Swedish video game company Embracer Group has acquired Middle-earth Enterprises, the division of The Saul Zaentz Company that owns the intellectual property catalogue and worldwide rights to J.R.R. Tolkien’s “The Lord of the Rings” and “The Hobbit”.
The deal means Embracer Group will land the motion picture, video game, board game, merchandising, theme parks and stage production rights relating to both “The Lord of the Rings” and “The Hobbit” franchises. In addition they’ll have matching rights in other Middle-earth-related literary works authorized by the Tolkien Estate and HarperCollins.
As part of the deal, Middle-earth Enterprises will form part of the newly founded operative group Embracer Freemode. The company will continue to operate independently under the existing Middle-earth Enterprises leadership team. Lars Wingefors, Founder and Group CEO Embracer Group, says in a statement:
I am truly excited to have The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit, one of the world’s most epic fantasy franchises join the Embracer family, opening up more transmedia opportunities including synergies across our global group.
I am thrilled to see what lies in the future for this IP with Freemode and Asmodee as a start within the group. Going forward, we also look forward to collaborating with both existing and new external licensees of our increasingly stronger IP portfolio.”
It’s presently not clear what impact this will have on the numerous Middle-earth set projects set to arrive in the coming years, though Embracer says: “going forward, we also look forward to collaborating with both existing and new external licensees of our increasingly stronger IP portfolio”.
Projects on the way in the near future include Amazon’s lavish “The Lord of the Rings: Rings of Power” series launching September 2nd, Warners’ “The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim” animated film in 2024, EA’s mobile game “The Lord of the Rings: Heroes of Middle-earth,” and the long in the works “Gollum” video game due next year.
Embracer made headlines earlier this year when they landed the rights to the “Tomb Raider,” “Deus Ex,” “Legacy of Kain” and “Thief” franchises after acquiring Crystal Dynamics and Eidos Montreal from Square Enix.
Source: IGN
