France’s Vivendi eyes stake in U.S. channel Starz

Lions Gate Entertainment stock pared losses a bit following a report that French media giant Vivendi (OTCPK:VIVHY) is working on a bid for a stake in Lions Gate’s Starz channel.

Vivendi’s Canal Plus pay television business is working up a potential bid, the Financial Times reports.

That follows closely on reported interest from Roku and Apollo for a minority stake.

The news is the latest on the consolidation-heavy fringes of the media sector occupied by the likes of Lions Gate and AMC Networks. Lions Gate said last year it was looking at taking advantage of high transaction multiples to sell off the Starz business to aggressive content buyers.

Lions Gate is looking to recoup what it paid for Starz in 2016, valuing it around $4.4 billion including debt.

Meanwhile, the acquisition would add a chunk of new subscribers to Canal Plus’ existing 24 million (and Canal Plus has no presence in the United States). Starz had about 20 million streaming subscribers at the end of 2021. Seeking Aplha