McDonald's
The green troll isn't the only character that will be supported. Under the agreement, new animated properties will be up for grabs during the two-year timeframe of the arrangement.
But the big kicker in the deal is the aforementioned freedom - you see, the contract with DreamWorks Animation is on a non-exclusive basis.
McDonald's previous deal with Disney
Think about it -- if McDonald's had been free at the time, do you think it would have tried to bring fans of the new Star Wars movies to the Golden Arches as promotional partner?
I don't think anyone would argue against the notion that this newfound flexibility will open up new market-strategizing avenues for McDonald's, nor that it's also going to put pressure on the competition for these kinds of partnerships. When Time Warner
DreamWorks Animation CEO Jeffrey Katzenberg -- the former Mousketeer who later engaged in laborious litigation against Disney over compensation -- helped to announce the news. So you can bet that Disney is smarting a bit over this development.
But in the end, it really won't affect Disney too badly. McDonald's wanted - and got - leverage and Disney has it now by default, as well. Although I agree that the first choice of most marketing partnerships in this arena -- especially in terms of family fare -- should probably be the Happy Meal platform, Disney will now find itself in a position to synthesize programs that might work better at places like Wendy's
So in conclusion, I think this benefits all parties involved. McDonald's gets its Shrek while Mickey sits in his Magic Castle, waiting to see what other fast-food players might make an offer. And all the movie companies have an opportunity to win a plum table at the most famous distributor of greasy grub -- which means that we probably haven't seen the last of the Mickey and Mickey D Show.
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Fool contributor Steven Mallas owns shares of Disney. The Fool has an ironclad disclosure policy.