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Starz Extends First Quarter Loss on Lower Revenues

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CitrixNews Staff
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Starz Extends First Quarter Loss on Lower Revenues
'Outlander: Blood of My Blood' Starz' 'Outlander: Blood of My Blood' Starz

Starz Entertainment ended its first year as a standalone company after splitting from Lionsgate with lower overall revenues and a widened net loss as it looks to positive year-over-year streaming growth in 2026.

The premium cable and streaming platform, which no longer discloses its subscriber counts, ended the three months to March 31, 2026 with $307 million in overall revenues, compared to $330.6 million in the same period of 2025.

Streaming revenue came to $211.1 million for the latest quarter, down from $223.4 million in OTT revenue in the year-ago period. Starz in its results forecast positive year-over-year streaming revenue growth in fiscal 2026. And linear TV revenue at $95.8 million was down on from $102.8 million in the first quarter of 2025.

Starz also saw its operating loss at $152.8 million widen from a year-earlier operating loss of $142.3 million due in part to higher interest expenses, while the overall net loss at Starz grew to $165 million, against a year-earlier $153 million.

The adjusted OIBDA at Starz Networks came to $92 million, compared to $58 million in the first quarter of 2025. The latest financial results for Starz marks one year from becoming a standalone company after the premium cable and streaming platform separated from Lionsgate. Starz completed its split from Lionsgate’s film and TV studio in May 2025.

“As we mark the one-year anniversary of our separation today, I’m proud to report that Starz is a structurally stronger company than when we separated. Over the past year, we have executed with discipline against our strategic and financial priorities to position the company for long-term value creation, and we delivered a strong start to the year, meeting or exceeding all of our key financial targets,” Starz president and CEO Jeffrey Hirsch said in a statement that accompanied his latest financial results.

Hirsch and other Starz execs will discuss their first quarter financial results in an after-market analyst call as the company continues to grow its streaming subscriber base with new scripted series like Outlander, Power Book III: Raising Kanan and the upcoming July 2026 premiere of Starz-owned Fightland, and all amid continued pressure on its linear TV customer base.

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Originally reported by Hollywood Reporter