Latest news with #LION
Business Insider
15-07-2025
- Business
- Business Insider
M&A News: 'A Pure-Play Studio' Lionsgate Studios (NYSE:LION) an Acquisition Target
There was once a time, back when video stores dotted the landscape and buying a DVD at an electronics retailer was a thing of charming simplicity, that movie producer Lionsgate Studios (LION) ruled the landscape in the field of direct-to-video releasing. But those days are gone, perhaps forever, and Lionsgate now finds itself a potential acquisition target. The news did little good for Lionsgate stock, however, as investors sent shares down over 2.5% in the closing minutes of Monday's trading. Elevate Your Investing Strategy: Take advantage of TipRanks Premium at 50% off! Unlock powerful investing tools, advanced data, and expert analyst insights to help you invest with confidence. Make smarter investment decisions with TipRanks' Smart Investor Picks, delivered to your inbox every week. Lionsgate is drawing interest from Legendary Entertainment LLC. Backed by Apollo Global Management (APO), Legendary is the studio behind, among other things, the recent hit remake of Dune. After Lionsgate separated itself from the Starz Entertainment Group, which runs the Starz line of cable movie channels as well as a streaming service, Lionsgate proved more attractive to Legendary, reports noted. As a 'pure-play studio,' noted Geetha Ranganathan of Bloomberg Intelligence, the deal makes sense, and reports suggest that the two are already looking into producing some movies together to see how they might work together. And with around a third of Lionsgate's revenue coming from its stable of library content—and that at a '…high profit margin…'—the end result is an attractive proposition for Legendary. Kid-Friendly Cuts Within Hours With AI Meanwhile, Lionsgate also revealed, not so long ago, that it was very much prepared to make artificial intelligence (AI) part of everyday operations. In fact, Lionsgate even had use cases ready, including the ability to adjust a movie's rating—not especially hard; removing a few extra obscenities or a particularly violent scene can drop a movie from R to PG-13 in rapid fashion—or to make it 'kid-friendly.' Lionsgate looks to turn to the Runway platform, setting up what reports called Runway's '…first deal with a Hollywood studio.' Vice chairman Michael Burns described how AI allows Lionsgate to '…make movies and television shows we'd otherwise never make.' The judicious use of AI, reports noted, can cut production costs in half and, just like magic, make a property viable. Is Lionsgate a Good Stock to Buy? Turning to Wall Street, analysts have a Moderate Buy consensus rating on LION stock based on five Buys and two Holds assigned in the past three months, as indicated by the graphic below. After a 16.19% loss in its share price over the past year, the average LION price target of $9 per share implies 31.2% upside potential.
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First Post
14-07-2025
- Entertainment
- First Post
Indian Film Festival of Melbourne 2025: 'Stree 2', 'Homebound' lead film nominations, 'Paatal Lok', Netflix's 'Black Warrant' dominate the OTT
Among the most-nominated films and shows are 'Superboys of Malegaon', 'Maharaj', 'L2: Empuraan'. On the streaming front, 'Paatal Lok 2', 'CA Topper', and 'Manorathangal' dominate the series categories. read more The Indian Film Festival of Melbourne (IFFM) has officially unveiled its power-packed nominations for the 2025 edition, celebrating the best in Indian cinema and streaming content. Now in its 16th year, IFFM stands as the largest celebration of Indian film outside India, and this year's award contenders reflect the depth, diversity, and dynamism of Indian storytelling across languages and platforms. Supported by the Victorian Government, the festival will run from August 14 to 24, with the highly anticipated IFFM Awards Night set for August 15, honouring cinematic excellence across film and OTT categories. Winners will be selected by an esteemed jury comprising some of the most respected names in Australian cinema and cultural landscape including Garth Davis, director of Dev Patel- Nicole Kidman's LION, Theatre Director and Film Producer - Nadia Tass. