AMC Networks Inc (Pre-Reincorporation) (AMCX) 2024 Q2 法說會逐字稿

Good day everyone and thank you for standing by. Welcome to the AMC Networks second quarter 2024 earnings conference call. (Operator Instructions)

大家好，感謝您的支持。歡迎參加 AMC Networks 2024 年第二季財報電話會議。（操作員說明）

Now, I will pass the call over to Nick Seibert, Vice President, Corporate Development and Investor Relations. Please go ahead.

現在，我將電話轉給企業發展和投資者關係副總裁 Nick Seibert。請繼續。

Thank you. Good morning and welcome to the AMC Networks second quarter 2024 earnings conference call. Joining us this morning are Kristin Dolan, Chief Executive Officer; Patrick O’Connell, Chief Financial Officer; Kim Kelleher, Chief Commercial Officer; and Dan McDermott, President of Entertainment and AMC Studios. Today’s press release is available on our website at amcnetworks.com. We will begin with prepared remarks and then we’ll open the call for questions.

謝謝。早安，歡迎參加 AMC Networks 2024 年第二季財報電話會議。今天早上加入我們的是執行長 Kristin Dolan；派崔克‧奧康奈爾，財務長； Kim Kelleher，商務長；以及娛樂和 AM​​C 工作室總裁 Dan McDermott。今天的新聞稿可在我們的網站 amcnetworks.com 上取得。我們將從準備好的發言開始，然後開始提問。

Today’s call may include certain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Any such forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance or results and involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ. Please refer to AMC Networks' SEC filings for a discussion of risks and uncertainties. The company disclaims any obligation to update any forward-looking statements made on this call today. We will discuss certain non-GAAP financial measures. The required definitions and reconciliations can be found in today’s press release.

今天的電話會議可能包含 1995 年《私人證券訴訟改革法案》含義內的某些前瞻性陳述。任何此類前瞻性陳述都不是對未來績效或結果的保證，並且涉及可能導致實際結果不同的風險和不確定性。請參閱 AMC Networks 向 SEC 提交的文件，以了解有關風險和不確定性的討論。該公司不承擔更新今天本次電話會議中所做的任何前瞻性陳述的義務。我們將討論某些非公認會計準則財務指標。所需的定義和調節可以在今天的新聞稿中找到。

With that, I’d like to turn the call over to Kristin.

說到這裡，我想把電話轉給克莉絲汀。

Thank you, Nick, and thanks everyone for joining this morning. As we navigate a dynamic and complex media environment, we continue to find opportunities in a strategic plan built around programming, partnerships and profitability. Key to this plan is the creation and curation of celebrated films and series, and making them available to viewers wherever they might choose to watch.

謝謝你，尼克，也謝謝大家今天早上的加入。當我們在動態且複雜的媒體環境中航行時，我們不斷在圍繞節目、合作夥伴關係和盈利能力製定的戰略計劃中尋找機會。該計劃的關鍵是創作和策劃著名的電影和連續劇，並將其提供給觀眾選擇觀看的任何地方。

I’d like to note the significant progress we’ve made against one of our major strategic priorities, generating strong free cash flow. I’m pleased to report that just halfway through the year, we have already delivered $239 million of free cash flow, and we’re well on our way to achieving our full year guidance for this important metric. This is the result of our prudent and disciplined financial management of the business.

我想指出的是，我們在實現強勁的自由現金流這一主要戰略重點方面取得了重大進展。我很高興地向大家報告，今年剛剛過去一半，我們已經交付了 2.39 億美元的自由現金流，而且我們正在順利實現這一重要指標的全年指導。這是我們對企業進行審慎、嚴格的財務管理的結果。

Our overall strategic approach is evident in our new branded distribution partnership with Netflix, featuring prior seasons of 15 AMC shows on the number one streaming platform in the world. This non-exclusive licensing agreement will give the vast US audience of Netflix subscribers access to our high quality, critically acclaimed content, with the AMC brand clearly represented. We believe that finding a bigger stage for our shows will be a big win for our own platforms and existing distribution partners.

我們的整體策略方針在我們與 Netflix 的新品牌發行合作夥伴關係中得到了體現，該合作夥伴關係在全球第一的串流平台上播放了 15 部 AMC 劇集的前幾季。這項非獨家授權協議將使廣大美國 Netflix 訂閱用戶能夠存取我們廣受好評的高品質內容，並明確體現 AMC 品牌。我們相信，為我們的節目找到更大的舞台對於我們自己的平台和現有的發行合作夥伴來說將是一個巨大的勝利。

Years ago, Breaking Bad demonstrated the power of Netflix to help build awareness and interest in a series that was still launching new seasons on AMC. We’re looking forward to seeing our core franchises and most important current shows tap into this same powerful engine for audience expansion. Unique partnerships like this demonstrate that AMC Networks is an innovative and nimble company unencumbered by the constraints and limited options facing others in our industry. We have the freedom to work with anyone, and we have a continued commitment to nurturing strong brands and quality storytelling supported by a sustainable and predictable wholesale business model.

幾年前，《絕命毒師》展示了 Netflix 的力量，幫助人們提高人們對這部仍在 AMC 上推出新季的劇集的認知度和興趣。我們期待看到我們的核心系列和最重要的當前節目利用同樣強大的引擎來擴大觀眾。像這樣獨特的合作夥伴關係表明，AMC Networks 是一家創新且靈活的公司，不受我們行業其他公司面臨的限制和有限選擇的阻礙。我們可以自由地與任何人合作，並持續致力於在可持續和可預測的批發業務模式的支持下培育強大的品牌和高品質的故事。

In addition to new content partnerships, we’re growing distribution of our linear networks and AMC+ through new internet delivered skinny bundles. During the quarter, we expanded our partnership with Philo, which launched the ad-supported version of AMC+ in their new core package. And the response from consumers has been tremendous with consistent week-over-week subscriber gains since the launch in June. Additionally, all of our linear networks, including BBC News, are part of Optimum’s new Entertainment TV package, demonstrating the continued strength of our networks in this evolving environment.

除了新的內容合作夥伴關係之外，我們還透過新的網路交付瘦包來擴大線性網路和 AMC+ 的分銷。本季度，我們擴大了與 Philo 的合作關係，Philo 在其新的核心包中推出了 AMC+ 的廣告支援版本。自 6 月推出以來，消費者反應熱烈，訂戶數量逐週持續成長。此外，我們所有的線性網絡，包括 BBC 新聞，都是 Optimum 的新娛樂電視套餐的一部分，展示了我們的網絡在這個不斷變化的環境中的持續實力。

Viewership of our branded channels in the increasingly important FAST and AVOD categories continues to grow. We now have 18 FAST channels live on 11 platforms, totaling 114 active channel feeds to supplement our linear reach. We are also implementing our partnership strategy internationally, making our high quality content available to viewers through licensing and distribution arrangements with top tier partners in territories beyond our own footprint. We’ve recently expanded AMC’s brand presence in the UK through partnerships with Sky for The Walking Dead Universe, the BBC for our Anne Rice Immortal Universe and ITV’s ad-supported streaming service, ITVX, which carries several of our branded AVOD offerings.

