Simpatico

Licensing / co-brand · Los Angeles Dodgers → target #1 of 8

Mitchell & Ness

A premium heritage brand offering authentic, high-quality reproduction sports apparel for fans and streetwear enthusiasts.

Founded 1904 · Parent: Fanatics · Competes with New Era, Starter, Champion, Nike · Partnerships: NBA, MLB, NFL

Corporate details are Qloo entity data.

Advance
68.0F / 100
100% of the weighted evidence measured

Why this verdict

F 68.0 >= 67 and no red flags.

Scores, flags and verdicts are computed in code. The agents can only argue with the ledger; they never set the score.

Six audience metrics

Bar = this target; tick = shortlist average.

m1 Two-way audience affinity
0.80
Harmonic mean of the buyer audience’s affinity for the target and the target audience’s affinity for the buyer’s brands.
m2 Taste-profile overlap
0.35
Rank-weighted overlap of the two audiences’ top-50 cultural taste tags.
m3 Cross-domain agreement
0.89
How strongly the target’s audience embraces the buyer audience’s favourite artists, shows, films and podcasts.
m4 Demographic alignment
0.91
Similarity of the two audiences’ age and gender over-index profiles.
m5 Geographic footprint
0.33
Correlation of metro-level audience affinity, relative to the screened cohort.
m6 Momentum
0.58
Trending rank change over the last 4 weeks vs the 8 before, relative to the cohort.

How F is built

Points each metric adds (weights for Licensing / co-brand, renormalised over what Qloo could measure).

MetricWeightPoints
Two-way audience affinity0.3528.1
Taste-profile overlap0.103.5
Cross-domain agreement0.2017.7
Demographic alignment0.109.1
Geographic footprint0.206.6
Momentum0.052.9
F68.0

Qloo explainability: the buyer-side signals driving the forward affinity are Los Angeles Dodgers (1.00).

Where the audiences meet, across culture

The buyer audience’s top titles in each domain, ranked by how strongly Mitchell & Ness’s audience embraces them.

Music0.94
Embraced: Curren$y, Cam'ron, The Notorious B.I.G. · Least shared: Swishahouse, Boosie Badazz, Yo Gotti
TV0.90
Embraced: Ballers, Brockmire, Coach · Least shared: Arrested Development, It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, Running Wilde
Film0.86
Embraced: Coach Carter, Glory Road, More Than a Game · Least shared: McFarland, USA, Nowitzki: The Perfect Shot, Varsity Blues
Podcasts0.84
Embraced: I AM RAPAPORT: STEREO PODCAST, THIS THAT & THE THIRD WITH GMOODY, How Neal Feel · Least shared: The YoYoYo Podcast w/Martin & Hooter, About Last Night, Bertcast

Taste profile overlap

26 of 74 top taste tags shared.

Both over-index on
Hip HopAmericanrapafrican americanfriendfamily relationshipsamerican footballrhythm & blues
Buyer only

Tortillas, mexican american, latino, female protagonist, Guacamole Chips

Mitchell & Ness only

Apple Strudel, hip hop, rapper, african american protagonist, Gangsta Rap

Audience shape

Los Angeles Dodgers (buyer) Mitchell & Ness
-0.78-0.390.00+0.39+0.78≤2425–2930–3435–4445–5455+MenWomen

Relative over-index (+) or under-index (−) of each aggregate audience, from Qloo. Not individual data.

Momentum

z = 0.51 relative to the screened cohort (2025-10-01).

prior 8 weekslast 4

Footprint overlap for distribution

White space: Mitchell & Ness strong, buyer weak Shared stronghold Other metros
White space

Philadelphia, New York, Chicago, Memphis, Atlanta, Detroit, Cleveland, Baltimore

Shared strongholds

San Diego, San Jose

Bull vs bear

8 of 10 claims survived the judge; 2 rejected for citing numbers not in the ledger or misreading them.

