For Immediate Release – October 24, 2019
IMPACT Wrestling to Premiere on Fight Network UK Wednesdays at 9:00 p.m.
Flagship Weekly Wrestling Series ‘IMPACT!’ Debuts in New Timeslot on Oct. 30
TORONTO | LONDON – IMPACT Wrestling, a subsidiary of Anthem Sports & Entertainment and one of the world’s largest professional wrestling organizations, announced today that its flagship weekly two-hour program IMPACT! will move to Wednesday nights at 9:00 p.m. on Fight Network UK, available on Sky Channel 192 and Freesat Channel 161, beginning on Oct. 30.In addition to the broadcast premiere Wednesdays on Fight Network UK, which takes over Showcase TV every night at 9:00 p.m., IMPACT! will continue to air across the U.K. on 5STAR on Friday nights.The first episode in the new time slot will feature the aftermath of IMPACT’s biggest event of the year, Bound For Glory 2019 (BFG), kicking off the new era with a World Title Cage Match as Champion Brian Cage faces ruthless rival Sami Callihan in a rematch of their high-octane BFG headlining bout.In more fallout from Bound For Glory, the star-studded episode includes UFC Hall of Famer Ken Shamrock addressing his future and wrestling legend Rob Van Dam explaining his heinous his actions at BFG after turning on his tag team partner Rhino. Plus, Knockouts Champion Taya Valkyrie continues her record-breaking reign, leading Kiera Hogan and Madison Rayne in a 6-woman tag team match against Rosemary, Jordynne Grace and Alexia Nicole. Newly crowned X-Division Champion Ace Austin faces off with BFG Gauntlet winner Eddie Edwards in a non-title Street Fight, while Josh Alexander, one half of the World Tag Team Champions The North, kicks off the AXS TV era as he takes on Japanese strong style legend Naomichi Marufuji.IMPACT Wrestling is renowned for its world-class roster of athletes, led by IMPACT World Champion Brian Cage and UFC Hall of Famer Ken Shamrock, legends Rob Van Dam and Rhino, third-generation superstar Tessa Blanchard, high-flying X-Division stars such as Rich Swann and TJP, former NFL player Moose, Sami Callihan, Eddie Edwards and Michael Elgin, plus the Knockouts, including Champion Taya Valkyrie, Rosemary, Tenille Dashwood and others.IMPACT Wrestling content is also available in the U.K. on IMPACT Plus, the multi-platform digital subscription video-on-demand (VOD) and live event service featuring instant access to the 3,000-plus hour library spanning over 17 years, live monthly specials, groundbreaking original series, reality shows and documentaries, exclusive events from international promotional partners and historical content from old territories.Since its inception in 2002 IMPACT! has been a leading destination for professional wrestling fans, televised globally in 120 countries, while growing its popularity and reach on YouTube, Twitch, Pluto and social media platforms.
For more information, visit www.impactwrestling.com.
For Immediate Release – October 10, 2019
 IMPACT Wrestling Moving to Tuesdays on Fight Network in Canada and International Markets
Flagship Weekly Wrestling Series ‘IMPACT!’ to Air on Tuesday Nights at 8:00 p.m. ET
TORONTO – IMPACT Wrestling, a subsidiary of Anthem Sports & Entertainment and one of the world’s largest professional wrestling organizations, announced today that its flagship weekly two-hour program IMPACT! will move to Tuesday nights at 8:00 p.m. ET on Fight Network in Canada and on its international feed, including Portugal and Greece, starting on Oct. 22.IMPACT! will also air on GameTV in Canada on Saturdays at 7:00 p.m. ET.The first episode in the new time slot will feature a special entitled THIS IS IMPACT!, which will include non-televised matches from BOUND FOR GLORY, the biggest pay-per-view event of the year, plus profiles on IMPACT Wrestling’s biggest stars.IMPACT Wrestling is renowned for its world-class roster of athletes, led by IMPACT World Champion Brian Cage and UFC Hall of Famer Ken Shamrock, legends Rob Van Dam and Rhino, third-generation superstar Tessa Blanchard, high-flying X-Division stars such as Rich Swann and TJP, former NFL player Moose, Sami Callihan, Eddie Edwards and Michael Elgin, plus the Knockouts, including Champion Taya Valkyrie, Rosemary, Tenille Dashwood and others.Since its inception in 2002 IMPACT! has been a leading destination for professional wrestling fans, televised globally in 120 countries, while growing its popularity and reach on YouTube, Twitch, Pluto and social media platforms.
For more information, visit www.impactwrestling.com and www.fightnetwork.com.