我們的品牌頻道在日益重要的 FAST 和 AVOD 類別中的收視率持續成長。現在，我們在 11 個平台上擁有 18 個 FAST 頻道，總計 114 個活躍頻道來源，以補充我們的線性覆蓋範圍。我們也在國際上實施我們的合作夥伴策略，透過與我們以外地區的頂級合作夥伴的許可和發行安排，向觀眾提供我們的高品質內容。我們最近透過與 Sky 的《陰屍路》宇宙、BBC 的《安妮賴斯不朽宇宙》以及 ITV 的廣告支援串流服務 ITVX 合作，擴大了 AMC 在英國的品牌影響力。

In keeping with our wholesale approach, our belief in the power of partnerships and desire for financial predictability, we recently entered into an agreement with Comcast Technology Solutions to manage most of our content distribution domestically and around the world. With CTS as our comprehensive back-end solutions provider, we can leverage Comcast’s scale and best-in-class technology to deliver our content much more effectively and economically than we can on our own.

為了與我們的批發方式、我們對合作夥伴關係的力量的信念以及對財務可預測性的渴望保持一致，我們最近與康卡斯特技術解決方案公司簽訂了一項協議，以管理我們在國內和世界各地的大部分內容分發。透過 CTS 作為我們全面的後端解決方案供應商，我們可以利用康卡斯特的規模和一流的技術來比我們自己更有效、更經濟地提供內容。

In terms of the advertising upfront, I’m pleased with our performance as the market continues to transform. We’ve been able to leverage our well defined and fan-focused networks to achieve favorable pricing and volume across linear and digital distribution. We continue to put high quality shows on linear television, particularly AMC on Sundays and We TV on Fridays, creating value for our advertising and affiliate partners. These examples underscore our position as a sought-after and desirable business partner across the industry, enabling us to expand and deepen our distribution and advertising alliances.

就前期廣告而言，隨著市場的不斷轉變，我對我們的表現感到滿意。我們已經能夠利用我們定義明確且以粉絲為中心的網絡，在線上性和數位發行中實現有利的定價和銷售。我們繼續在線性電視上播放高品質節目，特別是周日的 AMC 和週五的 We TV，為我們的廣告和聯盟合作夥伴創造價值。這些例子強調了我們作為整個行業廣受歡迎和理想的業務合作夥伴的地位，使我們能夠擴大和深化我們的分銷和廣告聯盟。

Our content drove several operational and programming highlights in the quarter, which I’ll share before I turn the call over to Patrick for a more detailed look at our financials.

我們的內容推動了本季度的幾個營運和規劃亮點，在我將電話轉給帕特里克以更詳細地了解我們的財務狀況之前，我將分享這些亮點。

The strong performances of The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live, and the second season of Anne Rice’s Interview with the Vampire, both of which received enormous critical acclaim, drove AMC+ to achieve all-time highs in viewership this quarter. The penultimate episode of Interview, a trial with a devastating outcome, has become a fan favorite and instant classic. We have renewed Anne Rice’s Interview with the Vampire and The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon for third seasons. Both series were part of our very loud and exciting presence at Comic-Con in late July. We were thrilled with the response from our engaged fans at this event, which is an important annual focal point for our company and programming franchises.

《陰屍路：活生生的人》和安妮賴斯的《夜訪吸血鬼》第二季的出色表現都獲得了廣泛好評，推動 AMC+ 本季的收視率創下歷史新高。《採訪》的倒數第二集是一場具有毀滅性結果的審判，已成為粉絲的最愛和即時經典。我們續訂了安妮賴斯的《夜訪吸血鬼》和《陰屍路：達裡爾迪克森》第三季。這兩個系列都是我們在 7 月下旬動漫展上的精彩亮相的一部分。我們對本次活動中忠實粉絲的反應感到非常興奮，這是我們公司和節目特許經營商的重要年度焦點。

In other programming news, we recently greenlit a third Anne Rice series focused on a secretive society called The Talamasca, and announced a new series from AMC Studios set inside the bubble of Silicon Valley from Jonathan Glatzer, a sought-after writer who previously worked on Better Call Saul and Succession.

在其他節目新聞中，我們最近批准了第三部安妮·賴斯系列，重點關註一個名為“塔拉馬斯卡”的秘密社團，並宣布AMC 工作室推出以矽谷泡沫為背景的新系列，由喬納森·格拉澤(Jonathan Glatzer) 創作，他是一位廣受歡迎的作家，曾在《塔拉馬斯卡》中工作過。

Horror films from IFC and Shudder were also represented at Comic-Con. I would like to recognize the incredible year we are having with films in the horror genre, with titles like Late Night with the Devil, In a Violent Nature, V/H/S/85, and others, we have dominated top 10 lists and further solidified these brands as being synonymous with the very best in horror, both at the box office and on streaming. This level of fan credibility and community is the foundation upon which all our targeted services are built, and demonstrates our strength and unique value proposition. It is worth noting that in the second quarter, both Acorn TV and our HIDIVE anime service implemented price increases with an insignificant impact on churn due to our highly engaged and brand loyal subscribers.

IFC 和 Shudder 的恐怖片也參加了動漫展。我想表彰我們在恐怖類型電影方面取得的令人難以置信的一年，我們的電影有《深夜與魔鬼》、《暴力的本質》、《V/H/S/85》等，我們在前10名名單中佔據主導地位，進一步鞏固了這些品牌在票房和串流媒體上作為最佳恐怖片代名詞的地位。這種程度的粉絲信譽和社群是我們所有有針對性的服務的基礎，並展示了我們的實力和獨特的價值主張。值得注意的是，在第二季度，Acorn TV 和我們的 HIDIVE 動畫服務都實施了價格上漲，由於我們的訂閱者高度參與和品牌忠誠，因此對客戶流失的影響微乎其微。

On We TV, our new music competition show Deb’s House was a strong performer for both the linear network and our ALLBLK streaming service. The strength of originals such as Love After Lockup franchise, Deb’s House and Mama June have solidified We TV’s standing as the number one cable network on Friday nights for black adults, 25 to 54, and black women, 25 to 54. We’re also very excited to see the return of The Braxtons, one of the founding families of reality television, with a new series premiering tonight.