Bull: for the deal

  • The composite fit score is 68.0, above the shortlist average of 64.2, and the code raised no red flags for this pairing.

    t4-score.F = 68t4-score.shortlistAverages.F = 64.18

  • Cross-domain agreement is strong: the aggregate audience affinity for music artists is 0.94 and for TV shows 0.90, both reading as strengths against the shortlist.

    t4-m3.domains[0].score = 0.9446t4-m3.domains[1].score = 0.9001

  • Demographic alignment is a clear strength: the cosine similarity of the buyer and target age-gender profiles is 0.81, far above the shortlist average of 0.03.

    t4-m4.cosine = 0.8139t4-m4.shortlistAverages.cosine = 0.02582

  • Taste-profile overlap is a strength, with 26 shared tags versus a shortlist average of 21.75, including hip hop, rap and American football, indicating shared aggregate audience interests.

    t4-m2.sharedCount = 26t4-m2.shortlistAverages.sharedCount = 21.75

  • Momentum is positive: the recent audience affinity z-score is 0.51 against a shortlist average of 0.19, a strength, though geographic correlation is a weakness and the Dodgers' audience affinity for the target sits at the shortlist level.

    t4-m6.z = 0.5059t4-m6.shortlistAverages.z = 0.1917

Bear: against, or diligence first

  • The geographic footprint diverges: the correlation between buyer and target affinity across metros is -0.34, a weakness against a shortlist average of -0.13, and the code found 8 white-space metros. The audience overlap is not uniform across the country, so a national co-brand would rest on pockets rather than a shared map.

    t4-m5.correlation = -0.3407t4-m5.whiteSpaceCount = 8t4-m5.value = 0.3297

  • Two-way audience affinity is a weakness: at 0.804 the Dodgers-to-Mitchell & Ness affinity sits below the shortlist average of 0.806, and the reverse-direction affinity is identical, so the link is symmetric but not stronger than peers. The audience does not show a particularly tight pull toward this pairing.

    t4-m1.value = 0.8038t4-m1.ratio = 1

  • The demographic profile carries a sharp mismatch in one bucket: the buyer audience skews male at 0.21 while the target skews male at 0.78, the largest gap in the pack. Diligence should confirm whether the co-brand audience matches the target's core before assuming alignment.

    t4-m4.biggestGap.buyer = 0.21t4-m4.biggestGap.target = 0.78

  • Taste-profile overlap is thin: the buyer's top-20 missing share is 0.25 against a shortlist average of 0.475, but the shared-tag count is well below what a strong fit would show, so the two audiences share few specific tastes beyond the broad hip-hop and American cluster. Note that the overlap metric itself reads as a strength against the shortlist, so this claim leans on the buyer-side coverage gap rather than on the overlap score.

    t4-m2.value = 0.3549t4-m2.sharedCount = 26t4-m2.unionCount = 74

    Rejected by the judge: cites m2 Taste-profile overlap "value" = 0.3549 as a weakness, but it is above the shortlist average (0.2621)

  • Diligence is needed before committing: the code raised no red flags, but the composite F of 68.0 sits only modestly above the shortlist average of 64.2, and the Qloo profile lists Mitchell & Ness as part of another company under Fanatics, so the counterparty's ownership and licensing rights must be confirmed first.

    t4-score.F = 68t4-profile.ownership = 0

    Rejected by the judge: cites Composite score "F" = 68.0008 as a weakness, but it is above the shortlist average (64.1762)

IC memo

Number check passed: 23 number(s), all in the evidence ledger.Written by claude-haiku-5-5

Mitchell & Ness: ADVANCE

Recommendation. Advance Mitchell & Ness as a Dodgers streetwear co-brand candidate. The verdict rule was met: the composite fit score is 68.0, above the 67 threshold, and the code raised no red flags. The score ranks it 1 of 8 and sits above the shortlist average of 64.2. The evidence is strong on audience overlap but weaker on geography and on the link's strength relative to peers, so the case should be tested before commitment.

Where the audiences meet

  • Cross-domain agreement is strong: aggregate audience affinity is 0.94 for music artists and 0.90 for TV shows, both strengths against the shortlist.
  • Demographic alignment is a clear strength. The cosine similarity of buyer and target age-gender profiles is 0.81, against a shortlist average of 0.03.
  • Taste-profile overlap is a strength: 26 shared tags versus a shortlist average of 21.75, including hip hop, rap and American football.
  • Momentum is positive: the recent affinity z-score is 0.51 against a shortlist average of 0.19.

Risks

  • Geography diverges. The buyer–target correlation across metros is -0.34, below the shortlist average of -0.13, and the code found 8 white-space metros. A national co-brand would rest on pockets rather than a shared map.
  • The two-way link is not tight. Dodgers-to-Mitchell & Ness affinity is 0.804, below the shortlist average of 0.806. The reverse direction is identical, so the link is symmetric but no stronger than peers.
  • Demographic mismatch in one bucket: the buyer audience skews male at 0.21, while the target skews male at 0.78, the largest gap in the pack.
  • Red flags: none recorded.