For Immediate Release – September 12, 2019
IMPACT Wrestling Announces Move to AXS TV
TORONTO – IMPACT Wrestling, a subsidiary of Anthem Sports & Entertainment and one of the world’s largest professional wrestling organizations, announced today it has entered into an agreement to broadcast its flagship weekly two-hour program IMPACT! nationally across the U.S. on AXS TV, a leading music, sports, entertainment and lifestyle channel in which Anthem Sports & Entertainment recently acquired a majority interest.Immediately following IMPACT Wrestling’s biggest pay-per-view event of the year Bound For Glory, which takes place on Oct. 20 in Chicago, IMPACT! will begin airing weekly on AXS TV. The program will continue to simulcast globally on IMPACT Wrestling’s official Twitch channel.“IMPACT Wrestling is a perfect fit for AXS TV’s slate of live sporting events and combat sports content,” said Ed Nordholm, Chief Corporate Officer of Anthem Sports & Entertainment and President of IMPACT Wrestling. “The newest addition to our growing portfolio of media assets, AXS TV’s audience perfectly aligns with our passionate IMPACT Wrestling fan base, and this move increases the reach for our weekly program with distribution in over 50 million homes. We could not ask for a better home and are excited by the opportunities to work with Mark Cuban and Anschutz Entertainment Group, our partners in AXS TV, to bolster IMPACT Wrestling’s presence in the market, as we continue to deliver action-packed and innovative weekly programming featuring some of the most athletic and gifted stars in the professional wrestling industry.”Showcasing top professional wrestling stars such as IMPACT World Champion Brian Cage, plus Rob Van Dam, Rhino, Moose, Eddie Edwards, Sami Callihan, Rich Swann, Michael Elgin, the high-flying X-Division and the Knockouts, including Gail Kim, Tessa Blanchard, Taya Valkyrie, Tenille Dashwood, Rosemary, Madison Rayne and Su Yung, IMPACT! has been a leading destination for professional wrestling fans, televised globally in 120 countries since its inception in 2002, while growing its popularity and reach on YouTube, Twitch, Pluto and social media platforms.For more information, visit www.impactwrestling.com and www.axs.tv.For More Information Contact:
Ariel ShnererSr. Director, Programming, Global Distribution & CommunicationsAnthem Sports & Entertainment Corp.ashnerer@anthemse.com
Sean GrabinPublicist
AXS TV
sgrabin@axs.tvAbout IMPACT WrestlingIMPACT Wrestling is one of the world’s largest wrestling entertainment properties, creating more than 300 hours of original content annually across television and other digital platforms. IMPACT Wrestling specializes in creating premium content, events, products, merchandise and music, as well as the management and promotion of professional wrestlers. Its highly successful flagship, IMPACT!, is broadcast globally, including AXS TV and Twitch in the United States, Fight Network and GameTV in Canada, Sony ESPN in India, 5STAR and Fight Network in the United Kingdom, SuperSport in Africa, and MVStv in Mexico. IMPACT Wrestling is a subsidiary of Anthem Sports & Entertainment Corp.For more information visit www.impactwrestling.com.
ANTHEM SPORTS & ENTERTAINMENT TO PARTNER WITH AXS TV FOUNDER MARK CUBAN; ACQUIRES MAJORITY INTEREST IN AXS TV AND HDNET MOVIES NETWORKS
AEG REMAINS ACTIVE PARTNER
STEVE HARVEY GLOBAL JOINS ANTHEM AS INVESTOR AND STRATEGIC PARTNER
Deal Expands Anthem’s Reach to Nearly 150 Million Households, Creating a Major New Force in Entertainment, Music and Sports Programming
TORONTO | DALLAS | LOS ANGELES - September 9, 2019 – Anthem Sports & Entertainment, a global multiplatform media company, today announced it has acquired a majority interest in HDNet LLC, parent of the widely distributed U.S. television networks AXS TV and HDNet Movies, and will assume operating management of the two popular channels that cater to music, sports, entertainment and lifestyle audiences. The deal also includes AXS TV’s extensive library of owned programming, including wrestling, MMA and entertainment content.
The two networks add significantly to Anthem’s rapidly growing portfolio of content, which is currently available in 120 countries and includes diverse and popular sports and entertainment programming targeted to passionate communities with a focus on millennial viewers.
“We are very excited to add these two successful channels to our portfolio,” said Leonard Asper, CEO, Anthem Sports & Entertainment. “Anthem was founded with a mission to deliver compelling, targeted content and experiences to passionate fans globally on the platform of their choice. The music, sports and entertainment communities served by these channels are a natural extension and perfect complement to our existing properties. The addition of AXS TV and HDNet Movies will allow for increased content ownership, digital expansion and even more compelling programming for consumers and our distribution partners.”
Mark Cuban and AEG will continue to participate as equity partners, and AEG Global Partnerships, AEG’s advertising and sponsorship sales unit, will continue to support the channels in conjunction with Anthem’s sales team.
