Macrovision to Sell TV Guide to Lionsgate

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on January 6, 2009 - 9:48am.

Santa Clara, Calif. - Terminating a deal struck last month to sell its TV Guide Network to Allen Shapiro and One Equity Partners, Macrovision (NASD: MVSN), the provider of copy-protection technology and media databases, said that it will instead sell the network to film studio Lionsgate for $255 million, the same price as the original deal. The sale, expected to close by the end of February, includes both TV Guide Network, available in 83 million homes, and TVGuide.com, an online entertainment destination with over 15 million monthly unique visitors.

"In our previously announced transaction, prior to closing Macrovision was permitted to solicit and enter into other agreements," said Fred Amoroso, the president and CEO of Macrovision.

"We believe this transaction improves the probability and the timing of closing the transaction, while providing for non-contingent consideration comparable to our previously announced transaction."

"This is tremendous real estate, rarely available, that fits extremely well with our strategy of combining content creation, distribution and direct access to the consumer," said Jon Feltheimer, Lionsgate's co-chairman and CEO.