22 May Cinedigm Rebrands As Cineverse To Reflect Streaming Focus; CEO Chris McGurk And Chief Strategy Officer Erick Opeka Offer Update On Turnaround Progress [Deadline]
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May 22, 2023 | As its stock price continues to languish, Cinedigm is following through on its stated plan to rebrand the company, emerging with the new name Cineverse in a bid to convey a long-under-way pivot to streaming.
A decade ago, Cineverse was primarily known as a purveyor of cinema equipment and technology. Under CEO Chris McGurk, the former MGM, Universal and Disney exec who took the helm in 2011, the company has steadily moved toward streaming. Today, it has a library of more than 60,000 film and TV titles and operates subscription and ad-supported services like flagship Cineverse as well as Fandor, the Dove Channel and CONtv.
“Today we officially turn the page to become Cineverse, a pure-play business in the exciting and dynamic streaming content and technology space,” McGurk said in the official announcement. Chief Strategy Officer and President Erick Opeka said it “made sense to consolidate our overall corporate identity under one brand.”
In an interview with Deadline, the execs conceded that their embrace of streaming comes as Wall Street has punished many streaming entities and media companies trying to build a bigger digital presence. Citing recent cutbacks by Disney, Warner Bros Discovery and other companies, who have removed dozens of film and TV titles from their platforms, Opeka said Cineverse aims to deliver to consumers “content that they often cannot find elsewhere as other major streaming services cut back.”