Diligence questions

  • Does a co-branded pilot between Los Angeles Dodgers and Mitchell & Ness hold up in the white-space metros, or does it stay confined to the overlap pockets?
  • Is the two-way affinity of 0.804 enough to justify the deal, given that peers sit at 0.806?
  • Does the co-brand audience match the target's core male skew, or does the buyer's profile dilute it?
  • Does the momentum signal persist beyond the 2025-10-01 window end?

Aggregate audience affinities from Qloo, not predictions about individuals. Not investment advice.

Provenance: 26 Qloo calls behind this target

Requests as sent (the API key travels in a header and is never logged). Responses are cached privately on the server.

PurposeEndpointStatusResultSource
/v2/insightsok25 of 25 candidates scoredcache
/v2/insightsok25 profile(s)cache
/v2/insightsok25 recommended artist(s)cache
/v2/insightsok25 recommended tv_show(s)cache
/v2/insightsok25 recommended movie(s)cache
/v2/insightsok25 recommended podcast(s)cache
/v2/insightsokdemographics for 9 of 9 entitiescache
/v2/insightsok50 taste tag(s)cache
/v2/insightsok7800 heatmap cell(s) in United Statescache
/v2/trendingok47 trend point(s)cache
/v2/trendingok47 trend point(s)cache
/v2/trendingok47 trend point(s)cache
/v2/trendingok47 trend point(s)cache
/v2/trendingok47 trend point(s)cache
/v2/trendingok47 trend point(s)cache
/v2/trendingok47 trend point(s)cache
/v2/trendingok47 trend point(s)cache
/v2/trendingok47 trend point(s)cache
/v2/insightsok1 of 1 candidates scoredcache
/v2/insightsok50 taste tag(s)cache
/v2/insightsok25 of 25 candidates scoredcache
/v2/insightsok25 of 25 candidates scoredcache
/v2/insightsok25 of 25 candidates scoredcache
/v2/insightsok25 of 25 candidates scoredcache
/v2/analysis/compareok0 shared catalogue tag(s)cache
/v2/insightsok4347 heatmap cell(s) in United Statescache
Evidence rows (what bull, bear and the judge see)
[
 {
  "id": "t4-flags",
  "label": "Red flags (code rules)",
  "data": {
   "flags": []
  },
  "shortlistAverages": {}
 },
 {
  "id": "t4-m1",
  "label": "m1 Two-way audience affinity",
  "data": {
   "a": 0.8038394728726235,
   "b": 0.8038394728726235,
   "ratio": 1,
   "value": 0.8038394728726235,
   "reverse": [
    {
     "id": "9B8B279C-B777-4293-8121-B8174970B57D",
     "name": "Los Angeles Dodgers",
     "affinity": 0.8038394728726235
    }
   ],
   "coverage": 1
  },
  "shortlistAverages": {
   "a": 0.8058428397073507,
   "b": 0.8058428397073507,
   "ratio": 1,
   "value": 0.8058428397073506
  }
 },
 {
  "id": "t4-m2",
  "label": "m2 Taste-profile overlap",
  "data": {
   "value": 0.3549415515409138,
   "shared": [
    {
     "id": "urn:tag:genre:music:hip_hop",
     "name": "Hip Hop",
     "subtype": "urn:tag:genre:music"
    },
    {
     "id": "urn:tag:genre:place:restaurant:american",
     "name": "American",
     "subtype": "urn:tag:genre:place"
    },
    {
     "id": "urn:tag:genre:music:rap",
     "name": "rap",
     "subtype": "urn:tag:genre:music"
    },
    {
     "id": "urn:tag:keyword:media:african_american",
     "name": "african american",
     "subtype": "urn:tag:keyword:media"
    },
    {
     "id": "urn:tag:keyword:media:friend",
     "name": "friend",
     "subtype": "urn:tag:keyword:media"
    },
    {
     "id": "urn:tag:keyword:media:family_relationships",
     "name": "family relationships",
     "subtype": "urn:tag:keyword:media"
    },
    {
     "id": "urn:tag:keyword:media:american_football",
     "name": "american football",
     "subtype": "urn:tag:keyword:media"
    },
    {
     "id": "urn:tag:genre:music:rhythm_blues",
     "name": "rhythm & blues",
     "subtype": "urn:tag:genre:music"
    }
   ],
   "coverage": 1,
   "buyerOnly": [
    {
     "id": "urn:tag:specialty_dish:place:tortillas",
     "name": "Tortillas",
     "subtype": "urn:tag:specialty_dish:place"
    },
    {
     "id": "urn:tag:keyword:media:mexican_american",
     "name": "mexican american",
     "subtype": "urn:tag:keyword:media"
    },
    {
     "id": "urn:tag:keyword:media:latino",
     "name": "latino",
     "subtype": "urn:tag:keyword:media"
    },
    {
     "id": "urn:tag:keyword:media:female_protagonist",
     "name": "female protagonist",
     "subtype": "urn:tag:keyword:media"
    },
    {
     "id": "urn:tag:specialty_dish:place:guacamole_chips",
     "name": "Guacamole Chips",
     "subtype": "urn:tag:specialty_dish:place"
    }
   ],
   "targetOnly": [
    {
     "id": "urn:tag:specialty_dish:place:apple_strudel",
