Starz is exiting the UK and Australia, according to new report from Deadline, which credits a memo sent today to employees by Starz CEO Jeffrey Hirsch for the information.
Starz has been undergoing a number of changes over the past couple of years. In particular, the international version of the streaming service, Starzplay, was rebranded as Lionsgate+ in a number of countries.
More recently, Lionsgate confirmed that the company had made the “strategic decision” to focus Starz operations on the U.S., the UK and Canada. As part of this refocus, the plan was to close down Starz in Latin America by December 31st.
It would now seem that refocus is even sharper than previously thought, with the UK no longer part of the plan. As Deadline reports, the Starz workforce will be reduced by around 10% and Starz will end business operations in both the UK and Australia.
According to the CEO’s memo included in the report, “This morning we announced a company-wide organizational restructure, including the exit of the UK territory. As difficult as it is, with many of our employees being impacted, we are making these changes to align our organization with the growth areas of the business and to prepare us for our next chapter as a standalone company.”
The separation of Starz and Lionsgate is expected to happen in 2024, ultimately resulting in the creation of two different companies. While one will be primarily focused on the motion picture and television production segments, the company’s media networks segment will continue to operate as a standalone company, Starz.
There have also been indications Lionsgate is open to a purchase of Starz, either a full or partial purchase. Regardless of whether a sale does actually happen, Lionsgate will continue to separate the two sides of the business.
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