AMC Networks buys BBCS’s stake in BBC America for $42m to take full control

BBC America’s biggest hits have included killing Eve

AMC Networks has bought out BBC Studios’ (BBCS) 50.1% stake in BBC America in a US$42m cash deal, giving it full control of the US cablenet.

The New York-headquartered company, which made the disclosure in its third-quarter (Q3) earnings report on Friday, said it now has “100% ownership and full operational control” of the network, but will maintain a commercial relationship with BBCS to “support the continued strength of the brand and programming.”

On an earnings call on Friday, executive VP and chief financial officer Patrick O’Connell added that AMC Networks will “keep 100% of the cash the business generates and we will no longer be making any related cash distributions to non-controlling interests.”

The buyout comes 10 years after AMC Networks acquired a 49.9% stake in BBC America for US$200m. In that time, some of the network’s biggest shows have included Killing Eve and Orphan Black. Doctor Who also used to air on BBC America until BBCS struck a global deal with Disney+ for the popular long-running series.

For BBCS, the commercial arm of the UK pubcaster, the sale of its interest in BBC America comes during a year of significant change.

In February, it took full ownership of BritBox International when it acquired ITV’s 50% share of the streaming service for £255m (US$321m) in cash.

Five months later, after seeing its sales fall to £1.8bn during the 2023/24 financial year from £2.1bn the previous year, BBCS restructured its US and UK teams to integrate them more closely.

AMC Networks added around 300,000 streaming subscribers in Q3 to reach 11.8 million overall across its suite of digital platforms, including AMC+, Shudder, Sundance Now, ALLBLK and HIDIVE.

Across the entire business, revenue was down 6% to US$599.6m in Q3, with profit decreasing 22.5% US$93.7m.