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TVGuide.com/TV Guide Networks Enter the Lionsgate
Tuesday, January 6, 2009
Steve Smith

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Weeks after announcing the sale of TV Guide Networks and TVGuide.com to J.P. Morgan’s One Equity Partners, Macrovision changed direction radically yesterday by agreeing to sell those assets instead to TV and film producer Lionsgate Entertainment. Lionsgate, maker of the Saw film series and TV programs Weeds and Mad Men, says it will expand the TV Guide cable channel into a full-service entertainment channel with more behind-the-scenes movie coverage and original programming. Lionsgate is paying $225 million for the assets using its own cash on-hand for much of the purchase, CEO Jon Feltheimer told the Los Angeles Times.

With holdings in several cable TV and Web entities, including Fearnet and Break.com, Lionsgate is trying to build a more substantial cable and online presence. It partnered last year with MGM and Viacom to launch a premium movie channel to compete with HBO and Showtime, BusinessWeek reports. TVGuide Network itself goes into 83 million homes, but much of the programming involves movie and TV trailers and a scrolling schedule grid.

Despite the earlier deal announcement with One Equity, Macrovision maintained the right to shop its TV Guide properties to other bidders. The agreement with Lionsgate surprised the J.P. Morgan private equity arm, however.

Arguably, this deal finally puts TVGuide assets where they might do the most good, in the hands of another media entity that can leverage the cross-promotion possibilities of a platform that reaches 83 million living rooms and pulls more than 10 million monthly unique to its site. TVGuide.com itself has expanded its audience substantially in the past year by adding TV episodes and video. In May of last year the site reported a record month of 12.1 million uniques. The online presence has the potential to drive considerable on-air viewing of Lionsgate properties and create a Web-based platform for repurposed, on-demand cable video.

If you have breaking news to share please contact Steve Smith at ssmith@accessintel.com

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