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Studio Lionsgate is purchasing Starz, the TV network best known for hits like 鈥淥utlander" and "Power."

Lionsgate is best known in film for such franchises as the 鈥淗unger Games鈥� series, the 鈥淒ivergent鈥� movies, and the 鈥淓xpendables鈥� films.聽

Like many other cable networks, Starz began moving forward with original TV series in the last several years, creating such shows as the 鈥淪partacus鈥� TV series.

The TV network debuted the historical drama 鈥淥utlander鈥� in 2014, which has gone on to set ratings records for the network. The show 鈥淧ower,鈥� which centers on a man (Omari Hardwick) who is in charge of a nightclub but also has another identity as a well-known drug dealer, has also experienced good numbers for viewers.聽

Meanwhile, Lionsgate is far from a stranger to TV. Hit shows like 鈥淥range Is the New Black鈥� and 鈥淢ad Men鈥� have aired on TV networks like Netflix and AMC, respectively, but Lionsgate produced them and helped bring them to the screen.

It is also currently producing such programs as 鈥淕reenleaf鈥� on OWN, Hulu鈥檚 鈥淐asual,鈥� and ABC鈥檚 鈥淣ashville鈥� (which was recently canceled but which will return on CMT).聽

Some industry watchers interpret Lionsgate purchasing Starz as the duo's attempt to take on popular cable networks such as HBO and Showtime even more than Starz already has.

鈥淎dding a cable channel could help provide scale at a time when other studios have been swallowed up by bigger entertainment giants, while providing ballast for a sometimes volatile movie business,鈥� . 鈥淲ithin the competitive space of original programming, Starz has moved from an also-ran to a formidable player in just the last few years.鈥� They note that Starz will soon start airing new shows on Sundays, a time when HBO and Showtime often air new episodes of their programs as well.

Meanwhile, wrote, 鈥淪tarz will give Lionsgate a strong platform to launch series that can be sold around the world. Starz is at the outset of expanding its reach internationally.鈥