The MGM brand has featured prominently in the theme park business in the past and now could be aiming for a return, according to a news report.
Bloomberg News is reporting that MGM Resorts International has approached the majority owner of Genting Singapore, Ltd. about acquiring the company, which owns Resorts World Sentosa - the home of Universal Studios Singapore. So it would be an indirect return, at best.
The target here undoubtedly is more the lucrative Resort World Singapore casino rather than the theme park or other attractions on Singapore's Sentosa Island. And the Lim family, which owns over 50% of Genting Singapore, so far has declined to accept MGM's advances, according to Bloomberg. But the news of MGM's interest did send Genting Singapore shares up, making the Lim family - and other Genting Singapore investors - even more money.
Many theme park fans likely remember MGM as the second brand name in the Disney-MGM Studios theme park, which today is known as Disney's Hollywood Studios. Disney licensed the MGM brand from the film studio, which split with its resorts business in 1979. Disney dropped the MGM branding from the Walt Disney World park in 2008.
The company now known as MGM Resorts International formed in 1986 and once operated the MGM Grand Adventures theme park next to the MGM Grand hotel in Las Vegas. That park closed in 2002. And the old MGM film studio was bought by Amazon earlier this year.
The Singapore government would need to approve any deal that would change ownership of Resorts World Sentosa. No requests for such a change have been filed, according to local news reports. Resorts World Sentosa owns and operates Universal Studios Singapore under license from NBCUniversal's Universal Parks and Resorts.
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I remember spending many summer days at the MGM Grand Adventures park! Before it closed, the park got smaller& it was only a matter of time.
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If Amazon were going to try to get into the themed entertainment game, MGM would be the perfect brand to do it through.