NEW YORK (CNN/Money) -
Sony Corp. is close to an agreement to buy independent movie studio Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer for $5 billion, according to a published newspaper report.
USA Today, quoting sources with direct knowledge of the talks, says Sony would pay $13 for each share of MGM, plus assume debt. The parties expect to announce the deal before MGM's June 29 annual meeting, according to the newspaper.
Shares of MGM (MGM: Research, Estimates) lost 8 cents to close Thursday at $12.17.
Sony (SNE: Research, Estimates) held preliminary talks with MGM two years ago but failed to agree on price, the newspaper reported. Time Warner (TWX: Research, Estimates), the parent company of CNN/Money, and NBC Universal, a unit of General Electric (GE: Research, Estimates), also expressed interest in MGM, but neither media company has made a bid for the 80-year-old studio. Its key asset is seen as its 4,000-plus library of films and its James Bond movie franchise.
Other published reports Friday said that Sony Music and BMG the music unit of German media conglomerate Bertelsmann AG have won the approval of their proposed combination from European Competition Commissioner Mario Monti.
The full European Commission is expected to act before a July 22 deadline and the Federal Trade Commission also is expected to give the needed approval, according to Reuters.
-- Reuters contributed to this report
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