QUOTE:
Walt Disney Company said Monday it had agreed to buy Marvel Entertainment, the company that owns the rights to such popular characters as Spider-Man and the Fantastic Four, in a cash and stock deal it valued at $4 billion. The deal, which boards of directors at both companies have approved, comes more than 10 years after Marvel was at the center of a bitter takeover battle between two feisty financiers.

“We believe that adding Marvel to Disney’s unique portfolio of brands provides significant opportunities for long-term growth and value creation,” Robert A. Iger, Disney’s chief executive, said in a statement announcing the deal.