. Fortunately though, Sony Pictures Television does have some ties with AMC, as a producer on Breaking Bad and its spin-off Better Call Saul. Now might be a pretty good time to tie that knot. Question is: what could happen to the likes of Sony's existing international channels? (eg. Sony Channel in various countries)
??? acquires A24
https://preview.redd.it/1z007zs8cmv51.png?width=2364&format=png&auto=webp&s=fba4af39ec14e042e09420ffee9b89e9428c6425 A24 is perhaps, to this day, considered the most revered independent/art-house film studio in Hollywood, having released a barrage of critically-acclaimed prestige pics like Ex Machina, Room, Moonlight, Lady Bird, Hereditary, Midsommar, The Lighthouse, Uncut Gems, and many more. But ever since Apple announced a multi-year partnership with the indie titan, there has been some mild speculation that the tech giant should buy them outright. In addition to Apple, I think a couple of other suitors would be interested:
Apple: Apple is obviously the first name that comes into A24's mind when it comes to prospective future buyers. Granted, they have a multi-year partnership with Apple, which involves them supplying the Apple TV+ streaming service with content, but it would come as no surprise to me if Apple were to ramp up production by buying into this indie powerhouse.
Banijay: Having bought out both Zodiak Media and Endemol Shine Group and amassing a gargantuan library of television programming and unscripted formats, France's Banijay has become the world's largest independent television studio, with notable shows under its roof including Big Brother, Deal or No Deal, Black Mirror, MasterChef, Peaky Blinders, and so much more. So with that in mind, buying an equally renowned indie film studio would make a strong case for Banijay to expand into film, right?
Disney: Now this one may sound a bit unworkable, given that Disney also owns an art-house studio in Searchlight Pictures. How may they sort that one out, you ask? Merging the two indie studios into a larger one - presumably under the name of "A24-Searchlight" or something.
??? acquires Activision Blizzard
https://preview.redd.it/aox37ae2cmv51.png?width=2364&format=png&auto=webp&s=e2511fb816d3bcc5e845477e5dc37f885554352c Now here's another publicly-traded gaming studio that just happens to be a takeover target! Activision Blizzard is to this day, the largest game company in the Americas and Europe in terms of revenue and market capitalization. With several franchises under its roof like Call of Duty, Crash Bandicoot, Spyro/Skylanders, World of Warcraft, Overwatch, Candy Crush Saga and too many to count, it certainly should be no surprise that a mass media company's in pursuit for their gaming goods. Here are a couple of companies that may be interested:
Apple: The number #1 tech giant strikes again! If Apple does buy Activision, this could lead to the tech giant making a bigger splash in the gaming market, after distinguishing itself with its Apple Arcade subscription service. Could this lead to Apple launching a cloud gaming offering or even a video game console to put PlayStation and Xbox to shame? We shall see.
Amazon: Since Amazon is, of course about to make its mark on cloud gaming with its Luna platform, it could also make sense for them to pick up some well-established IP - alternatively - in Activision's. If that were to happen, expect some Activision and Blizzard titles available to play on Luna for the long run!
Alphabet Inc.: Now here’s another internet company (through its Google subsidiary) making waves in cloud gaming circles! By that I mean Stadia, which was had a fairly decent run going against PlayStation Now. But where are the original, in-house games? Well, that’s where Activision comes in. Similar to a potential Amazon deal, Stadia would make Activision's vast library of games available to play on its service. At least the wider Alphabet conglomerate could branch out beyond the Google subsidiary at some point in time, though!
Hasbro: Gee, it turns out this toy giant is getting a lot of love! If Hasbro wanted to diversify further, they'd probably just buy a run-of the-mill video game company like this. Historically, Hasbro did have a video game division at one point, until it got sold to Infogrames (now the current incarnation of Atari), but could they give it another spin? Maybe; it makes good sense as Hasbro currently has a deal with Activision when it comes to licensing Overwatch merchandise.
Sony Interactive Entertainment: Microsoft's recent acquisition of Bethesda has certainly given them a further step ahead of Sony in the next phase of the console wars. All things considered, I'm pretty sure Sony's planning some sort of counter-attack in the number of development studios to shame, so what better way to do that than buy Activision? Now that's how you add more game franchises to your roster.
Take-Two Interactive: Now here's a predominantly draconian scenario! A leading force in third-party gaming, Take-Two's most iconic game franchises include BioShock, Borderlands, Grand Theft Auto, NBA 2K, Red Dead, and so many more. But with Activision and Blizzard's assets under its roof? Then Take-Two would basically be unstoppable; An Activision/Take-Two merger could probably give the latter the largest amount of gaming franchises out of any gaming company in the business.
WarnerMedia: WarnerMedia's gaming unit, Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment, owns a modest number of video game franchises, including the LEGO video games, Batman: Arkham, Mortal Kombat, and Scribblenauts, as well as games based upon Warner Bros. films and animations (eg. DC Comics' works). Acquiring Activision could certainly give WBIE a leading position in the major game company race, and more game franchises they can adapt in the future, especially when HBO Max is concerned!
So yeah, to wrap up, 2021, if lucky, will build a long, long road to recovery for many, especially for the media industry, which is why I wrote this list. Anyway, your opinions are welcome!
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