Reported by All Things Digital, Rock Band developer Harmonix was allegedly sold by Viacom to investment group Columbus Nova for the opulent sum of $49.99 – the price of one copy of its latest game, Rock Band 3. Before you think the wily money-men got it for a steal, don’t forget Columbus Nova have also taken on all of Harmonix’s debt and expenses, including expensive music rights and enough plastic instruments currently sitting on store shelves to bury Luxembourg in a sea of green, red, blue, yellow and orange buttons.
Having paid $175 million (or 3.5 million copies of Rock Band 3 worth) for Harmonix in early 2006, things aren’t that bad for former parent Viacom, as the deal allows the giant media conglomerate to net in the region fo $150 million in tax benefits.
Source: All Things Digital
AJ
“fo $150 million” gangsta!
UKZ-N3M1515
so, im not too sure how the industry works, but the debt, is with the publisher owning ‘Harmoni’ so now the company is sold, could most/all of the developers in harmoni break off and form a new company, free of debt, and go back to creating music games under a new IP for acti?