在 We TV 上，我們的新音樂競賽節目《Deb’s House》在線性網路和 ALLBLK 串流服務中均表現出色。《Love After Lockup》系列、《Deb's House》和《Mama June》等原創作品的實力鞏固了We TV 作為25 至54 歲黑人成年人和25 至54 歲黑人女性週五晚上第一有線電視網絡的地位。我們也非常高興看到電視真人秀創始家族之一布拉克斯頓家族的回歸，並在今晚首播了一部新劇集。

In addition to supporting our great content, we continue to drive profitability by refining our organization and operations. Under the leadership of Stephanie Mitchko, our EVP of Global Media Operations and Technology, we’re in the midst of a global transformation to streamline functions and modernize content distribution across all platforms, both domestically and internationally, which we realized through our new agreement with Comcast Technology Solutions. We’ve also reorganized our programming and scheduling teams into a consolidated unit across all brands and platforms. Under our CMO, Kim Granito, we’ve optimized and integrated marketing, media, branding, research and our award-winning Content Room efforts.

除了支持我們精彩的內容之外，我們還繼續透過完善我們的組織和營運來提高獲利能力。在我們的全球媒體營運和技術執行副總裁 Stephanie Mitchko 的領導下，我們正在進行全球轉型，以精簡職能並實現國內和國際所有平台的內容分發現代化，這是我們透過新協議實現的康卡斯特技術解決方案。我們也將節目和日程安排團隊重組為跨所有品牌和平台的統一部門。在我們的行銷長 Kim Granito 的領導下，我們優化並整合了行銷、媒體、品牌、研究和屢獲殊榮的內容室工作。

As noted earlier, it is a dynamic and complex time in media. Even as much larger players are facing existential challenges, AMC Networks is successfully pursuing a strategy built on our proven ability to make great shows to meet viewers wherever they are, and to find new ways to support and monetize our content in a fragmented world.

如前所述，對媒體來說，這是一個充滿活力且複雜的時代。儘管更大的參與者面臨著生存挑戰，AMC Networks 仍在成功地推行一項戰略，該戰略建立在我們經過驗證的能力之上，即製作精彩的節目來滿足無論身在何處的觀眾，並在碎片化的世界中尋找新的方式來支持我們的內容並從中獲利。

With that, I’ll turn the call over to Patrick.

這樣，我會將電話轉給派崔克。

Thank you, Kristin.

謝謝你，克里斯汀。

As the new media landscape continues to develop, we remain consistent in our strategic and financial priorities. We are leveraging our endemic strength as an innovative and nimble premium programmer, while employing disciplined financial management as the industry continues to evolve. We’ve also made significant progress in optimizing our investments, driving free cash flow and preserving the strength of our balance sheet. We remain on-track to achieve our financial outlook for the year. In just the first six months of 2024, we have already generated more free cash flow than we did in all of 2023, setting us up to achieve our outlook of the year-over-year free cash flow growth for 2024, and approximately $0.5 billion of cumulative free cash flow by the end of 2025.

隨著新媒體格局的不斷發展，我們的策略和財務優先事項保持一致。我們正在利用我們作為創新和靈活的高級程式設計師的特有優勢，同時隨著行業的不斷發展而採用嚴格的財務管理。我們在優化投資、推動自由現金流和維持資產負債表實力方面也取得了重大進展。我們仍有望實現今年的財務前景。僅在 2024 年的前六個月，我們就產生了比 2023 年全年更多的自由現金流，這使我們能夠實現 2024 年自由現金流同比增長的預期，即約 5 億美元到2025 年底累計自由現金流。

On to our second quarter consolidated results. Consolidated revenue decreased 8% to $626 million in the quarter, excluding prior period revenue from 25/7 Media and the return of rights from Hulu, and the current period revenue related to a one-time adjustment payment at AMCNI, second quarter revenue decreased 4%. Adjusted operating income was $153 million, representing a 24% margin, and we generated $95 million of free cash flow in the quarter.

關於我們第二季的綜合業績。本季合併收入下降 8%，至 6.26 億美元，不包括 25/7 Media 的前期收入和 Hulu 的轉播權返還，以及與 AMCNI 一次性調整付款相關的本期收入，第二季收入下降 4 %。調整後營業收入為 1.53 億美元，利潤率為 24%，本季我們產生了 9,500 萬美元的自由現金流。

Moving on to our segment level financials. Domestic Operations revenue decreased 7% to $538 million. Excluding revenue related to the return of rights from Hulu in the prior-year period, Domestic Operations revenue decreased 4%. Subscription revenue of $323 million decreased 3% due to a 12% decline in affiliate revenue, which is primarily driven by a decrease in linear subscribers, and was partially offset by streaming revenue growth of 9%, which was driven by both subscribers and [rate]. At quarter end, we had 11.6 million streaming subs, and we are beginning to see the benefits of recent price increases at our targeted services, Acorn and HIDIVE flow through the P&L.

延續我們的部門層面的財務狀況。國內營運收入下降 7% 至 5.38 億美元。剔除去年同期與Hulu版權歸還相關的收入，國內營運收入下降了4%。訂閱收入為3.23 億美元，下降3%，原因是聯屬收入下降12%，這主要是由於線性訂閱者的減少造成的，但部分被串流媒體收入增長9% 所抵消，而串流媒體收入增長則由訂閱者和訂閱者共同推動。[速度]。截至季末，我們擁有 1,160 萬名串流媒體訂閱者，我們開始在損益表中看到我們的目標服務 Acorn 和 HIDIVE 近期價格上漲的好處。

Content licensing revenue was $67 million, driven by the timing and availability of deliveries in the quarter. As you may recall, in the second quarter of last year, we negotiated the return of certain rights with Hulu, which resulted in a pull-forward of approximately $20 million of revenue. Excluding this, licensing revenue increased 10% year-over-year. Our premium programming remains sought after, and we are seeing strength in licensing as evidenced by the recent domestic and international activity that Kristin detailed earlier.

受本季交付時間和可用性的推動，內容授權收入為 6,700 萬美元。您可能還記得，去年第二季度，我們與 Hulu 就歸還某些權利進行了談判，這導致了大約 2000 萬美元的收入提前。排除這一點，授權收入年增 10%。我們的優質節目仍然受到追捧，我們看到了許可方面的實力，克里斯汀之前詳細介紹的最近的國內和國際活動證明了這一點。

Advertising revenue of $149 million improved sequentially versus the first quarter. On a year-over-year basis, advertising revenue declined 11%, this was primarily due to lower linear ratings, and was partially offset by continued digital growth. Domestic Operations AOI was $155 million for the quarter, with a healthy margin of 29%. The year-over-year decrease in AOI was largely driven by the revenue decline in the quarter, which was partially offset by continued cost discipline.

