While not a takeover, what was rumored on Cirque du Soleil’s 24th birthday (June 16, 2008) did appear to have some truth to it afterall. Today Cirque du Soleil announces selling a 20% stake in their company to Nakheel and Istithmar World of Dubai. From the AP article:
- The agreement keeps control of the Montreal-based entertainment company in the hands of founder Guy Laliberte, putting to rest for now speculation that the troupe would be sold outright. “This partnership is the best of both worlds for me and my management team,” Laliberte said in a joint statement with Nakheel and Istithmar. “We can keep control of our creative challenges and operations while accelerating our growth doing projects all over the world.” Nakheel and Istithmar are part of Dubai World, a diversified holding company owned by the government of Dubai.
Read more about this here and here.
{ SOURCE: Associated Press }
