Starz Entertainment (STRZ) 18th Annual Sports & Media Symposium summary

Business transformation and financial outlook

• Achieved $136 million improvement in free cash flow year-over-year post-separation, with a clear path to 20% margins by late 2027 and free cash flow conversion potentially reaching 70% by 2028-2029.

• Exited the Universal Pay 2 deal, reducing costs and accelerating the 20% margin target from 2028 to 2027, with a significant free cash flow spike expected in 2029.

• Shifted focus from subscriber counts to OTT revenue growth, adjusted EBITDA, free cash flow, and deleveraging, targeting leverage of 2.7x by year-end and 2x-2.5x by 2027.

• Raised prices in April with minimal churn, maintaining a price gap below broad-based streamers to reinforce its position as a complementary service.

Content strategy and operational efficiency

• Regained ownership of original content, with "Fightland" premiering July 31 as the first fully owned original, reducing per-hour costs by $1-3 million compared to studio-supplied shows.

• Targeting 50% owned content by 2027 and up to 70-80% by 2028, with long-term cash content spend expected to stabilize between $550-$600 million.

• Leveraging co-commission models and international output deals to improve unit economics and monetize IP across multiple windows.

• Digital now represents 72% of the business, enabling further cost reductions as linear declines.

Data-driven approach and technology

• Built a robust first-party data infrastructure since 2015, using AI to optimize marketing spend, pricing, and retention, resulting in higher ARPU and lower marketing costs.

• AI-driven revenue models enable longer-term planning, with a 24-month revenue horizon replacing short-term subscriber metrics.