Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia Inc. announced Tuesday that it bought the rights to the Emeril Lagasse franchise for $50 million.
Created by celebrity chef Emeril Lagasse, the franchise of cookbooks, television shows and kitchen products will be purchased for $45 million in cash and $5 million in stock at closing.
The final price could rise to up to $70 million if certain benchmarks are achieved.
Martha Stewart did not acquire Emeril's Homebase, which includes Lagasse's 11 restaurants and corporate office.
Lagasse remains the host of the Food Network's "Essence of Emeril," but the network stopped production of "Emeril Live" late last year, though it continues to air new episodes in 2008.
For more business news, please check out http://news.finditt.com/NewsList.aspx?cat=1&wcat=3
