Starz Distribution

Background

Starz Distribution (formerly IDT Entertainment and Starz Media) was the media distribution division of Starz Inc. The company was formed in 2003 under the name "IDT Entertainment", which was a division of telecommunications company IDT Corporation. On May 16, 2006, IDT announced that they were selling the company to John Malone's Liberty Media Corporation, which holds minority ownership in media conglomerates like TimeWarner and Viacom. The acquisition was fully completed on September 29, and at that point IDT Entertainment was renamed to "Starz Media". The company fully owns Anchor Bay Entertainment (distribution of DVDs and videos), which was also owned by IDT at the time, and Manga Entertainment (distribution of anime). Starz Media was later spun off as an independent entity on January 11, 2013. At that point the company was renamed to "Starz Distribution". Lionsgate currently holds an estimated 13.5% share in Starz, though on June 30, 2016, Lionsgate reached an agreement with Starz Inc. (Starz Distribution's parent company) to acquire the company's remaining shares for $4.4 billion. The deal closed on December 8, 2016.

1st Logo (August 28, 2006-February 21, 2010)

Nickname: "The Starz Star"

Logo: On a white background, we see a light blue Starz star trademark, as seen on the Starz opener from 2005 to 2008, with the words "STARZ Media" on the right of the screen.

FX/SFX: None.

Music/Sounds: The ending theme of the show.

Availability: Only seen on Wow! Wow! Wubbzy! on Nick Jr. When it was aired on Nickelodeon, it kept using this logo throughout its second season instead of using the 3rd logo. Video on-demand prints of Wow! Wow! Wubbzy! plaster this logo with the Starz Digital logo.

Editor's Note: None.

2nd Logo (2006-2008)

Nickname: "The Starz Star II"

Logo: This is an alternate version of the previous logo. It's the same as before, but on a black background.

Variants:

Sometimes, this logo would have a copyright stamp below or on the lower right-hand corner of the logo.
On Hellboy Animated: Sword of Storms, "in association with" would appear under the name.

FX/SFX: The simple fade in and fade out of the logo.

Music/Sounds: Same as the first logo.

Availability: Common. Seen on Wubbzy's Big Movie!, TV documentaries, most owned films, including Hellboy Animated and the beginning of the second season of Masters of Horror. Video on-demand prints of these shows and movies plaster this logo with the Starz Digital logo.

Editor's Note: None.

3rd Logo (September 2, 2008-2016)

Provided ID could not be validated.

Logo: On a black background, the then-current Starz logo zooms and stops in the middle. Over it is a greenish-bluish-whitish haze. Below the Starz logo is the word MEDIA.

Variants:

Later variant: There is nothing below the "Starz" logo.
There is a short version of this logo.
On the computer game Righteous Kill, the logo was still.
On Starz 30 Second Bunnies, "DIGITAL MEDIA" is underneath the Starz logo.

FX/SFX: The text zooming back.

Music/Sounds: A rock theme. Otherwise, the end-title theme from any show.

Availability: Common. Seen on Z Rock on IFC and occasionally on Audience Network, Starz 30 Second Bunnies on Sony Movie Channel, and the short version is seen starting on season 2 of Wow! Wow! Wubbzy! on Nick Jr. Season 2 episodes of Wow! Wow! Wubbzy! when it was aired on Nickelodeon kept the first logo. The version with the word "MEDIA" below was seen on the first two season 2 Wow! Wow! Wubbzy! episodes "Who's That Girl?/Wubbzy's Big Move". It's occasionally seen on several films by Film Roman. It was seen in still variant on the game Righteous Kill for Starz Interactive. The later variant was also used as a network ID. Once again, video on-demand prints of these shows and movies plaster this logo with the Starz Digital logo.

Editor's Note: This logo has more effort put into it compared to the last two.

4th Logo (2008-2016)

Logo: It's the print (black & white) version of the usual Starz logo in corporate font, without bylines. Above it is the text "are you ready?".

FX/SFX: None.

Music/Sounds: None.

Availability: Much like a cap-license logo used only in games. It was seen on Righteous Kill: Revenge of the Poet Killer.

Editor's Note: None.

5th Logo (2016-)

TBA!