Requesting free promotional materials if you own stock in a company?

UncleSporky

I have just been told that if you own stock in a company, even one stock, you can request free promotional materials related to their upcoming projects. In the case of a movie, this includes anything you might see in a theater, including posters, standees etc.

The friend-of-a-friend who has told me this says they are legally obligated to do so and he does this all the time. He has Disney stock so he's going to be getting some Star Wars stuff sometime here.

My question is, have you ever heard of this? I have googled and come up with nothing, not even people saying it's a myth. Of course it's tough to search for anything related to stocks because you get tons of results that are more about the process and people's fears than fringe benefits you might have access to as a shareholder.

If this is possible, how would you expect to be able to do it? Call them up and read off your identification and say "send me free shit?"

Just curious about this because I can't find any info on it anywhere and PA forums are usually good at finding info.

Thundyrkatz

Owning shares of a stock grants you the right to vote on decisions like appointment of board of directors. You will have votes in relation to the number of shares you own, so owning more shares will mean you will have a larger voice.

Also, as a shareholder you may have a right of Preemption. This means if a company issues additional shares beyond their first offering, you have a right to buy a number of shares that is equal to your previous percentage of ownership so that your ownership percentage is not diluted. You still have to be able to afford those shares.

Those are your rights as a common stock holder.

There is no such thing as a right to promotional materials that is tied explicitly to owning shares in said company.

bowen

I think you can. I think the term is similar to return of capital, not sure what it is specifically but I've heard of this before too. But as a stockholder you are entitled to knowing the goings on of a business, too.

Darkewolfe

Without being an expert on this, I am going to throw out a wild guess: Companies like Disney probably do this not out of a legal requirement but out of a goodwill gesture toward customers who are so enthused as to be stockholders.

Deebaser

There is absolutely, 100%, no such "legal requirement" to provide free promotional materials to shareholders.
Your friend's friend is misinformed.

EggyToast

Similarly, you can also request promotional material with zero stock in a company. They may or may not provide it, depending on how they feel. The only advantage to being a stockholder is that you can say "I am a stockholder and love the company" which may give you an advantage over Random Guy.

As for how you contact these companies, you'd do so via the "contact us" on their website, or finding out their PR number. The only advantage that owning stock would give you is that, if you're buying stock directly, you may get some different contacts at a company. Plenty of companies do not handle their stock sales/management directly, though.

Kakodaimonos

Some companies will send out small items or benefits with their annual reports. This was more popular back before the market went sideways and companies started cutting back on expenses. But it was always small things like a coupon for a free drink or things like that. It depends on the company.

And Walt Disney has no shareholder benefits.

http://thewaltdisneycompany.com/content/shareholder-faqs

UncleSporky

Thanks for your replies, he must just be boldly asking for stuff which I know can work pretty well. Pretend you own the place and others will believe it too.