ViacomCBS set March 4 as the launch date for Paramount Plus, the company’s effort to join the consumer-driven streaming revolution alongside its larger rivals.
The subscription service will be launched on that date in the United States and Latin America. ViacomCBS will host a virtual investor presentation on February 24 to detail the company’s evolving streaming strategy, as well as the fourth quarter and full-year financial results for 2020.
Paramount Plus will be a new brand of CBS All Access, the subscription service launched in 2014 that combined live streaming of CBS network programming through its more than 150 local affiliates, including NFL games, with an original series menu , catch-view and library programs. With the relaunch, Paramount Plus will also feature dedicated hubs for ViacomCBS ‘main cable properties, including Nickelodeon, MTV, BET and Comedy Central, for a total of around 30,000 titles. Currently, CBS All Access is believed to have about 8 to 9 million subscribers.
ViacomCBS CEO Bob Bakish has made building All Access a top priority since Viacom’s December 2019 merger with CBS Corp. The investor presentation on February 24 will talk about ViacomCBS ‘position with a big footprint in the ad-supported streaming arena with the growing TV Pluto, as well as its subscription bids with Paramount Plus and the independent Showtime app. Paramount Plus will also have an ad-supported component via CBS and CBS News live broadcasts, sports highlights and thematic channels from the “Entertainment Tonight” brand that complement the Eye mothership on CBS All Access.
ViacomCBS does not have a balance that corresponds to Netflix or Disney regarding spending on streaming content. Bakish’s movement, as articulated in December, is to build “a linked ecosystem of differentiated offers in free and paid streaming”.
The lack of a clear streaming plan from ViacomCBS to Wall Street was an obstacle to the actions, which fell to just under $ 12 when the coronavirus crisis hit the US in March 2020. But news about the release date Paramount Plus and the presentation to investors arrive as ViacomCBS shares have been rising continuously. The shares have risen 80% in the last six months after Friday’s closing at $ 45.30, and up 35% in the year to date.
The shares were undoubtedly driven by ViacomCBS ‘recent distribution agreements with virtual MVPDs, notably YouTube TV and Hulu, which promise to reinforce the company’s very important domestic affiliate revenue line. This plus a better-than-expected advertising market and a more ambitious streaming strategy has earned ViacomCBS positive comments from influential analysts in recent weeks.
“We write positively about our expectations for Paramount +, stating that we think the platform could be a winner in streaming wars, given its mix of IP, news and strong sports,” wrote JPMorgan’s Alexia Quadrani in a January 12 note. .
ViacomCBS said Paramount Plus would launch in the Nordic countries on March 25 and in Australia in the middle of the year. The Canadian version of CBS All Access will be renamed Paramount Plus on March 4, but the expanded content line will be available later this year.