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD With projects considered from June 15, 2024 to June 14, 2025, and OTT nominations restricted to platforms available in Australia, this year's lineup spans mainstream superhits, indie revelations, regional gems, and binge-worthy series. Among the most-nominated films and shows are 'Superboys of Malegaon', 'Maharaj', 'L2: Empuraan'. On the streaming front, 'Paatal Lok 2', 'CA Topper', and 'Manorathangal' dominate the series categories. Best Film Homebound Kalki 2898AD L2 : Empuraan Maharaj Meiyazhagan Stree 2 Superboys of Malegaon Best Indie Film Angammal Baksho bondi (Shadowbox) Boong Feminichi Fathima (Feminist Fathima) Humans in the loop Village Rockstars 2 We are Faheem and Karun Best Actor (Male) Abhishek Bachchan - I Want to Talk Adarsh Gourav - Superboys of Malegaon Gugun Kipgen - Boong Ishaan Khatter - Homebound Junaid Khan - Maharaj Manoj Bajpayee - The Fable Mohanlal - L2 : Empuraan Vishal Jethwa - Homebound Best Actor (Female) Anjali Sivaraman - Bad Girl Bhanita Das - Village Rockstars 2 Geetha Kailasam - Angammal Kareena Kapoor Khan - The Buckingham Murders Shamla Hamza - Feminichi Fathima (Feminist Fathima) Sharmila Tagore - Puratawn Shraddha Kapoor - Stree 2 Tillotama Shome - Baksho Bondi (Shadowbox) Best Director Aranya Sahay - Humans in the loop Lakshmipriya Devi : Boong Neeraj Ghaywan - Homebound Onir - We are Faheem and Karun Reema Kagti - Superboys of Malegoan Rima Das - Village Rockstars 2 Varsha Bharath - Bad Girls Vipin Radhakrishnan - Angammal STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Best Web Series Black Warrant Gyaarah Gyaarah Khauf Kota Factory Season 3 Manorathangal Paatal Lok Season 2 Thallivattam Palayam Tribhuvan Mishra CA Topper Best Actor (Female) - Web Series Ananya Pandey - Call Me Bae Monika Panwar - Khauf Nimisha Sajayan - Dabba Cartel Parvathy Thiruvothu - Manorathangal Rasika Dugal - Mirzapur 3 Shabana Azmi – Dabba Cartel Tillotamma Shome - Tribhuvan Mishra CA Topper Best Actor (Male) - Web Series Abhishek Kumar - Thalaivettiyaan Paalayam Ali Fazal - Mirzapur Season 3 Jaideep Ahlawat - Paatal Lok Season 2 Jitendra Kumar – Kota Factory Season 3 Mammootty : Manorathangal Manav Kaul - Tribhuvan Mishra CA Topper Zahaan Kapoor - Black Warrant
Campaign ME
18-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Campaign ME
Gold Lions roar and platforms reveal AI plays
Day 2 at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity 2025 offered respite from the heat thanks to lovely cloud cover through early parts of the day. It also brought a smile to the faces of those who bumped into old friends from across the globe, which led to a meaningful catch-up or heartfelt conversations along the Croisette. There were those who braved the long queues to access key panel discussions and beach activations, while others celebrated their latest metal cats on the red carpet outside The Palais. Speaking of metal cats, the MENA region's tally of coveted Cannes Lions trophies has jumped from seven on Day 1 to 15 on Day 2, with BigTime Creative Shop leading the pack and contributing to five of the region's total tally with 2 Gold Lions, 1 Silver Lion, and 2 Bronze Lions. The MENA wins include: AUDIO AND RADIO CATEGORY: 1 GOLD LION, 1 SILVER LION Campaign title: The Second Release Agency: SRMG Labs, Riyadh Client: Billboard Arabia, Riyadh DESIGN CATEGORY: 1 SILVER LION Campaign title: Sounds of the Land Agency: SRMG Labs, Riyadh Client: Billboard Arabia, Riyadh DIGITAL CRAFT CATEGORY: 1 SILVER LION Campaign title: The Shaded Route Agency: VML, Riyadh Client: Hungerstation Campaign title: Agency: Client: Hungerstation 1 BRONZE LION Campaign title: Read Better Agency: FP7 McCANN, Dubai / McCANN, Bristol Client: Waterstones DIGITAL CRAFT CATEGORY: 1 GOLD LION, 1 SILVER LION Campaign title: The 4th Judge Agency: BigTime Creative Shop, Riyadh Client: The Ring Campaign title: Agency: Client: The Ring 1 GOLD LION Campaign title: Obsession Agency: BigTime Creative Shop, Riyadh Client: Riyadh Season FILM CRAFT CATEGORY: 1 BRONZE LION Campaign title: Everything or Nothing Agency: BigTime Creative Shop, Riyadh Client: Riyadh Season Campaign title: Agency: Client: Riyadh Season 1 BRONZE LION Campaign title: Obsession Agency: BigTime Creative Shop, Riyadh Client: Riyadh Season HEALTH AND WELLNESS CATEGORY: 1 BRONZE LION Campaign title: The Shaded Route Agency: VML Riyadh Client: Hungerstation OUTDOOR CATEGORY : 1 BRONZE LION Campaign title: The Shaded Route Agency: VML Riyadh Client: Hungerstation Campaign title: Agency: Client: Hungerstation 1 BRONZE LION Campaign title: Not For First Dates Agency: FP7 McCann Dubai Client: McDonald's PRINT AND PUBLISHING CATEGORY : 1 SILVER LION Campaign title: NOTES ON NOTES Agency: IMPACT BBDO, Dubai / AdPro& Jordan Client: Capital Bank Campaign title: Agency: IMPACT BBDO, Dubai / AdPro& Jordan Client: Capital Bank 1 BRONZE LION Campaign title: THE GREAT INDIAN DUNK Agency: LEO Dubai Client: NBA India Platforms claim their seconds in the spotlight For those who brought their running shoes along, Day 2 began with a 6.1km run with the Strava Business Club, while others who preferred an early morning stretch chose the morning yoga