Disney has to buy 'em to play

And the geek will inherit the earth.

After months of negotiation and endless speculation, it looks as though Disney will purchase the digital animation studio Pixar (Toy Story, Finding Nemo, The Incredibles) for an estimated $59 per share. That gives the little-studio-that-could a bottom-line price tag of approximately $7.4 billion.

In addition to the cash transaction, Pixar founder and CEO Steve Jobs, who has the same sweet gig at Apple computers, gets what must certainly be a comfortable seat on the Disney board of directors and will become the largest single holder of Disney stock.

That should all but guarantee him the spot in Uncle Walt's super-secret cryogenic chamber recently abandoned by Michael Eisner.

For months, Disney has shamelessly pursued Pixar, the studio responsible for revitalizing the Disney animation brand with the likes of Woody, Buzz and Nemo. Initially, the Mouse House eyeballed the renewal of the two companies' distribution deal. Independent Pixar would continue to bust out the odd animated gem and would allow the Disney marketing juggernaut to make it an unprecedented hit.

Pixar, in true iconoclast fashion, wasn't quite comfortable with that arrangement, however, and talks stalled after Mr. Jobs and Co. repeatedly thumbed noses, stuck out tongues and made inappropriate comments about Mickey. Faced with such behavior, Disney has chosen to flash the big bucks.

The question is: Who is the hero and who is the zero in this deal? Disney is laying out some serious cash and, to be perfectly frank, although the company is far from troubled, the profits haven't been rolling in the way they once did. In finally roping Pixar, the company's most consistent performer has been secured.

On the other hand, Pixar has, for all intents and purposes, sold out to the Man. Disney, however, knows better than to try and tweak a winning formula, and it's assumed that John Lasseter, Pixar's chief creative, will assume control of Disney's Pixar branch, maintaining the division's rather loose but obviously effective style of production.

Then there's that $7.4 billion. Sure, the characters and characteristics established by Pixar have proved profitable, but that kind of money represents true success.

This also sets the stage for further business dealings. After all, Pixar is only one part of the Steve Jobs empire. How long will it be before iPod becomes Disneyfied, with small ears becoming an essential element on the tech gadget du jour's distinctive round face? Sound funny?

Not if there is money to be made.

Reach Steven Uhles at (706) 823-3626 or steven.uhles@augustachronicle.com.