TV Guide Network purchase ramps up

Weeds is most likely the shows offered round the TV Guide Network. Lionsgate and JP Morgan Chase & Co.'s One Equity Partners wing are walking up their efforts to discover a buyer for your TV Guide Network cabler and TVGuide.com website. The partners have quietly looked the cabler for many days nevertheless the purchase activity is predicted to accelerate inside the future. Sources near the situation mentioned there's still an chance that particular Equity, the non-public investment arm of JP Morgan, could spend Lionsgate's 51% stake stake or the other way round, though both sides appear to become leaning toward selling it outright. A repetition for Lionsgate declined comment Monday. The partners distributed briefing books to prospective customers late a year ago. Anticipation is the purchase process could summary by March. It's unclear simply how much TV Guide Network might fetch. The funnel is broadly distribbed in than 80 million cable/satellite houses, nonetheless its viewership remains anemic despite efforts to incorporate original reality series and purchases of off-network fare including ABC's "Ugly Betty" as well as the Lionsgate-produced Showtime laffer "Weeds." Lionsgate bought the cabler and website in February 2009 for $255 million. By May of the year, Lionsgate had offered a 49% stake inside the assets for $125 million to at least one Equity and investor Allen Shapiro, who had previously been looking for TV Guide concurrently Lionsgate made its bid. three years later, Lionsgate is honing its focus on core film and tv production assets, especially round the heels of the $412.5 million acquisition of Summit Entertainment. TV Guide produces positive earnings and may require much more investment being player among general entertainment cablers. Lionsgate then one Equity make strides in coverting the funnel in the records-focused intend to a regular linear funnel, and they have inked new carriage pacts with key operators including Comcast, Time Warner Cable and Charter Communications. The house has attracted some interest from private equity finance finance players this time around around around. No majors needed a run advertising online when TV Guide was setup obtainable in a fireplace-purchase cost in 2008 in those days-owner Macrovision, so it may be an unpredicted to find out them step-up now. One private shingle that may be taking into consideration the television Guide website is L.A.-based OpenGate Capital, which bought the tv Guide print magazine in 2008. Because the assets were separate, the cabler as well as the print mag have observed separate websites, which causes it to be harder for to attain traction with tube fans. Contact Cynthia Littleton at cynthia.littleton@variety.com