session on The Terrace. The morning then began with a fascinating panel discussion, which witnessed Elizabeth Rutledge, CMO, American Express; Aude Gandon, CMO, Nestlé; and Sumit Virmani, CMO, Infosys discuss the marketing priorities for the months to come; how CMOs must be good internal stakeholders, and measure and communicate the value of marketing within their businesses; and the new skills CMOs need to incorporate within a rapidly evolving brand and marketing landscape. However, platforms – YouTube, TikTok, Meta, and Spotify – claimed the spotlight on Day 2 at Cannes Lions with key announcements. YouTube: With the aim to continue connecting communities and content creators with advertisers, YouTube has released Open Call, a feature within the platform's Creator Partnerships hub, powered by the YouTube BrandConnect tool, which permits brands to discover and partner with creators at scale. Through this feature, brands and advertisers will now be able to share a creative brief listing the requirements of their campaign. This will allow multiple content creators within the YouTube Partner Programme the ability to pitch to the advertisers with video content created and designed specifically for that campaign. Once the brands and advertisers view, review and approve the host of video submissions, then the promotions or the partnership ads get activated. In conversation with Campaign Middle East at Cannes, Melissa Hsieh Nikolic, Director of Product Management for YouTube Ads, said, 'It's really about the creators and the authentic content that they're making that resonates with YouTubers and the communities. In particular, with Open Call and Creator Partnerships hub, it's really about bringing brands alongside to find creators who can tell their stories authentically, while giving creators of all different sizes an opportunity. We think there's a lot of power in that, providing people with a lot more ways to connect with brands.' Watch her take on how the ROI on this is measured in the link below. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Campaign Middle East (@campaignmiddleeast) TikTok: At this year's Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity, TikTok unveiled updates to TikTok Symphony, its suite of generative AI tools designed to streamline creative production and spark bold new ideas. These new updates aim to make scaling on TikTok faster, easier and more efficient. With Symphony Image-to-Video, TikTok will bring static images to life to help unlock new creative formats, generate multiple variations of existing on-brand content or bring a full product catalogue to life. Next, with Symphony Text-to-Video, all it takes is short text prompt to bring an idea to life, enabling advertisers to rapidly generate, test and iterate on a range of creative executions or customise content at scale. Finally, with Symphony Showcase Products, advertisers will be able to place their products front-and-centre by showcasing them with digital avatars. This gives marketers a new way to feature a product in TikTok-first creative content. Commenting on these new features, Andy Yang, Global Head of Creative and Brand Products, said, 'We're entering a new era of creativity, one where ideas move at the speed of culture, and where AI doesn't replace imagination but rather accelerates it. With TikTok Symphony, we're empowering a global community of marketers, brands, and creators to tell stories that resonate, scale, and drive impact on TikTok. By blending cutting-edge technology with human creativity, we're building a new creative standard, one that's more accessible, more agile, and more inspiring than ever before.' View this post on Instagram A post shared by Campaign Middle East (@campaignmiddleeast) Meta: Cannes Lions 2025 also witnessed Meta announcing a bevy of AI-powered features, including AI agents integrated into advertisements, which permits users to chat with an advertisers' bot immediately when clicking on an ad. In addition to merging creatives with conversational commerce, Meta also showcases ways for brands and advertisers to set up these AI agents on Messenger and WhatsApp through smart prompts. They also highlighted how performance insights can be derived to hold the 'AI agents' accountable to their knowledge and usefulness. Additionally, Meta also revealed voice-activated business AI agents, which opens out the possibility for customers to query branded business bots – especially for users who don't like typing and want a faster, hands-free experience. Add to this Meta's AI-powered translation tools, which further bring empower copy and creatives by translating ad content in 10 global languages, therefore, enabling advertisers to take their campaigns