As a June 28 court date looms on its bid to block the Alliance Atlantis takeover by CanWest Global Communications, Movie Distribution Income Fund has disclosed it has received a low-ball buyout bid from Goldman Sachs & Co. for its minority stake in Motion Picture Distribution.

In an update Monday to shareholders, executives at MDIF pulled the curtains back on months of backroom negotiations with the U.S. investment bank for its 49% stake in MPD, the indie movie distributor.

Rubin Osten, chairman of the income fund’s special board committee, says negotiations between his company and Goldman Sachs were at an apparent impasse, with the Wall Street powerhouse having offered a takeout price for its minority stake in MPD lower than the $9-per-unit value already reportedly placed on Alliance Atlantis’ majority 51% stake.

The income fund says Goldman Sachs’ proposed takeout bid was also ‘less than expressions of interest previously received from third parties’ – a reference to British private equity player Marwyn Investment Management, which last August waved a $10- to $10.50-per-unit offer for MPD in front of Alliance Atlantis, which was then pondering a sale of the movie distribution arm.

That came before Goldman Sachs and CanWest Global stepped forward with a wider takeover of Alliance Atlantis, prompting MDIF to look for its own shareholder payout from the U.S. private equity giant.

‘We have been working tirelessly to both preserve and enhance MPD’s long-term value and the fund’s interest therein, while at the same time engaging in discussions with Goldman Sachs in an effort to arrive at a transaction proposal that offers unitholders a liquidity alternative at a fair value,’ says Osten.

Also adding complication to the current negotiations is Goldman Sachs seeking a Canadian partner acceptable to the Department of Canadian Heritage to run MPD after its takeover of Alliance Atlantis along with CanWest Global is completed.

Ben Mogil, an analyst with Westwind Partners, in a June 19 note said the looming June 28 court date and Goldman Sachs appearing near to snagging a Canadian surrogate bode well for an eventual deal to buy out MDIF unitholders.

‘As the court date approaches and as Goldman Sachs is probably nearing a Canadian partner, we believe that [MDIF] will be sold sooner rather than later, but we have cautious expectations, thus forming our new $9 target price,’ he wrote.