A+E Global Media, which owns cable channels including A+E Network, History Channel and Lifetime, is putting up a for sale sign on its portfolio.
The company, which was recently rebranded from A+E Networks, is a 50-50 joint venture between Disney and Hearst. The two companies have hired the investment banking arm of Wells Fargo to explore strategic options, including a potential sale or merger, an individual familiar with the matter told TheWrap.
Representatives for Disney, Wells Fargo and A+E Global Media declined to comment. Hearst did not immediately return TheWrap’s request for comment.
A+E has over 70,000 distinct content assets, ranging from short-form to long-form, which reach more than 414 million households in 200 territories and 40 languages.
In March, A+E Media Solutions president Toby Byrne told TheWrap that the company’s multi-platform strategy reaches 60% of U.S. adults.
In addition to Lifetime and History Channel, the A+E Global Media portfolio includes LMN, FYI and Vice TV brands, scripted and factual production divisions and over 60 FAST channels. It also holds stakes in Range Media Partners and Propagate Content, which collectively represent more than 3,000 artists, athletes, directors, musicians, writers and producers.
A&E Global Media, which accounted for just 1% of TV viewership in May, according to Nielsen’s Media Distributor Gauge, does not disclose its quarterly financial results as a private company.
But in an annual letter to staff, Hearst CEO Steve Swartz previously warned that A+E was feeling the effects of a “tougher ad market, along with continued cord cutting.” When asked about demand from advertisers ahead of the upfront, Byrne said that there’s been “encouraging signs” compared to last year.
“This time last year, cancellation options were higher, they’re lower now,” he said at the time. “Scatter was softer and is on more solid footing now and we’re seeing some encouraging trends there.”
Per Disney’s latest annual report, A+E, History and Lifetime each had around 58 million domestic subscribers as of September 2024, which included traditional pay TV and streaming subscribers. The company noted that equity in the income of investees decreased $207 million to $575 million in the 2024 fiscal year due to lower income from A+E.
A+E Global Media is the latest to explore a possible sale of its cable networks, following Comcast, which will spin off its portfolio into a separate, publicly traded company called Versant by the end of the year.
Versant will house MSNBC, CNBC, USA Network, Oxygen, E!, SYFY and Golf Channel, as well as digital assets Fandango, Rotten Tomatoes, GolfNow and SportsEngine. Experts previously told TheWrap that the company could be a roll-up vehicle for other companies’ linear assets.
NBCUniversal previously held a minority stake in A+E Networks from 1984 to 2012, which was sold off to Disney and Hearst due to Comcast’s acquisition. Comcast sold the 15.8% stake for $3 billion at the time.
Warner Bros. Discovery will also split the company off into two separate, publicly traded companies in 2026: streaming & studios and global linear networks.
The studios and streaming business will include Warner Bros. Television Group, Warner Bros. Motion Picture Group, DC Studios, HBO, HBO Max, Warner Bros. Games, Tours, Retail and Experiences, as well as studio production facilities in Burbank and Leavesden. Meanwhile, global linear networks will include CNN, TNT Sports in the U.S., Discovery, top free-to-air channels across Europe, Discovery+ and Bleacher Report (B/R). It will also retain a 20% stake in the studios and streaming business to help reduce its debt.
In addition to Comcast and Warner Bros. Discovery, Starz recently separated from Lionsgate.
“There’s a lot of networks out there today that are marooned on the linear side and don’t have technical capabilities to do what we’ve done. We think we can be very additive to content that is stuck on the linear side to give them a digital future,” Starz CEO Jeff Hirsch previously told TheWrap when asked about M&A opportunities. “Obviously, we are going to be focused on women and underrepresented audiences and so we’ll try to scale our business around that programming focus with partners whether it’s commercial or acquisition that can actually help us grow our business and into those demos.”
A&E offers entertainment programming, including original reality shows and documentaries, while History offers original unscripted series and event-driven specials and Lifetime offers programming aimed at women. A+E programming is available in approximately 200 countries and territories.
