Lionsgate Entertainment is getting into the games business

Lionsgate Entertainment, the media conglomerate responsible for TV series like Mad Men and films like Dredd, is launching a new game-focused division headed by entertainment industry veteran Peter Levin. Levin will serve as president of Lionsgate's new Interactive Ventures and Games division, which is broadly -- and vaguely -- tasked with investing in existing game and interactive entertainment projects, supporting new game projects and figuring out a way to release games based on Lionsgate's stable of entertainment franchises. "Gaming has become one of the most explosive growth areas of the content business," stated Lionsgate CEO Jon Feltheimer in a press release announcing the new venture. "Peter's mandate will be to build a portfolio of premium digital properties as we expand our leadership in films and television programming into digital content as well." No further details were given, though the fact that Lionsgate's announcement took pains to point out that consumer spending on mobile and social games has increased dramatically in the past year suggests that Levin will be looking to that market, rather than more traditional PC and console games. Gamasutra has reached out to Lionsgate representatives for further comment on the company's new venture.