Joining as an investor is entertainer, producer and businessman Steve Harvey, who will also enter into a strategic agreement for content development and promotion of Anthem’s portfolio of channels. Steve Harvey Global will have a seat on the board of directors of Anthem.
Anthem’s board of directors will also include Ted Goldthorpe, head of BC Partners Credit, a lead financier on the acquisition; Rick Ehrman, a former senior executive at Univision and NBC Universal; Robert Foster, founder and CEO of Capital Canada; Scott Honour, founding principal of Northern Pacific Group; and Loudon Owen, chairman and CEO of DLT Labs.
“Anthem’s combination of targeted brands, enthusiastic audiences, operational expertise, international footprint and vision makes them an ideal partner to take AXS TV and HDNet Movies to their next levels,” Mark Cuban said. “Given Anthem’s portfolio of premium content and complementary programming networks, we could not ask for a better home, and we are looking forward to the results we will collectively generate for this new partnership.”
“My team and I see great opportunity in Anthem,” Steve Harvey said. “They have incredible shows, experiential entertainment, and a huge reach. We look forward to collaborating with Anthem on content development that will surprise and delight this newly expanded audience.”
AXS TV and HDNet Movies will continue operating from their existing facilities in Denver and Los Angeles, and the combined company will include Anthem’s playout and production center in Toronto and production facilities in Nashville and Europe.
“Anthem Sports & Entertainment brings a legacy of delivering boundary-breaking programming that perfectly aligns with our programming strategy and global concert venue and music festival assets,” said Charles Hirschhorn, President, AEG TV. “The combination of these television networks with Anthem creates global video destinations for ‘must see’ event programming."
With this transaction, Anthem channels are now estimated to reach nearly 150 million global TV homes, including more than 110 million MVPD-served TV households in the U.S. and Canada. In addition, Anthem’s proprietary content is distributed to more than 160 million global TV homes through licensing agreements with some of the world’s premier networks. Anthem’s networks and content also are available on nearly every major streaming service and digital platforms.
Anthem has offices and studios in New York, Toronto, Los Angeles and Nashville, and in Europe. Its portfolio includes:
- IMPACT Wrestling, one of the world’s largest wrestling entertainment properties, creating more than 300 hours of original content annually across television and other digital platforms. IMPACT Wrestling specializes in premium content, pay-per-view events, products and merchandise, as well as the management, promotion and training of professional wrestlers;
- IMPACT Plus, a multi-platform mobile app and digital subscription video-on-demand platform and one of the newest additions to the Anthem family of services, featuring live monthly premium network specials, instant access to the 3,000-plus hour IMPACT Wrestling library, groundbreaking original series, reality shows, documentaries, and exclusive events from international partners;
- Fight Network, the world’s premier combat sports channel, dedicated to complete coverage of combat sports including fights, fight news and the fight lifestyle as well as mixed martial arts, boxing, kickboxing, professional wrestling, traditional martial arts and more. Fight Network produces and owns its own library of fight themed documentaries and interview programs and is delivered to more than 43 million TV homes in the U.S., Canada and more than 15 other countries;
- GameTV, featuring game show formats and programming, both current and past; reality, drama and documentary series; feature films; sports-based games including esports, poker, and card-based games; and live sporting events – all delivered to more than 8 million television homes throughout Canada. GameTV also features online cash and social gaming through igamestv.com;
- Game+, a cutting edge, millennial-targeted sports and entertainment channel, featuring sports-wagering programs, esports events, news and information, fantasy sports programming, high stakes poker, and other action-driven shows and lifestyle programming. Game+ is distributed in more than 1 million MVPD TV homes in Canada and the US; and
- Pursuit Channel, one of the top outdoor channels in the U.S, offering outdoor enthusiasts diverse programming from calm freshwater fishing to fast-paced deer and waterfowl hunting. Pursuit Channel is available to more than 35 million TV homes in the US served by cable, satellite and IPTV. Through its app PursuitUP the channel is also available on OTT streaming services.
AXS TV is a leading music, entertainment and lifestyle channel, including live concerts and sports events, originally founded as HDNET by Mark Cuban in 2001. The channel was rebranded in 2012 after partnering with AEG, leading to additional music content development. The network’s current programming lineup features live concerts and events, music-themed information and reality programming, live wrestling and MMA, and off-network runs of popular music-themed programming. The network is distributed to more than 50 million homes.
AEG includes AXS TV as part of its own sponsorship portfolio, bringing many AEG partners to the network.
HDNet Movies, available in approximately 12 million U.S. homes, features theatrically released films and documentaries presented in high definition, including a variety of iconic classics and award winners spanning the 1950s to 2000s.
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