global faster. The number of languages that Meta's AI can translate is set to double by the end of 2025. Similar to TikTok, Meta is also rolling out an AI-powered image-to-video ad tool across Facebook and Instagram. Through this tool marketers will now be able to convert up to 20 static product imagess into multi-scene videos with music and subtitles right in the ad interface. WhatsApp: Advertisers can now become channel owners and run ads within their WhatsApp Status, unlocking a new ad revenue model inside the application. Meta is also reportedly testing native ads inside the WhatsApp Updates tab, making it the first time ads will appear inside WhatsApp rather than as a click-through from Instagram or Facebook. However, these chats and channels will be clearly differentiated from the encrypted personal chats, the company clarified. Spotify: Right before Cannes, Spotify revealed two new initiatives to help brands further tap into Spotify's creative playground: the Creative Lab Hub and its inaugural Creative Council. The Creative Lab Hub is a new global destination where brands and advertisers can access Spotify Advertising's most effective tools, formats, and insights — making it easier to create breakthrough campaigns. Meanwhile, its Creative Council brings together industry-leading creatives to help shape the future of advertising and brand storytelling on Spotify. This group includes top creative leads from agencies including R/GA, BBDO, McCann, Anomaly, VML, and GUT, as well as brand leaders from Ulta, AG1, and Coca-Cola. Where are the conversations happening? Meanwhile, Campaign Middle East continues its coverage live from Cannes Lions 2025, conversing with top leaders such as Reda Raad, Group CEO of TBWA\RAAD, and Tom Otton, CEO of Create. Group. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Campaign Middle East (@campaignmiddleeast) Tune into Campaign Middle East's social media channels to stay updated on the latest of what's happening at The Palais, the Rotonde, The Carlton Hotel and stay tuned for exciting events at the Campaign House Hilton Canopy.
Campaign ME
17-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Campaign ME
Cannes Lions 2025: Day 1 highlights
The Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity 2025 is off to a flyer – and if Day 1 of the five-day festival is anything to go by, it has all the makings of another 'best ever' since it found its permanent home in Côte d'Azur, Cannes in 1984. Setting the pace for year ahead, the first day came to life with inspiring keynotes, informative panel discussions and the Middle East region's first Gold metal cat of 2025. True it's representation of the region on the global stage, Campaign Middle East was in the thick of it all. To answer the most pertinent question: Who won what? As it stands, at the end of Day 1, agencies from the Middle East have officially been conferred six coveted awards. These include AUDIO AND RADIO CATEGORY: 1 GOLD LION, 1 SILVER LION Campaign title: The Second Release Agency: SRMG Labs, Riyadh Client: Billboard Arabia, Riyadh HEALTH AND WELLNESS CATEGORY: 1 BRONZE LION Campaign title: The Shaded Route Agency: VML Riyadh Client: Hungerstation OUTDOOR CATEGORY: 1 BRONZE LION Campaign title: The Shaded Route Agency: VML Riyadh Client: Hungerstation1 BRONZE LION Campaign title: Not For First Dates Agency: FP7 McCann Dubai Client: McDonald's PRINT AND PUBLISHING CATEGORY: 1 BRONZE LION Campaign title: JORDAN 23 Agency: LEO Dubai Client: NBA India Keynotes and key takeaways from Day 1 at Cannes Lions Proceedings at Cannes Lions 2025 began with a heartfelt keynote by Tor Myhren, VP of Marketing Communications, Apple, who sounded a call for human-driven creativity in the age of artificial intelligence (AI). 'I've got good news and I've got bad news,' Myrhen said as he began the introductory keynote. 'The good news is that AI is not going to kill advertising. The bad news is AI is not going to save advertising either. We have got to save advertising ourselves; and I think it's by believing in what's always made it special – which is human creativity.' Myrhen went on to discuss the moral compass of a brand, highlighting how Apple has stood its ground on privacy. After playing the Flock ad on the big screen, Myrhen mentioned that although the ad comes across as 'pretty creepy' he still loved that an ad this subversive became that popular. He reiterated that the success of the ad lay in the fact that it was 'extremely human.' He also went on to celebrate a decade of 'Shot on iPhone' ads; he discussed the power of immersive videos; and he showcased the beauty of 'democratising hearing health' with the Airpods referring to the AirPods Pro 2, which now double up as a clinical-grade Hearing Aid. Commenting on the creativity that led to the success of each of these ideas, Myrhen added, 'It's the brain and the heart working together to create something special. No one would say that 40 seconds of muffled sound would become Apple's most watched holiday ad ever. But Google had the highest search volume for hearing aids in the history of Google search after this ad came out. This is making a difference, which is awesome.' Before concluding his keynote, Myrhen injected the brand, marketing and agency audience in Théâtre Claude Debussy at Cannes with a shot of positivity. 