Lionsgate is the latest company looking to revamp its streaming offering, with plans to spin out its studio business from Starz.
“[Lionsgate] remains on a path to separating our Starz and studio businesses. As negotiations progress, we have increased our focus on the possibility of spinning out our studio business, creating a number of financial and strategic benefits,” the SEC filing read. “In that regard, we are continuing productive negotiations with prospective strategic and financial partners on both sides of our business.”
Previously, Lionsgate CEO Jon Feltheimer said the company planned to spin off Starz by the end of the summer. The company acquired Starz in 2016 for $4.4 billion, and since then, the streamer has grown to 35.8 million subscribers.
While the number is lower than many of its competitors, Lionsgate is determined to stay on track and continue negotiating with financial partners.
Now, Lionsgate announced that it’s rebranding the international streaming service Starzplay to Lionsgate+ in 35 markets. The Lionsgate+ brand is being rolled out in 16 European countries, 17 Latin American countries, Australia and Japan.
The Starz branding will remain in the U.S., Canada and all territories in the Middle East and North Africa. The brand name will remain Lionsgate Play in South and Southeast Asia territories.
It sounds all confusing to us, and we would bet that at some point down the road, only a single brand will remain and that — we predict — would be Lionsgate+. It is, after all, a better-known name.
In the meantime, you can access both Lionsgate+ and Starz (and any other streaming service, for that matter) all across the world with a good VPN. Hop over to our page with Best VPNs for Streaming and take it from there. You may still need a valid subscription, though.