Now it's a little clearer why Amazon overpaid in buying MGM for $8.45 billion ... and why it was in a rush to get the deal closed.

The e-commerce giant just announced the first Amazon Prime Video title tied to the purchase, reality competition series 007's Race to a Million.

As first leaked to Variety, the series will be produced by Britain's 72 Films, in collaboration with producers Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson, guardians of the long-running "James Bond/007" franchise, as well as MGM, the studio that owns the venerable spy-thriller saga.

The series is described as "a Bond-style spin on a race around the world."

Also: Amazon Just Paid a 40% Premium to Buy MGM — What’s It Really Getting?

Outflanking the FTC, Amazon closed its MGM purchase just last week. But 007's Race to a Million has reportedly been in development for four years ... which, of course, leads to speculation that Amazon already has many more plans up its sleeve for what is MGM's signature franchise. ■

Defying a broadly held initial belief that it would be stymied by regulators, Amazon has successfully closed its $8.45 billion acquisition of MGM.

"The storied, nearly century-old studio — with more than 4,000 film titles, 17,000 TV episodes, 180 Academy Awards, and 100 Emmy Awards — will complement Prime Video and Amazon Studios' work in delivering a diverse offering of entertainment choices to customers," Amazon Studios and Prime Video chief Mike Hopkins said in a statement.

Amazon didn't announce any executives decisions or any details on how integration of the studio might work. 

Also read: Should Amazon Even Be Allowed to Gobble up MGM?

From the moment the deal was announced in May of last year, doubters suggested that the Federal Trade Commission, now under the watch of noted antitrust-buster Lina Kahn, would stand in the way. 

But Amazon made a key strategic move, forcing the FTC last month to certify that it had provided all the antitrust information about the deal that had been requested of the company. That put the FTC on a short timeline to respond -- a deadline the federal agency ultimately couldn't meet -- and freed Amazon to move forward with its deal. 

The FTC can still go after Amazon retroactively in court to try to unwind its MGM deal.

Just like the FCC, the FTC is deadlocked with two Democrats and two Republicans, with President Joe Biden nominee Alvaro Bedoya pending a full Senate vote on approval. This followed a 14-14 vote to approve his nomination in the Senate Commerce Committee earlier this month. 

Also read: Amazon Just Paid a 40% Premium to Buy MGM — What’s It Really Getting?

Thursday's deal closure announcement followed Tuesday's approval news from the European Commission, which said the deal "would not significantly reduce competition" and that "the overlaps between Amazon and MGM are limited."

“MGM has a nearly century-long legacy of producing exceptional entertainment, and we share their commitment to delivering a broad slate of original films and television shows to a global audience,” said Hopkins, whose title is senior VP of Prime Video and Amazon Studios. “We welcome MGM employees, creators, and talent to Prime Video and Amazon Studios, and we look forward to working together to create even more opportunities to deliver quality storytelling to our customers.”

Amazon Founder Jeff Bezos also lent word to his company's press release, nothing that Amazon will “help preserve MGM’s heritage and catalog of films, and to provide customers with greater access to these existing works.”

So how much does closure of an $8.45 billion deal move Amazon stock? Not much. The stock is up 1.28% as of afternoon trading on the Nasdaq Thursday. The company's market cap stands at around $1.578 trillion. 

Amazon reported sales of $470 billion and a profit of $33 billion in 2021. ■ 

Premium Epix is extending its reach this week, debuting on PlayStation Vue, Sony’s new over-the-top multichannel pay TV service.

PS Vue is offering Epix Hits, a new channel that will feature titles such as The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1; “classic” titles from franchises such as Star Trek and James Bond; and EPIX originals. PlayStation Vue subs will also have access to an Epix on-demand library featuring “thousands of titles,” Epix said.

Epix said its service for PlayStation Vue will be offered in a variety of tiers and multipremium packages. PS Vue’s multichannel TV tiers -- Access ($49.99 per month), Core ($59.99/month) and Elite ($69.99/month) -- are currently offered in seven markets: Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas; Miami-Fort Lauderdale, Fla; Chicago; Philadelphia; Los Angeles; New York; and San Francisco. Those packages also feature a cloud DVR. PS Vue also features a growing mix of a la carte fare that’s separate from its multichannel offering, including Fox Soccer Plus, Showtime and a new channel from Machinima that will be offered as a standalone or with PS Vue's Elite package. 

PS Vue is currently supported on the PlayStation 4 and PS3, and via an app for the iPad.

“PlayStation has been an outstanding partner since we began working together in 2013,” said Mark Greenberg, Epix president and CEO, in a statement. “We’re excited to continue our partnership to advance the next generation in the evolution of multichannel offerings.”

On Epix, it's all about unwrapping Bond, James Bond, on Dec. 24 and 25.

The premium service will serve up a two-day marathon on the famed spy franchise on Christmas Eve and Christmas. With apologies to George Lazenby and Pierce Brosnan, viewers can see Sean Connery, Roger Moore, Timothy Dalton and Daniel Craig portray Ian Fleming's celebrated 007.

The event will also feature an encore presentation of Everything or Nothing: The Untold Story of 007, the documentary chronicling the evolution and impact of the Bond movies.

MARATHON SCHEDULE

WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 24, 2014

5:50 AM EST - NEVER SAY NEVER AGAIN

8:05 AM EST - FROM RUSSIA WITH LOVE

10:05 AM EST - EVERYTHING OR NOTHING: THE UNTOLD STORY OF 007

11:50 AM EST - A VIEW TO A KILL

2:05 PM EST - NEVER SAY NEVER AGAIN

4:20 PM EST - FROM RUSSIA WITH LOVE

6:20 PM EST - EVERYTHING OR NOTHING: THE UNTOLD STORY OF 007

8:00 PM EST - SKYFALL

10:30 PM EST - LIVE AND LET DIE

12:35 AM EST - FROM RUSSIA WITH LOVE

2:35 AM EST - A VIEW TO A KILL

4:50 AM EST - SKYFALL

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 25, 2014

7:15 AM EST - YOU ONLY LIVE TWICE

9:15 AM EST - FOR YOUR EYES ONLY

11:25 AM EST - GOLDFINGER

1:15 PM EST - LIVE AND LET DIE

3:20 PM EST - SKYFALL

5:45 PM EST - THE LIVING DAYLIGHTS

8:00 PM EST - GOLDFINGER

10:00 PM EST - FOR YOUR EYES ONLY

12:15 AM EST - YOU ONLY LIVE TWICE

2:15 AM EST - THE LIVING DAYLIGHTS

4:30 AM EST - GOLDFINGER