'I think the world needs more optimism,' he said, adding, 'We need to drive, with AI riding shotgun. The best marketing makes people feel and laugh and cry and wonder or fall in love with a person or an idea or a brand. We all want to feel. There's no technology, or algorithm, or artificial intelligence that works in our world that is more capable of making us truly 'feel' like the human mind does. I believe that this industry was built on creativity, and that's the game we can win. The human touch is our superpower, so use it. Use your sense of humour; use your incredible taste; use your subtle nuance; use your originality; use your brain and your heart to go out there and make something wonderful.' Responding to this stellar keynote, Ali Rez, Chief Creative Officer, Impact BBDO said, 'Great one to start the week. I think that set the tone for the rest of the week really well. The subject of the human touch, especially in an era where we're increasingly relying on machines was special. Also, the value of emotion and craft – and nobody does it better than Apple – will never be eroded.' View this post on Instagram A post shared by Campaign Middle East (@campaignmiddleeast) Through Day 1 at Cannes Lions, Campaign Middle East also interviewed: Aude Gandon, Global Chief Marketing Officer of Nestlé; Matt Manning, President, dentsu Sports International; Mike Khouri, CEO of Independent Agency of the Year-winning Tactical; and reported on a panel at the Stagwell Sports Beach with athlete Noah Lyles, currently the fastest man in the world and Olympic gold medalist; athlete Lauren Carlini, LOVB Madison Founding Athlete and Olympic medalist; Alexis Ohanian, Principal Owner, Los Angeles Golf Club & Angel City FC; and Glenn Cole, Founder and Chairman, 72andSunny. Day 1 Gallery CMOs in the spotlight: Mars, Amazon, Novartis Adapt or die: Why giants can't dance 1/5 Sir John Hegarty, Creative, The Business of Creativity Changing the Game: Building Brands in the Age of Experiences Tune into Campaign Middle East's live coverage across its social media channels to stay updated on the latest of what's happening at The Palais, the Rotonde, The Carlton Hotel and stay tuned for exciting events at the Campaign House Hilton Canopy.
Yahoo
26-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Morgan Stanley Trims Lionsgate (LION) Price Target Amid TV Production Challenges
On Monday, Morgan Stanley lowered its price target on Lionsgate Studios Corp. (NYSE:LION) to $8 from $8.50 but maintained an Overweight rating. This revision is attributed to updated estimates based on film timing and a challenging television production environment. A film crew shooting a scene in the studio for a new television series produced by the company. Lionsgate reported its FQ4 2024 results earlier on May 22 and logged $1.07 billion in revenue. While this was a 4.29% year-over-year decline, the quarterly television revenue reached $543 million, which was up 16% year-over-year. The Television Group is recovering from the industry strikes, with revenue growth fueled by an increase in episodic deliveries. Despite near-term hurdles, Morgan Stanley expresses confidence in accelerated growth for Lionsgate in FY2027 due to the return of key franchises and robust underlying demand for film content. The Television Group's strength is underscored by a series of key renewals, which highlight the popularity and success of its productions. Beyond these renewals, the Group is enriching its content pipeline with new premium properties. The recent separation of Lionsgate and Starz in May further empowers the Television Group with flexibility to navigate market dynamics and positions the studio at the forefront of the entertainment industry. While we acknowledge the potential of LION to grow, our conviction lies in the belief that some AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns and have limited downside risk. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than LION and that has 100x upside potential, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock. READ NEXT: and . Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
