Hey Flux fam!

Ah, it feels good to be back. Hope everyone's break was Flux-tastic, and you're all ready to get stuck into this year's business news.

Now, here's everything you need to know today - in under 3 minutes.

Today's big stories:

💊Stan launches a pay-per-view offering

🔄Crown Resorts gives in to Blackstone's juicy offer

🎬Virgin Galactic's share price cops a beating after some news

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Stan K.O's Foxtel with a new pay-per-view service and this is the real Turf War

Background: Stan launched in 2015 and already has more than 2 million subscribers. They're home to some ripper Aussie shows like Bump and The Tourist...and they've also got Stan Sport.

What happened: They've just launched a new pay-per-view platform called Stan Event, and they're kicking it off with a boxing event between former All Black and NRL star Sonny Bill Williams and ex-Sydney Swans AFL star Barry Hall (called Turf War).

What else: It's all part of Stan's plan to increase its subscriber numbers and steal audiences from Foxtel's Main Event, which, up until now, was Australia's only pay-per-view channel.

So what's the key learning?

💡Gone are the days of free-to-air broadcasters holding all the rights to big sporting events.

💡Think about it:

• Optus Sport has FIFA and EPL rights,
• Kayo has the AFL
• Stan Sport has the Rugby.

But with so much choice, it can be tough for providers to attract and retain new audiences.

💡Here's the kicker: you can only access Stans' pay-per-view Event if you already have a Stan membership. So, not only will it help Stan attract new audiences, it will also help increase revenue per subscriber.

FINALLY: Crown Resorts reckon Blackstone's price is right

Background: Crown Resorts are Australia's biggest casino group, and last year wasn't a great year for this crew. They faced a Royal Commission in New South Wales and Victoria. And the outcome wasn't good, team.

What happened: Last year, when Crown was on its knees, it received a takeover offer from US private equity firm Blackstone. This crew hold a majority stake in companies like Ancestry.com and Bumble.

What else: Before now, the offers were too low and Crown wasn't keen on them. But after Blackstone increased their bid to nearly $9 billion, Crown are now recommending shareholders accept the offer.

So what's the key learning?

💡When there are compliance failures within a business, someone always needs to take the fall. Usually, it's someone in the C-Suite (i.e. a CEO, CFO or COO).

💡During the 2018 Banking Royal Commission, many of the big banks came under fire...and as a result, 3 CEOs (and a Chairman) hit the road. But at Crown, the issue is a lot bigger than just one executive because the company's failures were found to be at board - and even ownership - level.

💡So, rather than change management, Crown has essentially needed to look to change owners. And Blackstone know a good opportunity when they see one, so they tried to pounce on Crown at a cheaper price.

Virgin Galactic's share price gets throttled back to earth after raising nearly $700 million in debt

Background: Virgin Galactic are one of Richard Branson's (aka the founder of Virgin Airlines) creations. Their whole mission is to eventually take passengers on trips to space.

What happened: Now, the company is issuing $700 million worth of debt in the form of convertible senior notes. The plan is to use this debt to accelerate the development of its spacecraft fleet.

What else: This is a bit of a 🚩🚩🚩🚩because it's already nearly two years past its commercial deadline. So, the news saw shares sink more than 16% at one point.

So what's the key learning?

💡A convertible note is a type of debt used by start-ups and high growth companies looking to raise cash from investors. This debt is unique because it turns into equity at a later point.

💡For early stage companies, it can be hard to determine their true value because there aren't data points around revenue, profit and long-term growth rates.

💡This 'conversion' happens when more information becomes available to establish a proper valuation of the company.