AMC Networks, the company behind such cable channel brands as AMC, IFC and Sundance TV, as well as such streaming services as AMC+, Acorn TV and horror streamer Shudder, reported a 17 percent drop in third-quarter U.S. advertising revenue to $110 million on Friday. It cited “linear ratings declines and lower marketplace pricing.”
U.S. subscription revenue of $316 million were unchanged from the prior-year period “as growth in streaming revenues offset declines in affiliate revenues,” the firm said. Streaming revenue jumped 14 percent to $174 million, “primarily due to the impact of price increases across our services.”
The company, led by CEO Kristin Dolan, added streaming subscribers year-over-year to end the latest quarter that ended on Sept. 30 with a total of 10.4 million subs, compared with 10.4 million as of the end of June and compared with 10.2 million as of the end of September 2024.
For the year-ago quarter, AMC Networks had at the time actually posted 11.8 million streaming subs. However, earlier this year, the company had said it would change the way it calculated streaming subscribers, with its numbers now reflecting subscribers who pay a fee for one of their services, rather than those who receive access to one of the streaming services through a video package that also includes linear programming.
The company previously forecast that streaming revenue would be its largest single revenue component this year, with acceleration in quarterly streaming revenue growth as the year progresses. Under Dolan, AMC Networks has focused its strategy on programming, partnerships, and profitability.
With its second-quarter earnings report, the firm had increased its free cash flow outlook for the full year 2025 to approximately $250 million, citing “healthy” trends.
Among the original series that the company’s services featured in the third quarter were the likes of season 3 of The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon, The Madame Blanc Mysteries on Acorn TV, Nautilus on AMC, and The Luckiest Man in America and Kidnapped on AMC+.
Said Dolan on Friday: “Our performance in the third quarter marks a key milestone in our transition from a cable networks business to a global streaming and technology focused content company. Streaming revenue growth accelerated and will represent our largest single source of domestic revenue this year.”
She concluded: “We have built the components of a modern media business that is nimble, independent and well suited to today’s environment and whatever comes next.”
