Chicken Soup for the Soul Entertainment, a media company that owns Crackle, Redbox and its namesake streaming service, posted a a big loss in the second quarter.
The company posted a quarterly loss of $43.7 million, or $1.50 a share, more than double the year-ago loss of $20.8 million, or $1.39 a share (when the total number of shares were half the amount). Revenue more than doubled to $79.9 million because year-ago results didn’t account for revenue from Redbox, which it acquired on August 11, 2022.
The company cited a shaky media environment, which has been beset by cratering ad revenue and the uncertainty from the Hollywood writer and actors strikes, for its weaker performance. It’s the latest media company to report poor results as a result of those challenges.
Chairman and CEO William J. Rouhana touted the company’s deal with TikTok to bring content — and ads — to digital displays at Redbox kiosks as one potential growth driver.
Rouhana said the company was holding a strategic review to evaluate its opportunities, business-speak for looking at potentially selling itself.