Bell Media partners with Lionsgate to bring Starz to Canada

Bill Brioux, The Canadian Press

J.K. Simmons, star of the new Starz series "Counterpart," poses at the premiere of the series at the Directors Guild of America on Wednesday, Jan. 10, 2018, in Los Angeles. , THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP-Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP

Bell Media has signed a multi-year content deal with Starz, the No. 2-ranked premium paid U.S. television platform.

As part of the deal, the channel The Movie Network Encore will get Starz branding next year.

Individual Starz shows have aired in Canada for years, including "Outlander," which will remain on the Corus-owned specialty channel W in Canada, and "Black Sails."

The brand new Starz spy thriller "Counterpart" launched Sunday on CraveTV. Starz has more on the way, including a new adaptation of "Howards End."

Negotiations had been going on for about a year, with officials at Lionsgate -- an international entertainment corporation with roots in Vancouver -- brokering the deal.

Lionsgate acquired Starz in 2016 for a reported US$4.4 billion.

BNN is a division of Bell Media, which is owned by BCE.