     "name": "Apple Strudel",
     "subtype": "urn:tag:specialty_dish:place"
    },
    {
     "id": "urn:tag:keyword:media:hip_hop",
     "name": "hip hop",
     "subtype": "urn:tag:keyword:media"
    },
    {
     "id": "urn:tag:keyword:media:rapper",
     "name": "rapper",
     "subtype": "urn:tag:keyword:media"
    },
    {
     "id": "urn:tag:keyword:media:african_american_protagonist",
     "name": "african american protagonist",
     "subtype": "urn:tag:keyword:media"
    },
    {
     "id": "urn:tag:genre:music:gangsta_rap",
     "name": "Gangsta Rap",
     "subtype": "urn:tag:genre:music"
    }
   ],
   "unionCount": 74,
   "sharedCount": 26,
   "buyerTop20MissingShare": 0.25
  },
  "shortlistAverages": {
   "value": 0.26208447790247186,
   "sharedCount": 21.75,
   "buyerTop20MissingShare": 0.475
  }
 },
 {
  "id": "t4-m3",
  "label": "m3 Cross-domain agreement",
  "data": {
   "value": 0.8866302516845402,
   "domains": [
    {
     "type": "urn:entity:artist",
     "clash": [
      {
       "name": "Swishahouse",
       "affinity": 0.9218230672350116
      },
      {
       "name": "Boosie Badazz",
       "affinity": 0.9230502958646399
      },
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       "name": "Yo Gotti",
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     ],
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     "score": 0.9446170093456877,
     "shared": [
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       "affinity": 0.9752056582680937
      },
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       "name": "Cam'ron",
       "affinity": 0.9743325934364184
      },
      {
       "name": "The Notorious B.I.G.",
       "affinity": 0.9736470563359637
      }
     ],
     "expected": 25,
     "returned": 25
    },
    {
     "type": "urn:entity:tv_show",
     "clash": [
      {
       "name": "Arrested Development",
       "affinity": 0.863403391701845
      },
      {
       "name": "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia",
       "affinity": 0.8679903478711954
      },
      {
       "name": "Running Wilde",
       "affinity": 0.8802486791323324
      }
     ],
     "label": "TV",
     "score": 0.9000948103229647,
     "shared": [
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       "name": "Ballers",
       "affinity": 0.9815765001186946
      },
      {
       "name": "Brockmire",
       "affinity": 0.9269457091158994
      },
      {
       "name": "Coach",
       "affinity": 0.9186729312377645
      }
     ],
     "expected": 25,
     "returned": 25
    },
    {
     "type": "urn:entity:movie",
     "clash": [
      {
       "name": "McFarland, USA",
       "affinity": 0.8279293005147611
      },
      {
       "name": "Nowitzki: The Perfect Shot",
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      {
       "name": "Varsity Blues",
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      }
     ],
     "label": "Film",
     "score": 0.8637594242064682,
     "shared": [
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      },
      {
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       "name": "More Than a Game",
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     ],
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    },
    {
     "type": "urn:entity:podcast",
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       "affinity": 0.8014847893740942
      },
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       "affinity": 0.80877580710832
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      {
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      }
     ],
     "label": "Podcasts",
     "score": 0.8380497628630406,
     "shared": [
      {
       "name": "I AM RAPAPORT: STEREO PODCAST",
       "affinity": 0.9100911442436296
      },
      {
       "name": "THIS THAT & THE THIRD WITH GMOODY",
       "affinity": 0.8864622418285203
      },
      {
       "name": "How Neal Feel",
       "affinity": 0.883188695501808
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     ],
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     "returned": 25
    }
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  "shortlistAverages": {
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   "domains[0].score": 0.8794888506674802,
   "domains[1].score": 0.8836269856142132,
   "domains[2].score": 0.8086589764417401,
   "domains[3].score": 0.804967040700262
  }
 },
 {
  "id": "t4-m4",