廣告收入較第一季季增 1.49 億美元。廣告收入較去年同期下降 11%，這主要是由於線性收視率下降，但部分被持續的數位成長所抵消。本季國內營運 AOI 為 1.55 億美元，利潤率為 29%。AOI 年比下降主要是由於本季度收入下降造成的，但持續的成本控制部分抵消了這一下降。

I’ll now briefly touch on our International segment. Second quarter International revenue was $90 million and included $13 million of advertising revenue related to a one-time adjustment payment. Excluding 25/7 Media and the adjustment payment, International revenues decreased 4%. On an apples-to-apples basis, second quarter advertising revenues grew 18%, largely due to new streaming offerings, including our new AVOD offerings on ITVX in the UK. International AOI was $29 million for the quarter. Excluding the adjustment payment, International AOI was $16 million with a margin of 21%.

現在我將簡要地談談我們的國際部分。第二季國際收入為 9,000 萬美元，其中包括與一次性調整付款相關的 1,300 萬美元廣告收入。不包括 25/7 Media 和調整付款，國際收入下降 4%。從同類數據來看，第二季廣告收入成長了 18%，這主要歸功於新的串流媒體產品，包括我們在英國 ITVX 上推出的新 AVOD 產品。本季國際 AOI 為 2900 萬美元。不包括調整付款，國際 AOI 為 1,600 萬美元，利潤率為 21%。

Moving to the balance sheet, we continue to believe that the proactive and prudent management of our balance sheet affords us valuable flexibility, as well as the ability to fully focus on the evolution of our business as the new video landscape continues to take shape. In addition to the significant refinancing activity that we discussed in detail on our last call, more recently in June, we completed an offering of [$144 million at 4.25%] convertible senior notes in 2029 as we sought to capitalize on the volatility in our stock price and add additional liquidity to our balance sheet.

轉向資產負債表，我們仍然相信，對資產負債表的主動和審慎管理為我們提供了寶貴的靈活性，以及​​隨著新的視訊格局不斷形成而完全專注於我們業務發展的能力。除了我們在上次電話會議上詳細討論的重大再融資活動之外，最近在6 月，我們還於2029 年完成了[1.44 億美元，利率4.25%] 可轉換優先票據的發行，因為我們尋求利用我們股票的波動性價格並為我們的資產負債表增加額外的流動性。

We ended the second quarter with net debt of approximately $1.6 billion and a consolidated net leverage ratio of 2.8 times. As a reminder, we have meaningfully extended our maturity profile and pushed out all bond maturities to 2029. We ended the quarter with approximately $1 billion of total liquidity, including more than $800 million of cash on the balance sheet, and our undrawn $175 million revolver. We continue to appreciate the flexibility and optionality that our cash position affords us. We believe our capital structure will continue to present attractive opportunities for us to deploy cash in accretive manner, benefiting both the equity and the credit overtime. On that note, in the second quarter, we repurchased $15 million principal amount of our 4.25% senior notes due 2029 for approximately $10 million, capturing approximately $5 million of discount.

第二季末，我們的淨債務約為 16 億美元，綜合淨槓桿率為 2.8 倍。謹此提醒，我們已有意義地延長了債券的期限，並將所有債券的期限推遲至 2029 年。本季結束時，我們的流動資金總額約為 10 億美元，其中包括資產負債表上超過 8 億美元的現金，以及未提取的 1.75 億美元左輪手槍。我們仍然欣賞我們的現金狀況為我們提供的靈活性和選擇性。我們相信，我們的資本結構將繼續為我們提供有吸引力的機會，以增值的方式配置現金，從而使股本和信貸同時受益。為此，我們在第二季以約 1,000 萬美元的價格回購了 2029 年到期的 4.25% 優先票據本金 1,500 萬美元，獲得了約 500 萬美元的折扣。

On the topic of capital allocation, our philosophy remains prudent and opportunistic. First, we look to support the business by creating and acquiring compelling programming that resonates with our audiences, while maintaining healthy levels of profitability and cash flow generation. Second, we look to improve our balance sheet by reducing gross debt and optimizing our capital structure. Third, M&A and share repurchases or dividends remain further down our current priority list.

在資本配置方面，我們的理念仍然是審慎和機會主義。首先，我們希望透過製作和獲取與觀眾產生共鳴的引人注目的節目來支持業務，同時保持健康的盈利水平和現金流生成。其次，我們希望透過減少總債務和優化資本結構來改善資產負債表。第三，併購和股票回購或股息仍然在我們目前的優先事項清單中排在後面。

Moving on to our outlook. We are pleased to reiterate our outlook today, starting with free cash flow. We continue to expect grow free cash flow year-over-year in 2024, and by 2025, we expect to have generated cumulative free cash flow of approximately $0.5 billion. Regarding revenue, we continue to expect total revenue of approximately $2.4 billion for the full year. Notwithstanding that in terms of our initial expectations for the full year, as discussed on our fourth quarter call regarding the specific revenue lines that underpin our full year revenue outlook, we are seeing some shifting in the composition of our full year revenue.

繼續我們的展望。我們今天很高興重申我們的展望，首先是自由現金流。我們繼續預計 2024 年自由現金流將年增，到 2025 年，我們預計將產生約 5 億美元的累計自由現金流。關於收入，我們繼續預計全年總收入約為 24 億美元。儘管就我們對全年的初步預期而言，正如我們在第四季度電話會議上討論的有關支撐我們全年收入前景的具體收入線的那樣，我們仍然看到全年收入的構成發生了一些變化。

Moving to AOI. For 2024, we continue to expect consolidated AOI of $550 million to $575 million. Continued streaming and digital advertising growth, as well as prudent expense management, remain a focus despite continued revenue headwinds in the business. Our content investments are at appropriate levels to best support our business and drive free cash flow. For the full year 2024, we anticipate that cash programming spend to be approximately $1 billion, and [net] programming amortization will be similar to 2023 levels.

轉向 AOI。2024 年，我們繼續預期合併 AOI 為 5.5 億至 5.75 億美元。儘管業務收入持續面臨阻力，但串流媒體和數位廣告的持續成長以及審慎的費用管理仍然是焦點。我們的內容投資處於適當的水平，可以最好地支持我們的業務並推動自由現金流。對於 2024 年全年，我們預計現金編程支出約為 10 億美元，[淨]編程攤銷將與 2023 年的水平相似。

I’ll now dive a little deeper into some of the nuances related to programming amortization. In 2024, we continue to experience comparably lower levels of amortization expense, the result of strategic programming reassessments that occurred at the end of 2022. Additionally, carryover amortization of prior year programming investments continued to flow through the P&L. Given these dynamics, as we look to next year, we anticipate a year-over-year increase in programming amortization expense for 2025. It is important to note that this is non-cash and does not impact our free cash flow expectation for next year, and we remain highly confident in our ability to achieve cumulative free cash flow across 2024 and 2025 of approximately $0.5 billion.

