Deal Will Expand Cinedigm’s Streaming
Portfolio with Addition of 3,000 Titles, an Estimated 10,000
Individual Film & TV Episodes and Two Successful Linear
Streaming Networks
Cinedigm (NASDAQ: CIDM) announced today that the Company has
agreed to acquire The Film Detective, a leading content distributor
and streaming channel company focused on classic film and
television programming. The acquisition is subject to agreed upon
closing conditions, including completion of the parties’ due
diligence. The deal will add The Film Detective’s library,
comprised of 3,000 content titles, an estimated 10,000 individual
film and TV episodes, and two Free-Ad-Supported-Television (FAST)
linear networks, into Cinedigm’s expansive portfolio of streaming
channels and content.
Since launching in 2014, The Film Detective has distributed its
extensive library through leading digital, television and streaming
platforms such as Turner Classic Movies, NBC’s Cozi TV, EPIX, Pluto
TV, Amazon, MeTV, PBS and more. With the exclusive representation
of an additional five film libraries, The Film Detective also
brings to Cinedigm an additional 1,000 movies available to license
to leading media companies. The company’s library offerings include
the following key movie genres: Classic Westerns, Horror, Mystery,
Family, Martial Arts, Film Noir, Cult Classics, Silent Films,
Classic Cartoons, Documentaries, Shorts and many rarely and seldom
seen Lost Classics.
This acquisition will bring two new linear streaming channels to
Cinedigm: The Film Detective, the company’s eponymous
classic movie streaming channel launched in 2018 and available on
Dish Network’s Sling TV, Sinclair Broadcasting’s STIRR, Plex TV,
Distro TV and Vizio, as well as Lone Star, a classic western
channel launched earlier this year.
The Film Detective will continue to operate independently under
the leadership of Philip Hopkins, Film Detective Founder and CEO,
under the Cinedigm umbrella, with a focus on the continued
acquisition of high-quality library content and the launch of
additional streaming channels. Hopkins will assume the new title of
President, The Film Detective. Cinedigm expects to leverage the
Company’s Matchpoint technology platform to accelerate The Film
Detective’s distribution across Cinedigm’s network of more than 100
digital retail partners. Additionally, Cinedigm plans to expand the
distribution of The Film Detective’s two current channels across
its network of more than 820 million consumer devices. The
companies will also leverage Cinedigm’s technical and operational
capabilities to launch several new genre channels in the coming
quarters.
“Phil Hopkins has been a leading long-term industry champion for
independent film and TV content, particularly classic programming,
building The Film Detective into a content powerhouse. In addition,
he has proved to be an aggressive innovator in the explosively
growing streaming business,” said Chris McGurk, Cinedigm Chairman
and CEO. “We are very proud to welcome Phil and The Film Detective
to the Cinedigm family and look forward to Phil’s continued strong
leadership as we grow the business together. The Film Detective’s
library is currently profitable, and with synergies and expanded
distribution we believe we can quickly and significantly increase
both revenues and profits from both the library and The Film
Detective’s two streaming channels.”
Added Gary Loffredo, General Counsel and COO, “The Film
Detective is a perfect example of Cinedigm's overall library
acquisition plan: to buy film libraries that are EBITDA positive
and accretive and then work to quickly double that performance via
our distribution muscle and cost-savings efforts while dramatically
accelerating growth through our ever expanding device and channel
ecosystem. There continues to be a significant opportunity in this
area and we have an active pipeline of similar, accretive potential
acquisitions.”
“This deal greatly enhances our mission of providing channels,
content and technology to the world’s leading streaming services
and platforms,” said Erick Opeka, President of Cinedigm Networks.
“We have seen a dramatic rise in revenues generated from classic
content this year as audiences of all ages embrace streaming, and
Phil is among the smartest minds in this space. We look forward to
leveraging Cinedigm’s platform and capabilities to bring Phil’s
vision to hundreds of millions of consumers around the globe.”
Hopkins has channeled his life-long passion for film collecting
into developing one of the leading purveyors of classic film
libraries offering broadcast-quality, digitally-HD remastered
material. He has distributed and licensed TFD film library assets
through leading media companies, including: Turner Classics Movies,
American Movie Classics, NBC’s Cozi TV, Tubi, Amazon, EPIX HD, Sony
GetTV, MeTV, Bounce, Sinclair Broadcasting and many Public
Broadcasting Stations across America.
“I am thrilled to reach this acquisition agreement with
Cinedigm, which will give The Film Detective the firepower to grow
our content library and streaming channels much faster than
before,” said Phil Hopkins, The Film Detective Founder and CEO.
“Cinedigm has been a long-term independent leader in quality
content distribution and streaming and I believe their capabilities
will help take this business I have built over the years to an even
higher level.”
Cinedigm has leaned into digital monetization since its
inception, offering content providers a path to global reach on
streaming platforms. Data and analytics guide the Company’s
decisions to follow growth trends such as AVOD, and the team closed
numerous recent distribution deals, including NBC Peacock, Google,
Redbox, Local Now, Plex and Fuse, in addition to existing AVOD
partnerships with various platforms such as Tubi, Pluto, Vudu,
Amazon and Roku, amongst others, to carry the new content.
Cinedigm offers global streaming linear, on-demand branded
channels while distributing digital films and TV series on every
meaningful transactional, SVOD and AVOD global platform. The
Company distributes tens of thousands of hours of film and TV
content to over 70 digital platforms in 180+ territories. Branded
content includes co-productions in the action, western and military
genres along with family (Hallmark, ZDF), anime (Konami Cross
Media) and sports championship programs (NFL, NHL).
A trailer regarding The Film Detective can be seen here:
https://vimeo.com/189045960
The acquisition is subject to completion of definitive documents
and any closing conditions to be agreed upon.
Kalil & Co, Inc. (www.kalilco.com) served as the exclusive
broker for this transaction. Kalil & Co., Inc. has been in the
media brokerage business for over 50 years and is considered the
premier media M&A firm in the United States.
ABOUT CINEDIGM
For more than twenty years, Cinedigm (NASDAQ: CIDM) has led the
digital transformation of the entertainment industry. Today,
Cinedigm entertains hundreds of millions of consumers around the
globe by providing premium content, streaming channels and
technology services to the world’s largest media, technology and
retail companies. For more information, visit
http://www.cinedigm.com/.
Cinedigm uses, and will continue to use, its website, press
releases, SEC filings and various social media channels, including
Twitter (https://twitter.com/cinedigm), LinkedIn
(https://www.linkedin.com/company/cinedigm/), Facebook
(facebook.com/Cinedigm), StockTwits
(https://stocktwits.com/CinedigmCorp) and the Company website
(www.cinedigm.com), as additional means of disclosing public
information to investors, the media and others interested in the
Company. It is possible that certain information that the Company
posts on its website, disseminated in press releases, SEC filings,
and on social media could be deemed to be material information, and
the Company encourages investors, the media and others interested
in the Company to review the business and financial information
that the Company posts on its website, disseminates in press
releases, SEC filings and on the social media channels identified
above, as such information could be deemed to be material
information.
View source
version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20201019005244/en/
Press Contact for CIDM: Jill Calcaterra 310-466-5135
jcalcaterra@cinedigm.com
Cinedigm (NASDAQ:CIDM)
Historical Stock Chart
From Aug 2024 to Sep 2024
Cinedigm (NASDAQ:CIDM)
Historical Stock Chart
From Sep 2023 to Sep 2024