AMC Networks, the company behind the AMC, IFC and Sundance Channel networks, as well as niche streaming services like horror-centric Shudder, has had a “terrific” 2021 despite a “challenged” pipeline due to production issues coming out of the coronavirus pandemic interim, CEO Matt Blank said on Monday. And the 2022 lineup will “probably [be] the strongest schedule we have had in several years.”
He touted the series finales for The Walking Dead, Killing Eve and Better Call Saul, along with returning shows and such new series as Tales of the Walking Dead, Interview with the Vampire and Moonhaven. He noted that “we are not seeing any concerns on production at this point.”
Asked about the future of the Walking Dead franchise, he said that as an anthology series Tales could “bring a whole new generation of Walking Dead fans into the universe.” Blank shared that he is “big on franchises,” sharing that he “just watched the Bond movie.” And he compared that franchise to the Walking Dead, concluding about the latter: “This is a franchise that is going to live for a long time.”
Speaking during the virtual UBS Global Technology, Media and Telecom Conference, Blank said some observers told him in his early days that “you don’t have scale” and may struggle to survive. But Blank said the company’s smaller size is an advantage. Unlike bigger competitors, “we don’t have to have 100 million subscribers for AMC to be successful,” he said. “We are not going to play other people’s games. We can not win at those games.”
Instead of spending big, AMC Networks is spending in a more targeted, curated and disciplined way, because it is “picking targeted audiences, targeted subject matter.” And he emphasized that he never strives to survive but to “prevail.”
Blank argued that some bigger rivals spend a lot of money on growing their streaming businesses, with many using “a lot of free subs, offers, deals” and other shorter-term focused strategies to sign up users amid a battle to hit big streaming customer targets. That makes it hard right now to get a proper sense for longer-term subscriber cadence at various companies, he argued. His team would instead focus on a steady approach focused on serving its targeted, passionate audiences with curation. “One of our jobs here is to convince the world that we are different,” he said towards investors. “We are different” and “very disciplined,” noting that investors have “a lot of concerns about some of the big players” and their content spending and other cost trends.
He noted the rise of Netflix’s South Korean hit Squid Game as an example of a great idea and new hit content coming from unexpected places.
His comments expanded on a theme that he had discussed in his first public comments since taking on the role. Back then, Blank said in early November that AMC Networks was in “a great position with several notable strategic advantages,” including its smaller size that allows it to benefit from the “beauty of small numbers.”
During his first speech since taking over, he had also been questioned about the firm’s appetite for mergers or acquisitions given that Wall Street has long seen it as a potential deal partner given its smaller scale. “We don’t feel that it is necessary for us to scale by acquisition in any way, shape or form,” Blank replied, adding that the company was doing well with its focus on niche networks and streaming services. “The model is working” and is “sustainable,” he argued.
However, the executive hinted that AMC Networks could expand its focused streamers on its own or via small, targeted purchases. After all, the management team was “constantly” evaluating building out its strategy by exploring organic ways of launching new offerings. He added that the company was also approached “regularly” about “targeted ideas in the marketplace, and we are ready to move when we think there is an appropriate target in terms of genre and target audience and the economics.”
On Monday, he said about possible acquisitions: “If there was M&A out there, we are disciplined about it.” He said AMC Networks would be interested in companies that “fit into our targeted streaming strategy” with its approach being “cautious, careful and smart, and at the end of the day opportunistic.”
Blank on Monday also expanded on his experience as a former marketing executive after previously saying that “brand building has always been in my blood” and he would focus on a strong connection between AMC Networks’ brands and their fans. On Monday, he noted the “massive democratization” of consuming and distributing content in the streaming age, saying: “We have to get elected every night, every week, every month, every year by our consumers.”
AMC Networks named the former Showtime Networks chief its interim CEO, who took over from company veteran Josh Sapan, in late August. In late September, AMC Networks also said that COO Ed Carroll would leave his post at the end of the year, ending a 34-year tenure with the company.
But in late November, the firm elevated CFO Christina Spade, giving her the additional role of chief operating officer.
Some Wall Street observers wondered if an often-suggested potential sale of AMC Networks could materialize as Blank’s contract was for only one year. For example, Hal Vogel, CEO of Vogel Capital Management and a former entertainment industry analyst, highlighted at the time that AMC, controlled by the Dolan family, has for a long time been seen as a potential takeover subject because of its attractive content and brands, as well as its lack of size in a fast-consolidating media sector.
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December 06, 2021 at 11:52PM
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