Byron Allen has acquired a 10.7% stake in Starz, paying $25 million for 1.8 million shares in the entertainment company.
The deal follows years of Allen throwing his name in the mix for a range of media properties. He was among several bidders for Paramount when it was under Shari Redstone’s control and expressed interest in Disney’s linear TV networks after CEO Bob Iger after the exec told CNBC they “may not be core” to the operation.
Allen Media Group‘s portfolio includes the Weather Channel and other digital and linear networks, along with FAST and AVOD streaming platforms. He also controls a group of local TV stations, and last year sold 10 of them to Gray Media for $171 million.
Starz separated from Lionsgate last May and now operates independently. After starting out as a rival to premium cable networks HBO and Showtime, Starz has recently pivoted toward streaming, with those subscriptions now making up about three-quarters of its footprint.
Starz CEO Jeff Hirsch has repeatedly sent messages to Wall Street about the company’s plan to engage fully in M&A opportunities, especially now that it has split from Lionsgate. He said last fall on an earnings call that the company could be a savior of what he called “marooned linear networks.” Elaborating, he explained these are networks where “consumers have moved to the digital side, but the brands are stuck on the linear side. We can use our tech platform to reposition those brands into the digital world.”
Allen’s investment was completed by Allen Family Capital, the executive’s private investment firm and family office.