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It is unclear why Comcast is seeking to give up Starz, but investors have not reacted favorably to this news.
Comcast told Lionsgate that it was considering removing the Starz network, according to a report released on Friday.
According to the information, Comcast was planning to remove Starz and Starz Encore from its main channel bundle by the end of 2019, which could result in the loss of millions of subscribers. The network offers several popular shows, including "Power and Outlander". The old show is a particular hit for the network, with most episodes of seasons 4 and 5 attracting around 1.5 million viewers.
Although "Power" is currently broadcasting its sixth and final season on Starz, the series will continue to be broadcast in series derived from what Starz, president of Carmi Zlotnik's programming, calls "the film universe of Power".
A representative of Comcast did not respond to a request for comment, but Variety quoted an anonymous person who had stated that discussions with Starz were ongoing and indicated that there was still four months left before the end of the pact.
If Comcast ended up giving up the channels, Starz would lose about a third of its US subscribers, according to an anonymous source in The Information article.
Lionsgate acquired Starz for $ 4.4 billion in 2016. Although Starz is a relatively new addition to the Lionsgate family, CBS is looking forward to buying the company's pay-TV service for some time. In May, Reuters announced that CBS had offered to buy Starz at Lionsgate for $ 5.5 billion.
Starz, which closed Lionsgate's last quarter with 26.5 million subscribers worldwide, is an important part of Lionsgate's overall business strategy. The network closed the quarter with 2.6 million additional subscribers compared to the previous quarter.
It is unclear why Comcast announced to Lionsgate that it was considering dropping Starz on Friday, but investors did not appreciate the news as Lionsgate shares lost 6.74% at the end of trading on Friday.
Comcast is not the only television giant to deal with troubles recently: AT & T and Nexstar Media, which owns and operates a multitude of TV channels, were upset in July by a distribution deal that led to a network outage of Nexstar's channels in 97 US markets. This problem has resulted in the disappearance of DirecTV, AT & T TV and U-verse, from channels such as ABC, FOX, CBS and NBC. AT & T and Nexstar Media signed a new multi-year deal Thursday, restoring these channels on AT & T television.
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