Lionsgate Targets First Quarter of 2024 to Officially Separate Movie Studio from STARZ
There may finally be some clarity on what Lionsgate plans to do with STARZ. Or at least, there’s now clarity on when audiences who have been following the twisting saga might actually get some clarity on what the company plans to do with itself.
Reports that Lionsgate was looking to spin the streamer STARZ and its cable sibling Starz off into their own separate company first surfaced in May of 2022. Its first target goal was to complete the maneuver by the end of summer 2022, but that goal was then pushed to fall. When fall came, reports circulated that Lionsgate was considering spinning off its movie studio instead, and preparing to keep STARZ in-house.
Fast forward to today and audiences are still guessing what Lionsgate intends to do with itself. But some details did finally emerge this week during the company’s conference call to discuss its quarterly earnings report with investors and analysts. CEO John Feltheimer talked about the company’s goal of spinning both the movie studio and STARZ into their own separate companies and gave a target date for when that might occur.
“We remain committed to the separation of Lionsgate and Starz,” he said. “We filed a Form 10 with the SEC last month as the next step in the process. With the impact of the eOne acquisition on regulatory approvals, uncertainties surrounding the strike in our efforts to create the most efficient capital structure within a disruptive marketplace. We anticipate that the separation will now take place in the first quarter of calendar 2024.”
The acquisition Feltheimer referenced was the purchase of eOne, the movie studio formerly owned by toy manufacturing giant Hasbro. Lionsgate officially acquired the studio last week, giving it the rights to Hasbro board game properties like “Monopoly,” toys like the “Transformers,” and much more.
Spinning STARZ and Lionsgate into two separate entities won’t stop speculation surrounding them. If anything the gossip will heighten, as creating two companies for STARZ and its movie studio will allow Lionsgate to more easily sell one entity or the other (or both). Bigger streamers like Netflix could move quickly if STARZ, with assets like the eOne acquisition and properties like “Outlander” became available.
So the can has been kicked to Q1 of 2024 before any resolution for STARZ and Lionsgate is known. The streamer added 100,000 subscribers last quarter, showing that its customer base is resilient in the face of losses to the linear side of its business.
STARZ
STARZ offers a subscription video streaming service that gives access to content on the STARZ channel without the need of a cable subscription. With your subscription, you’ll get access to 7,500+ films and episodes, including all of their current originals like “Outlander,” The Serpent Queen,” “BMF,” and “Power.”