The Walt Disney Studios announced on Monday that it has reached a long-term agreement to distribute about six live-action films a year produced by DreamWorks Studios and DreamWorks co-founder Steven Spielberg.

Under the agreement, Disney will distribute all live-action motion pictures produced by DreamWorks under its partnership with Reliance BIG Entertainment.

The first DreamWorks film to be released under the Touchstone Pictures banner is scheduled to hit theaters in 2010, according to the announcement.

"Disney is the birthplace of imagination and has always been as close to the worldwide audience as any company ever has," Spielberg said. "I am so pleased that industry leaders like (Disney President/CEO) Bob Iger and (Disney Chairman) Dick Cook reached out to become our distribution partner. This is a major step forward for us and Reliance."

Cook said both sides were "thrilled and honored to be marketing and distributing all of DreamWorks' signature upcoming live-action motion pictures, and to begin a new relationship."

Both sides, however, did not reveal details of the deal. But according to a Wall Street Journal report, Disney will receive at least 8 percent of the films' box-office grosses.

(Xinhua News Agency February 10, 2009)