RedBird IMI today announced that it has agreed to acquire
All3Media, one of the world’s leading independent television
production and distribution companies, from its joint owners,
Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. (Nasdaq: WBD) and Liberty Global Ltd.
(Nasdaq: LBTYA, LBTYB and LBTYK) for £1.15 Billion. RedBird IMI is
a joint venture between RedBird Capital Partners and International
Media Investments focused on building high-growth companies in
media, entertainment and sports.
All3Media, based in London, has 50 production labels, including
Studio Lambert, Raw, Two Brothers Pictures, Silverback Films, New
Pictures and Neal Street Productions, producing top global shows
such as The Traitors, Squid Game: The Challenge, Gold Rush,
Midsomer Murders, American Nightmare, The Circle, Call the Midwife,
The Tourist, Life On Our Planet, The Long Shadow and Gogglebox.
All3Media’s library spans all genres, including contemporary
thrillers, detective series, soap operas, comedy, costume drama and
true crime as well as documentary, features, children’s and reality
programming. The Group’s companies have global presence, across the
UK, US, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium and New Zealand and
produce 4,000 hours annually for linear broadcasters, VOD, social
media and other digital platforms. All3Media International operates
a distribution catalog of over 30,000 hours, while the Group’s
digital business, Little Dot Studios, drives audiences in social
video, podcast, and branded content across multiple platforms.
Jeff Zucker, the CEO of RedBird IMI, will become the chairman of
the All3Media board. Jane Turton (CEO) and Sara Geater (COO) will
continue to lead the company for RedBird IMI.
“All3Media is one of the world's great content companies, and
this gives us an incredible platform to continue to grow our
expanding portfolio,” said Jeff Zucker, the CEO of RedBird IMI.
“The demand for new shows and ongoing existing series, both
scripted and unscripted, makes All3 a perfect fit for us. And we
would not be doing this if not for the tremendous confidence we
have in the outstanding All3Media management team, led by Jane and
Sara.”
“Acquiring All3 is an extension of our investment thesis around
pure play global content creators and owners of intellectual
property,” said Gerry Cardinale, Founder and Managing Partner of
RedBird. “We look forward to partnering with All3’s management team
to continue accelerating their growth in Europe and the U.S. and
capitalizing on RedBird’s ecosystem in support of that goal.”
Jane Turton, the CEO of All3Media, said: “Joining forces with
Jeff and the RedBird IMI team is an exciting next step for us
as we continue to build All3Media. Our strategy remains to work
with the world’s best talent, developing and producing high
quality, popular programmes and RedBird IMI’s support and
investment will be key in helping us deliver this. I
am very proud of all that we have built over the past few
years, and I am looking forward to working with the RedBird IMI
team as we take this important next step.”
“All3Media has gone from strength to strength during our period
of joint ownership with WBD, both financially and creatively,”
Andrea Salvato, Chief Development Officer, Liberty Global, said.
“We look forward to seeing the company continue to prosper, led by
Jane and the team, as part of RedBird IMI. The sale continues our
strategy of recycling capital in our ventures portfolio.”
“We are incredibly proud of what All3Media, Warner Bros.
Discovery and Liberty Global have built together over the past
decade, and given RedBird IMI’s strong commitment to creative
excellence, we are confident they are best suited to shepherd this
world-class production studio into its next phase and can’t wait to
see all that’s ahead,” said Bruce Campbell, Warner Bros.
Discovery’s Chief Revenue and Strategy Officer.
RedBird IMI launched just over one year ago, with the goal of
building a global media company across news, entertainment and
sports. This is the fifth investment for RedBird IMI, and its
largest to-date. Its investments include the scripted production
company Media Res, the unscripted production company EverWonder
Studios, the children’s entertainment company Hidden Pigeon Company
and the digital outlet Front Office Sports.
AdvisorsRedBird Advisors acted as financial
advisor to RedBird IMI and RedBird Capital Partners, and Gibson,
Dunn & Crutcher LLP acted as its legal advisor. JP Morgan acted
as financial advisor to Warner Bros. Discovery and Liberty Global,
and DLA Piper acted as their legal advisor.
About RedBird IMIRedBird IMI is a joint venture
between RedBird Capital Partners, a New York based private-equity
firm founded and led by Gerry Cardinale, and International Media
Investments (IMI), a global media company based in Abu Dhabi.
RedBird IMI is focused on investing in premier companies across
news, media, entertainment, sports and live event verticals.
About RedBird Capital PartnersRedBird Capital
Partners is a private investment firm that builds high-growth
companies with strategic capital solutions to founders and
entrepreneurs. The firm currently manages approximately $10 billion
in assets on behalf of a global group of blue chip institutional
and family office investors. Founded in 2014 by Gerry Cardinale,
RedBird integrates sophisticated private equity investing with a
hands-on business building mandate that focuses on three core
industry verticals – Sports, Media & Entertainment, and
Financial Services. Throughout his 30-year investment career,
Cardinale has partnered with founders and entrepreneurs to build
some of the most iconic growth companies in their respective
industries. For more information, please go to
www.redbirdcap.com.
About All3Media GroupAll3Media’s companies
develop and produce award-winning, high quality and popular new and
returning programming across all genres. The Group, which has grown
from 19 production companies and labels a decade ago to 50 today,
is focused on innovation, creative excellence and entertaining
audiences with world-class programming, from long-running series
through to the launch of new formats, new talent and new business
models. All3media.com
Contacts: Risa HellerRisa Heller Communications
Risa@risaheller.com 917.647.9187
Carly HoldenRisa Heller Communicationscarly@risaheller.com
617.429.1730
Dan GagnierGagnier
Communicationsredbird@gagnierfc.com646.569.5897
Liberty Global (NASDAQ:LBTYA)
Historical Stock Chart
From Jul 2024 to Aug 2024
Liberty Global (NASDAQ:LBTYA)
Historical Stock Chart
From Aug 2023 to Aug 2024