Paramount+
Paramount+ is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service owned by Paramount Skydance. The service's content is drawn primarily from the libraries of CBS, Nickelodeon, MTV, Comedy Central, BET, the Smithsonian Channel, Showtime, and Paramount Pictures. It also shows original series and films, live streaming sports coverage, and in the United States, live streaming of local CBS television stations. The service was launched on October 28, 2014, by CBS Corporation as CBS All Access in the United States, initially focusing on the live streaming of CBS programming from its local affiliates, as well as on-demand access to CBS programs and library content. The service began to expand into original programming in 2016, beginning with spin-offs of CBS programs such as Big Brother, The Good Fight, and the new Star Trek television series Star Trek: Discovery. In 2018, the service launched in Australia as 10 All Access, taking its name from CBS-owned Network 10, and was a mixture between CBS and 10's programming. Paramount+ is one of the top ten most-subscribed video on demand streaming media service globally, with 79 million paid memberships.
Following CBS’ 2019 reunion with Viacom, content from Comedy Central, MTV, Nickelodeon, and other Viacom brands was subsequently included, and in 2021, the service was
rebranded as Paramount+ on March 4, taking its name from Paramount Pictures and becoming a companion to other Paramount brands. The service expanded into Australia, Latin America, and Europe. Paramount+ is a sister service to CBS News 24/7 and CBS Sports HQ, which are streaming services for CBS' news and sports divisions, BET+, which is operated by BET and the Tyler Perry Studios, and free ad-supported streaming television service Pluto TV, which was acquired by Viacom nine months before completing its merger with CBS.
History
As CBS All Access
CBS All Access was launched on October 28, 2014, priced at US$5.99 per month with advertising and $9.99 per month without. Announced on October 16, 2014, as the first over-the-top offering by an American broadcast television network, the service initially encompassed the network's existing streaming portal at CBS.com and its mobile app for smartphones and tablet computers; CBS All Access became available on Roku on April 7, 2015, and on Chromecast on May 14, 2015. In addition to providing full-length episodes of past and present CBS programs, the service allows live programming streams of local CBS affiliates in 194 markets reaching 92% of the United States, including SEC sports and the NFL; however due to the absence of streaming rights, a few sports events are not streamed on the service, along with limited syndicated and paid programming where only a local broadcast license to carry the program is allowed and web airing rights are retained by the syndicator or infomercial producer. By the very nature of its being live, streaming of a local affiliate does include all advertising, even with the commercial-free plan.On December 1, 2016, CBS announced an agreement with the NFL to allow clearance of regional NFL games carried by CBS on CBS All Access from Week 13 of the 2016 NFL season on. At the time, the games were blacked out on non–Verizon Wireless mobile devices due to that provider's exclusivity agreement as the official wireless sponsor of the league. In the 2018 NFL season, a new agreement with Verizon ending that exclusivity began to allow CBS All Access to stream games to all mobile devices; Super Bowl games run on CBS All Access without the need for any authentication.
the service had nearly 1.5 million subscribers. In August of the same year, CBS unveiled plans to expand CBS All Access to markets outside the United States. Canada was announced as the first international market to receive the service. Plans to launch in Australia quickly followed, resulting from CBS's purchase of free-to-air broadcaster Network 10.
In September 2017, Star Trek: Discovery premiered on CBS All Access, with its first episode also airing on the CBS broadcast network to promote the service. CBS reported that the premiere had driven its largest single-day increase in new subscribers since the Grammy Awards. Along with Star Trek, Big Brother 19 and the start of the 2017 NFL season had also driven major increases in growth that month.
Buoyed by Star Trek: Discovery, CBS All Access reached over 2 million subscribers by early 2018. The 60th Annual Grammy Awards also provided a boost to sign-ups, marking the second largest day for new subscriptions after the Discovery premiere. In April 2018, CBS All Access was made available outside the United States for the first time when it was launched in Canada.
The service launched in Australia in December 2018 as 10 All Access, named after Network 10. It operated alongside 10's free catch up and live streaming service 10 Play and contains a mixture of Network 10 and CBS programming. CBS shows are made available on All Access prior to being broadcast on 10's channels. 10 All Access is commercial-free and, unlike CBS All Access, has only one pricing tier.
