Merlin Entertainments: Trouble in London and the possibility of an "elephant race"

In London, Merlin Entertainments has taken the first steps in its legal proceedings against the London Bridge Experience attraction. Merlin Entertainments claims the said attraction is a copy of its London Dungeon. Merlin believes the London Bridge Experience mirrors the Merlin attraction both in terms of its concept and marketing. –

InBev, the Belgian brewing giant that recently bought out Anheuser-Busch, has revealed that it wants to sell any non-core parts of the brewery in order to finance the massive deal. Above all, this means Busch Entertainments with its ten parks such as SeaWorld in Orlando, Busch Gardens Tampa Bay and Adventure Island. The London-based Telegraph reported at the start of August that Merlin Entertainments and the US private equity company Blackstone were putting together a bid. Meanwhile, the Times, also based in London, reported that the Spanish Parques Reunidos Group – owned by the British private equity company Candover – had commissioned banks to prepare a purchase offer. Disney and Dubai World in the United Emirates – thought to be in an extremely good financial position – are also reported to have expressed an interest in Busch Entertainments. In 2007, Busch Entertainments recorded a total of 22.3 million visitors, with 14.5 million passing through the gates of Busch Gardens Tampa Bay alone. Analysts at Lehman Bros. valued Busch Entertainments ahead of the sale to InBev at 2.58 billion US dollars. Get ready for round one! (eap)