DENVER and SILVER SPRING, Md. and SANTA MONICA, Calif., Nov. 10, 2015 /CNW/ -- Liberty Global plc
("Liberty Global") (NASDAQ: LBTYA, LBTYB, LBTYK, LILA and LILAK),
Discovery Communications Inc. ("Discovery Communications") (NASDAQ:
DISCA, DISCB, DISCK) and Lions Gate Entertainment Corp.
("Lionsgate") (NYSE: LGF) today announced a transaction under which
Liberty Global and Discovery Communications each have agreed in
principle subject to documentation to purchase 5.0 million common
shares of Lionsgate, resulting in each having an approximately 3.4%
shareholding of Lionsgate's current outstanding shares. These 10.0
million shares will be acquired from funds affiliated with MHR Fund
Management LLC.
Liberty Global and Discovery Communications will each pay
approximately $195 million for their
respective stakes in Lionsgate. Additionally, Liberty Global and
Discovery Communications will each have one designee appointed to
Lionsgate's Board of Directors -- President and CEO Mike Fries for Liberty Global and President and
CEO David Zaslav for Discovery
Communications. Liberty Global and Discovery Communications are
each entering into separate commercial agreements with Lionsgate
providing for a preferred partner relationship with respect to
licensing rights for certain theatrical and television content
across their markets. The share acquisitions are expected to
close later today.
"We're very enthusiastic about this alliance with Lionsgate, and
I'm pleased to join Chairman Mark
Rachesky and the rest of the Lionsgate Board," said Fries.
"The company is a unique success story in the entertainment
industry. Lionsgate is led by an incredible management team and
they've created one of the deepest portfolio of brands and
franchises in the industry. This strategic content investment will
also create opportunities for Lionsgate to become an even more
important supplier of high-end premium content to our 24 million
video and 18 million broadband subscribers."
"One of Discovery's advantages is our ownership in a diverse
portfolio of global content and IP, which uniquely positions the
company to deliver an audience across multiple media ecosystems,"
said Zaslav. "Lionsgate has created a strong television business
and we are proud to take this ownership stake to gain access to
terrific storytellers, creative leadership, and global formats and
IP, in both nonfiction and scripted programming. As with all of our
creative partners, we look forward to telling world-class stories
with Jon and the deep management team at Lionsgate, and further
strengthening Discovery's content pipeline across our linear and
digital platforms around the world."
"David and Mike are highly accomplished and respected executives
who will bring added depth and vision to our Board of Directors,"
said Dr. Mark Rachesky, Chairman and
largest shareholder of Lionsgate. "I was a very early believer in
the value of content, and these new strategic relationships with
two of the pre-eminent programming and distribution platforms in
the world help position us to take the Company to the next
level."
"This transaction aligns Lionsgate with two of the most
visionary players in the global marketplace, and we're delighted to
add David and Mike's experience and expertise to our Board of
Directors," said Lionsgate CEO Jon
Feltheimer and Vice Chairman Michael
Burns. "We believe that this agreement creates tremendous
strategic opportunities to grow our content initiatives around the
world and positions us to generate significant incremental value
for our shareholders."
A designee of MHR Fund Management, MHR principal and investment
committee member Emily Fine, also
will join the Board. Frank
Giustra, who has served a total of 11 years on the Board,
will step down.
"We're pleased to welcome MHR's Emily
Fine, with whom we have worked closely over the past 10
years, to our Board," continued Feltheimer and Burns. "We
would also like to thank Frank
Giustra, the founder of Lionsgate and a guiding force during
our Company's evolution, for his many years of valuable
service."
Lionsgate will be entering into certain agreements with Liberty
Global, Discovery Communications, Dr. John
Malone, who currently serves on the Lionsgate Board of
Directors, and MHR Fund Management LLC. These agreements are
intended to include among other things, rights pursuant to which
Liberty Global, Discovery Communications and MHR Fund may designate
members to the Lionsgate Board of Directors subject to certain
share ownership thresholds and under which they have each agreed to
vote the common shares owned by them (together with certain of
their affiliates) in favor of each of the other's respective
director nominees. The agreements are also intended to
include restrictions of purchases and sales of Lionsgate common
shares for prescribed periods of time, together with rights and
obligations relating to certain corporate actions with Lionsgate
during such time. These agreements will be more fully described in
a Current Report on Form 8-K to be filed with the Securities
and Exchange Commission by Lionsgate. The agreements are
substantially complete and parties intend to enter into these
agreements today, however, the transaction is subject to the risk
that the parties are unable to finalize the documentation.
