Albrecht Unaware of Plan to Sell Starz

By ( Broadcasting & Cable ) published

Starz CEO Chris Albrecht said he was unaware of plans to sell the company.

Speaking at the 42d annual UBS media conference in New York Tuesday (Dec. 9), Albrecht said he was surprised by reports that companies were interested in buying Starz and then surprised again to read later that no one was interested in buying Starz.

"Selling a company is not a strategy," Albrecht said, calling the reports "rumors and speculation." But he added, "I talk to people all the time," because media executives tend to travel in a pack.

Albrecht noted that Starz's key shareholder, John Malone, likes the way the business is going.

Jon Lafayette
Jon Lafayette

Jon has been business editor of Broadcasting+Cable since 2010. He focuses on revenue-generating activities, including advertising and distribution, as well as executive intrigue and merger and acquisition activity. Just about any story is fair game, if a dollar sign can make its way into the article. Before B+C, Jon covered the industry for TVWeek, Cable World, Electronic Media, Advertising Age and The New York Post. A native New Yorker, Jon is hiding in plain sight in the suburbs of Chicago.