現在我將更深入地探討與程式設計攤銷相關的一些細微差別。2024 年，我們的攤銷費用水準持續相對較低，這是 2022 年底進行的策略規劃重新評估的結果。此外，上一年節目投資的結轉攤銷繼續計入損益表。鑑於這些動態，展望明年，我們預計 2025 年的編程攤銷費用將年增。值得注意的是，這是非現金的，不會影響我們明年的自由現金流預期，我們仍然對我們在 2024 年和 2025 年實現約 5 億美元的累計自由現金流的能力充滿信心。

I’ll close with what I’ve said in the past. AMC Networks continues to employ a back-to-basics approach that emphasizes broad distribution of our content and brands across platforms and prioritizes near-term monetization, and at the same time, takes advantage of our unique position as a nimble and innovative premium programmer. We’ll continue to allocate our capital wisely to ensure we maintain a healthy balance sheet, remain extremely disciplined on expenses, and balance appropriate levels of programming investment against available monetization opportunities.

我將以我過去所說的話作為結束語。AMC Networks 繼續採用返璞歸真的方法，強調我們的內容和品牌在各個平台上的廣泛分發，並優先考慮短期盈利，同時，利用我們作為靈活和創新的優質程式設計師的獨特地位。我們將繼續明智地分配資本，以確保維持健康的資產負債表，嚴格控制開支，並平衡適當水平的規劃投資與可用的貨幣化機會。

With that, operator, please open the line for questions

那麼，接線員，請開通提問線路

Thank you. (Operator Instructions) Thomas Yeh, Morgan Stanley.

謝謝。（操作員指示）Thomas Yeh，摩根士丹利。

Thanks so much. Good morning. Kristin, I wanted to dig in a little bit on this Netflix deal. How does it look in terms of the outline of what you’re expecting it to do relative to the experiments that you had run in the past with, say, for example, HBO with the AMC+ Picks? And has the experimentation evolved in any way in terms of what you’re hoping to get out of it and what you’re hoping to see?

非常感謝。早安.克里斯汀，我想深入了解 Netflix 的這筆交易。相對於您過去進行的實驗（例如使用 AMC+ Picks 的 HBO），從您期望它做的事情的大綱來看，它看起來怎麼樣？就您希望從中得到什麼以及您希望看到什麼而言，實驗是否以任何方式發展？

Sure. Good morning, Thomas. We’re super excited about this deal. A lot of people do talk about the Breaking Bad effect and how a decade or so ago, the exposure that Breaking Bad got on Netflix really helped break that series out into something that’s now kind of part of our culture. And so with the Netflix deal, we’re putting our content non-exclusively prior seasons on a very big stage in the US.

當然。早上好，湯瑪斯。我們對這筆交易感到非常興奮。許多人確實談論過《絕命毒師》的影響，以及大約十年前，《絕命毒師》在 Netflix 上的曝光如何真正幫助該劇發展成為現在我們文化的一部分。因此，透過與 Netflix 的合作，我們將把之前幾季的內容放到美國的一個非常大的舞台上。

And these shows not only will get a lot of exposure to the 125 million Netflix subscribers in the US, but for our distribution partners who all have Netflix partnerships themselves, it’s beneficial to them as well, right. So, if you think about, Roku has a Netflix button on their remote control, right? Comcast and others have Netflix partnerships and bundles within their distribution ecosystem. So, for us having this exposure we think will really drive as it did with Max, people back to AMC and AMC+ for the new seasons that are premiering in 2025 and 2026 of these franchises.

這些節目不僅會在美國 1.25 億 Netflix 訂戶中獲得大量曝光，而且對於我們自己也擁有 Netflix 合作夥伴關係的發行合作夥伴來說，這對他們也有利，對吧。所以，如果你想一想，Roku 的遙控器上有一個 Netflix 按鈕，對吧？康卡斯特和其他公司在其發行生態系統中擁有 Netflix 合作夥伴關係和捆綁服務。因此，對我們來說，這次曝光將真正推動人們回到 AMC 和 AMC+，觀看這些系列將於 2025 年和 2026 年首播的新劇集。

So, it’s exciting for us. I think Netflix is also equally excited about it. So, August 19, it all shows up onscreen; so we encourage everybody to check it out and to -- if there’s anything you haven’t consumed yet of our newer franchises, watch seasons one and in some cases, seasons two, and then roll on back to us when we get into the fall and into early next year for the premiers of the new seasons.

所以，這對我們來說是令人興奮的。我想 Netflix 也同樣對此感到興奮。所以，8 月 19 日，這一切都出現在螢幕上；因此，我們鼓勵每個人都去看看，如果我們的新系列中有任何你還沒有消費過的東西，請觀看第一季，在某些情況下，觀看第二季，然後當我們更新時再回到我們這裡。

Got it. Understood. Makes sense. Patrick, I wanted to ask about your comment also on the year-over-year increase expected in programming amortization next year. You’ve been running at about $1 billion of cash spends on programming for this year, and I think last year as well. What’s driving that bump in cadence? Are you expected to kind of hold the $1 billion zone in terms of what’s the right investment level for the future of the business?

知道了。明白了。有道理。派崔克，我想問您對明年程式設計攤銷預期同比增長的評論。今年，你們在節目製作上的現金支出約為 10 億美元，我想去年也是如此。是什麼推動了節奏的提升？您是否預計持有 10 億美元區域，以了解企業未來的正確投資水準？

Yes. Hi Thomas, thanks for the question. So, the answer to your first question is, and just to clarify, the $1 billion is a cash number, right. So that $1 billion of cash programming investment is what we’re currently, kind of, investing this year. But let me flip back to the amortization question, which I think is what you’re really asking here. So obviously, programming is our largest and most strategic investment that we make in this business, and so, we’re always continuously calibrating it against the available monetization opportunities, as I said in my remarks. In the years passed, cash programming has floated up to $1.3 billion, almost up to $1.4 billion, certainly much higher than the $1 billion that we’re spending this year.