LionTree Advisors acted as exclusive financial advisor to
Discovery and Liberty Global.
About Liberty Global
Liberty Global is the largest international cable company with
operations in 14 countries. We connect people to the digital world
and enable them to discover and experience its endless
possibilities. Our market-leading products are provided through
next-generation networks and innovative technology platforms that
connected 27 million customers subscribing to 57 million
television, broadband internet and telephony services at
September 30, 2015. In addition, we
served five million mobile subscribers and offered WiFi service
across six million access points.
Liberty Global's businesses are currently attributed to two
tracking stock groups: the Liberty Global Group (NASDAQ: LBTYA,
LBTYB and LBTYK), which primarily comprises our European
operations, and the LiLAC Group (NASDAQ: LILA and LILAK, OTC Link:
LILAB), which comprises our operations in Latin America and the Caribbean.
Liberty Global's consumer brands are Virgin Media, Ziggo,
Unitymedia, Telenet, UPC, VTR and Liberty. Our operations also
include Liberty Global Business Services and Liberty Global
Ventures. www.libertyglobal.com
About Discovery Communications
Discovery Communications (Nasdaq: DISCA, DISCB, DISCK) is the
world's #1 pay-TV programmer reaching nearly 3 billion cumulative
subscribers in more than 220 countries and territories. For 30
years Discovery has been dedicated to satisfying curiosity and
entertaining viewers with high-quality content through its global
television brands, led by Discovery Channel, TLC, Animal Planet,
Investigation Discovery, Science and Turbo/Velocity, as well as
U.S. joint venture network OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network. Discovery
controls Eurosport, the leading pan-regional sports entertainment
destination across Europe and
Asia-Pacific. Discovery also is a
leading provider of educational products and services to schools,
including an award-winning series of K-12 digital textbooks,
through Discovery Education, and a digital leader with a
diversified online portfolio, including Discovery Digital Networks.
For more information, please visit
www.discoverycommunications.com
About Lionsgate
Lionsgate is a premier next generation global content leader
with a strong and diversified presence in motion picture production
and distribution, television programming and syndication, home
entertainment, digital distribution, new channel platforms, video
games and international distribution and sales. Lionsgate currently
has more than 30 television shows on over 20 different networks
spanning its primetime production, distribution and syndication
businesses, including the critically-acclaimed hit series Orange
is the New Black, the multiple Emmy Award-winning drama Mad
Men, the broadcast network series Nashville, the syndication success The
Wendy Williams Show, the acclaimed drama Manhattan and the breakout series The
Royals.
Its feature film business has been fueled by such successes as
the blockbuster first three installments of The Hunger Games
franchise, the first two installments of the Divergent
franchise, Sicario, The Age of Adaline,
CBS/Lionsgate's The DUFF, John
Wick, Now You See Me, Roadside Attractions'
Love & Mercy and Mr. Holmes, Lionsgate/Codeblack Films'
Addicted and Pantelion Films' Instructions Not
Included, the highest-grossing Spanish-language film ever
released in the U.S.
Lionsgate's home entertainment business is an industry leader in
box office-to-DVD and box office-to-VOD revenue conversion rates.
Lionsgate handles a prestigious and prolific library of
approximately 16,000 motion picture and television titles that is
an important source of recurring revenue and serves as the
foundation for the growth of the Company's core businesses. The
Lionsgate and Summit brands remain synonymous with original,
daring, quality entertainment in markets around the world.
www.lionsgate.com
Liberty Global
Investor Relations
|
Liberty Global
Corporate Communications
|
Oskar
Nooij
|
+1 303 220 4218
|
Marcus
Smith
|
+44 20 7190 6374
|
Christian
Fangmann
|
+49 221 84 62 5151
|
Bert
Holtkamp
|
+31 20 778 9800
|
John Rea
|
+1 303 220 4238
|
Matt Beake
|
+44 20 8483 6428
|
Discovery
Communications Corporate Communications
|
Catherine
Frymark
|
+1 240-
893-9840
|
catherine_frymark@discovery.com
|
|
|
|
Discovery
Communications Investor Relations
|
Jackie
Burka
|
+1
212-548-5642
|
jackie_burka@discovery.com
|
|
|
|
Lionsgate Investor
Relations & Executive Communications
|
Peter D.
Wilkes
|
+1
310-255-3726
|
pwilkes@lionsgate.com
|
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SOURCE Lionsgate