Split of Lionsgate, STARZ wins approval from shareholders
Split of Lionsgate, STARZ wins approval from shareholders
Wednesday’s shareholder vote was one of the last necessary steps before STARZ and Lionsgate can begin to be traded as separate companies.
STARZ and Lionsgate are getting closer and closer to being completely separate companies. It’s been a long haul for the two, who first filed paperwork to separate the Lionsgate movie studio from the STARZ premium cable channel/streaming service in 2023. But another key step in the process was taken on Wednesday, and it appears that the transaction is nearly complete.
Key Details:
- Shareholders say yes: The split of Lionsgate and STARZ was approved by shareholder vote on Wednesday.
- Time to say goodbye: The two companies will trade independently starting in May.
- Staying in touch: Lionsgate and STARZ agreed to a renewed streaming distribution deal in January.
Deadline reported on Wednesday that shareholders officially approved the division of STARZ and Lionsgate into separate companies in a vote at meetings in Vancouver, British Columbia. That vote was a necessary step ahead of the formal split of the two firms.
That formal division is now expected to occur in early May, and Lionsgate and STARZ will begin trading as two separate companies on global stock exchanges the following day. Lionsgate Studios, which incorporates the TV studio, movie and TV libraries, and the motion picture group, has been a separately traded company since it merged with the special purpose acquisition company Screaming Eagle last year.
Company executives have maintained that the reason behind the split is that, as currently constituted, Lionsgate and STARZ’s stock price doesn’t reflect the true value of the company’s assets. A division of the company into two will help both maximize their potential value.
Lionsgate won SEC approval to part ways with STARZ last year, after a time-consuming process that was slowed by acquisitions, the 2023 Hollywood strikes, and other factors. Now, the complex process of division is nearly complete.
Lionsgate and STARZ will be staying in business once they form two publicly traded companies, however. As announced in January, Lionsgate movies will still head to the Starz cable channel when they are ready to hit pay-TV, and will also stream on the STARZ on-demand service before moving to other streamers.
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.”