是的。嗨托馬斯，謝謝你的提問。所以，為了澄清一下，你的第一個問題的答案是，10 億美元是一個現金數字，對吧。因此，我們今年目前的投資額為 10 億美元。但讓我回到攤銷問題，我認為這才是您真正要問的問題。顯然，程式設計是我們在這項業務中所做的最大、最具策略性的投資，因此，正如我在演講中所說，我們總是根據可用的貨幣化機會不斷調整它。在過去的幾年裡，現金計畫已達到 13 億美元，幾乎達到 14 億美元，當然遠高於我們今年支出的 10 億美元。

And in 2022, you’re aware we took some decisive steps to right-size our programming levels. AMC has always been about quality, not quantity. I think that’s kind of resonated in the market. I think we’re taking very much back to basics approach there. We also reduced the level of programming on some of our services in 2023 as well. And so obviously that has a flow through effect in terms of the amortization that gets realized in the income statement.

到 2022 年，您知道我們採取了一些決定性措施來調整我們的程式設計等級。AMC 一直注重質量，而不是數量。我認為這在市場上引起了共鳴。我認為我們正在很大程度上回歸基本方法。2023 年，我們也降低了部分服務的程式設計水準。顯然，這對損益表中實現的攤銷具有流動效應。

So taken together, those two steps, the write-downs at the end of 2022 and the reduction in sort of programming volume across some of our services in 2023 had the effect of reducing programming amortization in 2023 and 2024. But the reality is, we have yet to fully amortize the pre-2023 kind of higher levels of investment, what we call kind of carryover [amort] that kind of flows through the system over 3 to 4 years. So, this is going to have the effect of increasing year-over-year amortization from '24 into '25, just given the amount of puts and takes, so we don’t think this was sort of fully kind of recognized in the markets. We wanted to call it out.

因此，綜合起來，這兩個步驟，即 2022 年底的減記和 2023 年部分服務節目量的減少，起到了減少 2023 年和 2024 年節目攤銷的作用。但現實是，我們尚未完全攤銷 2023 年之前較高水準的投資，也就是我們所謂的結轉[攤銷]，這種資金會在 3 到 4 年內流經系統。因此，這將產生從 24 年到 25 年逐年攤銷增加的效果，僅考慮看跌期權和認沽期權的數量，因此我們認為這在某種程度上並未得到充分認可。我們想大聲疾呼。

But obviously, the most important aspect here is that our cash programming investment for 2024 remains roughly $1 billion, that’s our current runrate. And we also have clear line of sight towards the roughly $0.5 billion of free cash flow that we’ll generate between this year and the next. So, this was just an effort to, sort of like, help people understand some of the moving pieces because there is sometimes some confusion between amortization and cash program investment.

但顯然，這裡最重要的方面是我們 2024 年的現金規劃投資仍約為 10 億美元，這是我們目前的運作率。我們對今年和明年之間將產生的約 5 億美元的自由現金流也有清晰的認識。所以，這只是一種努力，有點像是幫助人們理解一些變化的部分，因為有時攤銷和現金計畫投資之間會有一些混淆。

Can I just add to that? Because Dan’s sitting right here, and I need to congratulate him and his folks for -- even with the reduction in expense since I’ve joined the company, the quality of what we’re putting on the street continues to be stellar. And we talked about a little bit in the script, but anybody that’s watched the current season of Interview with the Vampire, episode five, or if you’ve watched Daryl Dixon, which was shot in France, like the quality of what we’re producing ourselves and then on the film side, the value of the acquisitions that our film team is doing continue to really build for us, the franchises, the content and the asset value because we’re doing great stuff, but we’re doing it in a very cost conscious way. So, the reduction in expense is important, but we’ve really, I think, sustained, if not, enhanced the quality of what we’re putting out in our products across all brands,

我可以補充一下嗎？因為丹就坐在這裡，我需要向他和他的家人表示祝賀——儘管自從我加入公司以來費用有所減少，但我們投放到市場上的商品的質量仍然在不斷提高。我們在劇本中討論了一些內容，但是任何看過當前一季《夜訪吸血鬼》第五集的人，或者如果你看過在法國拍攝的達裡爾·迪克森，都會喜歡《夜訪吸血鬼》的品質。一種非常注重成本的方式來做這件事。因此，減少開支很重要，但我認為，我們確實持續（如果不是的話）提高了我們在所有品牌產品中推出的產品的質量，

Understood. It’s the lifetime value of the asset in terms of -- the [useful lifetime] you’re using to amortize over multiple years, has that changed? Are you kind of continuing to assess that multi-year amortization life?

明白了。它是資產的生命週期價值，即您用於多年攤銷的[有用生命週期]，這有變化嗎？您是否會繼續評估多年攤銷壽命？

Two pieces to that. So, one from an [accounting] perspective, no, there’s been no changes in the amortization policy or the accounting sort of around it. But to Kristin’s point in terms of building asset value in the studio, and the visibility we have into content licensing revenue, this year and next, and the $225 million that’s sort of out there in terms of guidance for this year, which I think we feel really good about; that certainly has a much longer tail. And so, we continue to build asset value in the studio as a result of -- us, one at the current sort of volumes of programming, at the levels of quality that Kristin mentioned as well. There’s been sort of, I would say, almost a return to quality in the licensing market, and we’re seeing a lot of strength there. So, we feel good about that long tail value.

兩塊。因此，從[會計]的角度來看，攤銷政策或與之相關的會計沒有任何變化。但就 Kristin 的觀點而言，在工作室中建立資產價值，以及我們今年和明年的內容授權收入的可見性，以及 2.25 億美元，這在指導方面是存在的我認為我們感覺非常好；那肯定有更長的尾巴。因此，我們繼續在工作室中建立資產價值，因為我們，在目前的節目數量上，在克里斯汀也提到的品質水準上。我想說，授權市場的品質幾乎有所回歸，而且我們在那裡看到了巨大的實力。因此，我們對長尾價值感到滿意。

David Joyce, Seaport Research Partners.

大衛喬伊斯，海港研究夥伴。

A couple things. First, on the streaming services move over the backend to Comcast Technology Solutions. Is that going to provide any lift to AOI or were those already self-funding before you did that, and this just makes it even more efficient? It is the first question.

有幾件事。首先，串流媒體服務的後端轉移到康卡斯特技術解決方案。這是否會為 AOI 帶來任何提升，或者在您這樣做之前那些機構已經自籌資金，而這只會使其更加高效？這是第一個問題。

Yes. Hey David, it’s Patrick. I’ll take that first one. Listen, from a financial perspective, as is our reputation, we are continuously looking for efficiencies across the business, and so it just made a ton of sense for us as this arrangement allows us to avail ourselves of Comcast Technology Services -- sorry, Solutions, scale, infrastructure and architecture. From a timing point of view, we just signed this. This is going to be a long-term deal. There will be no impact in 2024. There will be a modest amount of onboarding and maybe some duplicative costs into 2025, but with clear paybacks over kind of 12 to 24 months.

