Thomas the Tank Engine and Bob the Builder may part company in HIT sale

HIT Entertainment up for sale, although split between Thomas & Friends and Bob the Builder, Angelina Ballerina, Fireman Sam and Pingu is not the favoured option


Juliette Garside, guardian.co.uk, Wednesday 13 April 2011

Thomas the Tank Engine and Bob the Builder could be about to part company, with their owner HIT Entertainment split in two as part of a process to sell the company.

HIT was taken private in a £489.4m deal in 2005 by private equity firm Apax Partners, which has now put the children's entertainment producer up for sale.

Thomas & Friends, as the steam train franchise is now called, is believed to account for over half of HIT's revenues and earnings and is the property most likely to entice buyers.

His stablemates, who include Bob the Builder, Angelina Ballerina, Fireman Sam and Pingu, are up for sale as a second, separate entity.

Confidential information memoranda have been sent to prospective buyers by Bank of America Merrill Lynch, which is handling the sale, inviting bids for the company as a whole, or for its constituent parts.

HIT's 30% stake in children's TV channel PBS Kids Sprout, which has 50m viewers in the US, can be purchased along with Thomas or with the rest of the HIT characters.

Interested parties have been asked to submit first round bids around the end of this month. Broadcasters Disney and Viacom, toymakers Mattel and Hasbro, and rival children's entertainment companies Chorion and Saban Brands are all expected to make offers.

Full story at The Guardian.