  "label": "m4 Demographic alignment",
  "data": {
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    "female": -0.21,
    "25_to_29": -0.1,
    "30_to_34": -0.7000000000000001,
    "35_to_44": -0.53,
    "45_to_54": 0.22,
    "55_and_older": 0.33,
    "24_and_younger": 0.36
   },
   "value": 0.9069689035499362,
   "cosine": 0.8139378070998724,
   "target": {
    "male": 0.78,
    "female": -0.78,
    "25_to_29": -0.07,
    "30_to_34": -0.72,
    "35_to_44": -0.51,
    "45_to_54": 0.30000000000000004,
    "55_and_older": 0.12,
    "24_and_younger": 0.18
   },
   "coverage": 1,
   "biggestGap": {
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    "bucket": "male",
    "target": 0.78
   }
  },
  "shortlistAverages": {
   "value": 0.5129090961869054,
   "cosine": 0.02581819237381071
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 },
 {
  "id": "t4-m5",
  "label": "m5 Geographic footprint",
  "data": {
   "value": 0.32965793511095626,
   "coverage": 1,
   "metroCount": 55,
   "whiteSpace": [
    {
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     "lon": -75.1652,
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     "targetRel": -0.017164550687293834
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    {
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     "metro": "New York",
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     "targetRel": -0.05149948293531226
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    {
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     "targetRel": -0.06049485012801459
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    {
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     "targetRel": -0.08325011198400756
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    {
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     "metro": "Atlanta",
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     "targetRel": -0.09695967246926585
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    {
     "lat": 42.3314,
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     "metro": "Detroit",
     "target": 0.8341380496097217,
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     "targetRel": -0.10214646184325282
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    {
     "lat": 41.4993,
     "lon": -81.6944,
     "buyer": 0.8662737132965914,
     "metro": "Cleveland",
     "target": 0.8251726110857714,
     "buyerRel": -0.07152915049075081,
     "targetRel": -0.11263025270157079
    },
    {
     "lat": 39.2904,
     "lon": -76.6122,
     "buyer": 0.8511852724968442,
     "metro": "Baltimore",
     "target": 0.7992373284533911,
     "buyerRel": -0.06503757303932489,
     "targetRel": -0.11698551708277793
    }
   ],
   "correlation": -0.3406841297780875,
   "strongholds": [
    {
     "lat": 32.7157,
     "lon": -117.1611,
     "buyer": 0.9991776483152878,
     "metro": "San Diego",
     "target": 0.8377784964040073,
     "buyerRel": 0.03613923205339131,
     "targetRel": -0.1252599198578892
    },
    {
     "lat": 37.3382,
     "lon": -121.8863,
     "buyer": 0.9808622670867017,
     "metro": "San Jose",
     "target": 0.8281579369890179,
     "buyerRel": 0.028624991795488386,
     "targetRel": -0.12407933830219542
    }
   ],
   "whiteSpaceCount": 8,
   "relativeToCohort": true
  },
  "shortlistAverages": {
   "value": 0.43391156033354505,
   "correlation": -0.13217687933290995
  }
 },
 {
  "id": "t4-m6",
  "label": "m6 Momentum",
  "data": {
   "z": 0.5058569430774096,
   "value": 0.5843094905129016,
   "priorSd": 0.008373251392085682,
   "coverage": 1,
   "priorMean": 0.564676515266678,
   "normalised": true,
   "recentMean": 0.5747936541282261
  },
  "shortlistAverages": {
   "z": 0.19174600813212095,
   "value": 0.5319576680220202
  }
 },
 {
  "id": "t4-profile",
  "label": "Qloo entity profile: Mitchell & Ness",
  "data": {
   "name": "Mitchell & Ness",
   "drivers": [
    {
     "name": "Los Angeles Dodgers",
     "score": 1
    }
   ],
   "ownership": "part_of_other",
   "keyMarkets": [
    "United States",
    "Canada",
    "United Kingdom",
    "Japan"
   ],
   "popularity": 0.9725381837907477,
   "screenRank": 4,
   "foundedYear": 1904,
   "priceRangeUsd": [
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 {
  "id": "t4-score",
  "label": "Composite score",
  "data": {
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   "points": {
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]