是的。嘿大衛，我是派崔克。我會選擇第一個。聽著，從財務角度來看，正如我們的聲譽一樣，我們不斷尋求整個業務的效率，因此這對我們來說意義重大，因為這種安排使我們能夠利用康卡斯特技術服務- 抱歉，解決方案、規模、基礎設施和架構。從時間角度來看，我們剛剛簽署了這項協議。這將是一項長期協議。2024年不會有影響。到 2025 年，將會有少量的入職培訓，可能還會產生一些重複成本，但在 12 至 24 個月內就會有明顯的回報。

Lastly, I think it’s worth noting in terms of the economics of this deal, that it’s both cost and capital efficient. So when we look at the NPV of this, which is clearly positive, we think about it on an operating free cash flow basis, so AOI less CapEx, and we’ll get savings across both buckets. And so, we feel really good about this. Net-net, it’s not just about cost savings but also cost certainty, which I think Kristin outlined here. So, more to come here in the future, but again, think about it in terms of both cost and capital efficiency going forward.

最後，我認為就這筆交易的經濟效益而言值得注意的是，它既具有成本效益，又具有資本效率。因此，當我們查看其淨現值（這顯然是積極的）時，我們會在運營自由現金流的基礎上進行考慮，因此 AOI 減去資本支出，我們將在這兩個方面都獲得節省。因此，我們對此感覺非常好。Net-net，這不僅涉及節省成本，還涉及成本確定性，我認為克里斯汀在這裡概述了這一點。因此，未來還會有更多的事情發生，但請再次從未來的成本和資本效率來考慮。

Okay, that’s good to hear. Secondly, on the Netflix deal, revenues would be recognized when you deliver episodes of your content. Are you making everything available at once or is it going to be kind of spread out for a while?

好的，很高興聽到這個消息。其次，在與 Netflix 的交易中，收入將在您交付內容劇集時確認。您是立即提供所有內容還是分散一段時間？

Yes. So, 13 of the 15 shows will be available on August 19 -- 13 of the 15 series, and then we have two more premiering in the first quarter of 2025. And as far as revenue recognition…

是的。因此，15 部劇中的 13 部將於 8 月 19 日上映——15 個系列中的 13 部，然後我們將在 2025 年第一季再推出兩部。至於收入確認…

Yes, as far as revenue recognition, actually, the full amounts going to be recognized at 2024 because the availability date will be just ahead of Q1 at the end of Q4. So, this revenue will be realized this year. And I would say -- just David, kind of more broadly on content licensing, we’re seeing strength in this market, both domestically with the Netflix deal, but also internationally with the new deal we cut with The Walking Dead titles with Sky. And so, I know I mentioned in my commentary, some revenue uplift there.

是的，就收入確認而言，實際上，全額將在 2024 年確認，因為可用日期將在第四季末的第一季之前。因此，這筆收入將在今年實現。我想說的是，大衛，更廣泛地說，在內容授權方面，我們看到了這個市場的實力，無論是在國內與Netflix 的交易，還是在國際上與Sky 就《行屍走肉》達成的新協議。因此，我知道我在評論中提到了收入的一些增長。

And this is -- to Kristin’s point earlier about just the quality of content that we continue to produce, and there being a little bit of -- sorry, quality, and they’re being sort of flight to that quality. And given how much we produce for our schedule, we’re seeing demand across not just AMC content, but also the program we produce for Acorn, HIDIVE, et cetera. And as the linear universe continues to shrink, the value of that license content in our broader ecosystem outside AMC or AMC+ continues to increase.

這就是——克里斯汀之前所說的，關於我們繼續製作的內容的質量，並且有一點——抱歉，質量，而他們正在某種程度地追求這種質量。考慮到我們按計劃製作的內容，我們不僅看到 AMC 內容的需求，還看到我們為 Acorn、HIDIVE 等製作的節目的需求。隨著線性宇宙的不斷縮小，AMC 或 AMC+ 之外更廣泛的生態系統中的授權內容的價值不斷增加。

And so, as we’ve said before, we’re exploring ways to capture additional value, both in terms of the hard dollars we get in licensing revenue, but also in terms of what I call sort of soft dollars, this is Kristin’s point about people coming back into the AMC ecosystem to watch, kind of, current season episodes, et cetera. So, we think with this new model, with the non-exclusive constructs, with meaningful brand support in some cases, it’s sort of a win-win, both hard dollar licensing revenue upfront and hopefully some soft dollar economics on the backend. So, net-net, this is just another way we’re exercising some of our creative kind of financial models to really sweat these programming assets as best we can.

因此，正如我們之前所說，我們正在探索獲取額外價值的方法，既包括我們在許可收入中獲得的硬美元，也包括我所說的軟美元，這就是克里斯汀（Kristin）關於人們回到AMC 生態系統觀看當前季節劇集等的觀點。因此，我們認為，透過這種新模式，透過非排他性的結構，在某些情況下提供有意義的品牌支持，這是一種雙贏，既可以預先獲得硬美元許可收入，又希望能在後端獲得一些軟美元經濟效益。所以，網絡網絡，這只是我們運用一些創造性的財務模型的另一種方式，以盡最大努力真正利用這些程式資產。

Thank you. (Operator Instructions) Steven Cahall, Wells Fargo.

謝謝。（操作員說明）Steven Cahall，富國銀行。

Thank you, Patrick. First, I just wanted to ask you about your comment on revenue shifting around a little bit within the guidance for the year. My best guess is this means that your licensing revenue is a little stronger, maybe after the Netflix deal announcement and the Sky deal announcement. I’m wondering if that implies with some other revenue is a little weaker. So, I’d love to just understand the mix and how we might think about that carrying forward to revenue in 2025?

謝謝你，派崔克。首先，我只是想問一下您對今年收入指引略有變化的看法。我最好的猜測是，這意味著您的授權收入會更強一點，也許是在 Netflix 交易宣布和 Sky 交易宣布之後。我想知道這是否意味著其他一些收入會稍微弱一些。那麼，我很想了解這種組合，以及我們如何考慮將其結轉到 2025 年的收入？

And then to follow-up on the content amortization, that’s very helpful. Thank you for taking us through that. I don’t think that you report amortization, I think it’s mixed in with some other expenses. So, I was just wondering if you could give us a ballpark for what amortization is running at in 2024 or at least how big the step-up is from a dollar perspective in 2025 as we kind of think about penciling out the impact of your strong free cash flow generation, vis-à-vis some of these AOI dynamics to get to net leverage? Thank you.

