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Come Again? Popular Toy Company Hasbro Now Owns Death Row Records

Lawwwwd, I feel the memes brewing now. Hasbro, you know, the same company responsible for Mr. Potato Head and My Little Pony, now apparently owns Death Row Records.

Hasbro announced this week that it purchased Entertainment One, which is a multimedia company that owns quite a few things including children’s franchises Peppa Pig and PJ Masks.

Entertainment One also has a music division, eOne, which Rolling Stone says happens to be one of the biggest independent labels in the industry. In 2013, the music division spent around $280 million to buy the catalog of Death Row, which had previously been forced to declare bankruptcy in 2006.

So now, all those beloved hits by Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg and Tupac are owned by Hasbro, sharing a new home with games like Monopoly and toys like the Power Rangers.

There wasn’t any word on what Hasbro planned to do with eOne but it’s a conquest they are celebrating.

“The acquisition of eOne adds beloved story-led global family brands that deliver strong operating returns to Hasbro’s portfolio and provides a pipeline of new brand creation driven by family-oriented storytelling,” said Hasbro CEO Brian Goldner.

I don’t know what y’all want to see going forward but the cross-branding opportunities are real! We don’t want to give them too many ideas but just keep in mind Hasbro also owns G.I. Joe and Transformers.

I mean, they could bring back the Hasbro family game night and make it lit and they would want to act on it in the next couple of years as there are “$130 million in cost synergies” available to both companies by 2022.

The whole deal is actually valued at $4 billion, according to Deadline. The combination will also blend eOne preschool brands like Peppa Pig with Hasbro’s TV and film expertise, which has taken a leap over the past decade through franchises such as “Transformers.”

What are your thoughts on this one, Roommates? Let us know!

 

 

Christina Calloway