然後跟進內容攤銷，非常有幫助。謝謝你帶我們經歷了這一切。我認為您沒有報告攤銷，我認為它與其他一些費用混合在一起。所以，我只是想知道您能否給我們一個大概的數據，說明2024 年的攤銷額是多少，或者至少從美元的角度來看2025 年的攤銷幅度有多大，因為我們正在考慮勾畫出您的強勁影響力。謝謝。

Great, okay. So, I’ll take those in order. First, on just kind of revenue composition and the changing nature of the business here. I mean, listen, just to take a step back, we are operating in a very challenging and dynamic environment. We’re currently in the state of what I would characterize as sort of disequilibrium between the linear and streaming economic regimes, right? It’s making kind of forecasting a bit more challenging. The benefit we have at AMC is that we’re small, nimble, creative, and we’ve got a really good kind of value equation in the marketplace, whether it’s kind of on the wholesale or on the retail side. So that gives us a lot of kind of creative avenues to deal make, frankly, to put a point on it.

太好了，好吧。那麼，我將按順序處理這些內容。首先，關於收入組成和業務性質的變化。我的意思是，聽著，退後一步，我們正在一個非常具有挑戰性和動態的環境中運作。我們目前處於線性經濟體制和流動經濟體制之間的某種不平衡狀態，對嗎？這使得預測變得更具挑戰性。AMC 的優勢在於我們規模小、靈活、有創意，而且我們在市場上擁有非常好的價值等式，無論是批發還是零售方面。坦白說，這為我們提供了許多創造性的交易途徑來表達這一點。

And so as I mentioned before, we’re seeing like real positive yield on the licensing side. We’re seeing momentum across our streaming products. We’ve got some pricing power there; others have noted that as well. And we’ve got ways to sort of cut deals that may, frankly, drive additional advertising or affiliate revenue depending on how they’re cut. And as you see the Netflix deal, there continues to be a really robust market for the premium scripted programming that we produce.

正如我之前提到的，我們在許可方面看到了真正的正收益。我們看到我們的串流媒體產品勢頭強勁。我們在那裡有一定的定價權；其他人也注意到了這一點。我們有辦法削減交易，坦白說，這些交易可能會帶來額外的廣告或聯營收入，具體取決於削減的方式。正如您所看到的 Netflix 交易，我們製作的優質腳本節目仍然有一個非常強勁的市場。

So, sort of -- you take it all together, the three pillars of our earnings guidance: the $2.4 billion in revenue; the $550 million to $575 million of AOI; and the year-over-year free cash flow growth, as well as the $500 million -- roughly, $500 million of cumulative free cash flow between this year and next, is still kind of fully intact. The pieces may move around a little bit here or there, but I think you’re reading it right in that we are seeing strength in the licensing market, and that’s offsetting some of -- maybe some weakness in some of the other markets. But there’s still kind of movement because we’re small, nimble, and some of this creative deal making may wind up dropping revenue in sort of other places over time.

所以，你把所有這些放在一起，就是我們獲利指引的三大支柱：24 億美元的收入；24 億美元的收入； 5.5 億至 5.75 億美元的 AOI；自由現金流的逐年增長，以及今年和明年之間 5 億美元的累計自由現金流，大約是 5 億美元，仍然完好無損。這些內容可能會在這裡或那裡發生一些變化，但我認為你沒有讀錯，因為我們看到了授權市場的優勢，而這正在抵消一些——也許是某些領域的一些弱點。但仍然存在某種變化，因為我們規模小、靈活，隨著時間的推移，一些創造性的交易可能最終會導致其他地方的收入下降。

So, net-net, it’s just a reflection of kind of our unique value proposition in the market, and ways we can kind of creatively monetize our content. So, that’s on the revenue side.

因此，net-net，它只是我們在市場上獨特價值主張的反映，以及我們創造性地將我們的內容貨幣化的方式。所以，這是收入方面的。

In terms of the amortization side, here your question in terms of the nature of the disclosure there, you should think about the amortization this year as being kind of roughly in line with the cash content spend, sort of $1 billion-ish. I won’t sort of go into further detail than that. And I think what I’ll do is, we will revisit the 2025 number when we give guidance then.

就攤銷而言，您的問題是關於披露的性質，您應該考慮今年的攤銷與現金內容支出大致一致，約為 10 億美元左右。我不會透露更多細節。我認為我要做的是，當我們給予指導時，我們將重新審視 2025 年的數字。

So, I’m not going to get into any sort of forward-looking statements other than to say, obviously, we are sort of expecting some growth here, given all the dynamics that I outlined in terms of just the volume of programming, as well as the cadence. And frankly, what show gets aired when, and at what cost, et cetera. There’s just a lot of moving pieces there, so I’m not going to get into the details other than say, it will kind of grow year-over-year, [which we just] want to call that out so people kind of have that in their models. But thanks for the question.

因此，我不會發表任何前瞻性聲明，只是說，顯然，考慮到我在編程量方面概述的所有動態，我們預計這裡會有一些增長，以及節奏。坦白說，什麼節目何時播出、以什麼成本播出等等。那裡有很多移動的部分，所以我不會討論細節，只是說，它會逐年增長，[我們只是]想指出這一點，所以人們的模型中就有這樣的東西。但謝謝你的提問。

And maybe just a quick follow-up. I know you had a tough licensing comp in 2023, it sounds like it will be really strong with this stuff in 2024. Should we expect then, because the revenue isn’t amortized for licensing and it’s booked in the period. Is that probably going to be a tough comp in 2025 given the nature of kind of these landmark deals?

也許只是快速跟進。我知道你們在 2023 年有一個艱難的許可競爭，聽起來這些東西在 2024 年會非常強大。我們是否應該預料到這一點，因為收入沒有為許可進行攤銷，並且是在該期間內登記的。考慮到這些里程碑式交易的性質，到 2025 年這可能會是一個艱難的競爭嗎？

It’s tough to say, honestly. I mean, like, given our current level of production and the strength of seeing in the market, it feels good right now. We feel really good about 2025, it’s probably going to be north of that. We’ll see how it goes from there.

老實說，這很難說。我的意思是，考慮到我們目前的生產水平和市場的實力，現在感覺很好。我們對 2025 年感覺非常好，很可能會超出這個水平。我們將看看接下來的情況如何。

Thank you. As I see no further questions in queue, I will turn the call back to management for closing remarks.

謝謝。由於我發現隊列中沒有其他問題，我會將電話轉回給管理層以進行結束語。

Thanks for joining us today. Have a good weekend.

感謝您今天加入我們。有一個美好的周末。

And thank you all for participating in today's conference. You may now disconnect.

感謝大家參加今天的會議。您現在可以斷開連線。