In January 2019, CBS reported its largest increase in subscribers over a weekend—a 72% increase over the premiere of Discovery, crediting the premiere of season 2 of the series and that week's AFC Championship Game. Super Bowl LIII would surpass this record only a few weeks later, with CBS reporting an 84% increase in new subscribers.
Re-merger of CBS and Viacom
On November 25, 2019, as part of the re-merger between CBS Corporation and Viacom, CBS All Access announced the inclusion of programming from Nickelodeon, as part of the wider launch of children's programming on the service, with other partners including Boat Rocker Studios and WildBrain.In January 2020, CBS All Access became available on the Xfinity Flex platform, followed by the X1 platform in December.
On February 6, 2020, CNBC reported that ViacomCBS was in discussions to launch a larger premium streaming offering, combining CBS All Access with content from Paramount Pictures, the Domestic Media Networks division, and Pluto TV. The service would include an ad-free tier, and a premium tier that includes Showtime's streaming service. The company would maintain its existing streaming platforms, while marketing the new service to users of these other services. ViacomCBS partially outlined these plans in a corporate earnings call on February 20, 2020, stating that the expanded All Access service would take a "house of brands" approach to content and serve as a mid-tier offering complementing Pluto TV and the Showtime OTT service by "adding a broad pay offering, built on All Access's foundation." The expanded service will include content from MTV, VH1, Nickelodeon, Comedy Central, BET, and Smithsonian Channel, as well as a library of 30,000 television series episodes and up to 1,000 film titles from Paramount's film and television divisions and CBS Media Ventures and expanded live news and sports offerings. No pricing plan or firm dates for content expansion were disclosed, though a "soft relaunch" will occur later in 2020. ViacomCBS will also continue to license its television and film content to competing streaming platforms.
On May 7, 2020, CBS All Access began adding more films to the service, starting with more than 100 from Paramount Pictures, and ViacomCBS announced that CBS All Access will expand internationally within twelve months. On July 30, 2020, CBS All Access added several shows from ViacomCBS Domestic Media Networks, introduced a new user interface with "hubs" for different brands, and revealed that Kamp Koral: SpongeBob's Under Years would debut on the service in 2021. With the expansion, it was also announced that the service would rebrand in early-2021 to separate itself from CBS's platforms, and that there were plans to add multiple user profiles and parental controls later in 2020.
Rebrand as Paramount+
On September 15, 2020, it was announced that CBS All Access, along with 10 All Access would rebrand as Paramount+ in 2021, and that it planned to perform more international expansion under the new name.On January 19, 2021, it was announced that Paramount+ would launch on March 4, 2021, with information being released on February 24, 2021, during an investor event. The company announced that no updates will be provided for apps on second or third generation Apple TV once the service relaunches. ViacomCBS announced during their investor event on February 24 that Paramount+ would premiere new 2021 theatrical releases from Paramount Pictures 45 days after their theatrical release, PAW Patrol: The Movie and Clifford the Big Red Dog received simultaneous theatrical and Paramount+ releases on August 20 and November 10, 2021 respectively, while other future theatrical releases from Paramount would premiere on the service either after their theatrical run or after their run on Epix.
The relaunch occurred as announced on March 4, 2021, with additional streaming content being launched and further rebranding efforts taking place at that time. In August 2021, it was announced that Paramount+ would be shut down in Nordic Europe in 2022 in favor of SkyShowtime, a joint venture with Comcast-owned Sky Group that would also include content from Showtime, Sky Studios, and NBCUniversal.
In September 2021, it was announced that Showtime's direct-to-consumer service would be offered as part of a bundle with Paramount+. Showtime content would still be accessed via the Showtime app and website, but plans were announced for Showtime content to be accessible within the Paramount+ apps for its DTC subscribers later in 2022. The change was implemented in August 2022, with subscribers on both services able to upgrade to the combined "Paramount+ with Showtime" service for $11.99 per-month with ads and $14.99 without; a discount for new subscribers was available as an introductory offer through October 2.
On August 15, 2022, Walmart reached an exclusive deal with Paramount+ to offer the streaming service as part of its Walmart+ offering. It meant that Walmart+ customers could access the ad-supported plan on Paramount+ at no additional charge. Qantas also announced it had partnered with Paramount ANZ to offer Paramount+ on its in-flight entertainment systems.
On June 27, 2023, Showtime's direct-to-consumer service in the United States was fully integrated with the advertising-free premium tier of Paramount+, replacing the aforementioned bundle first introduced in 2021. The newly renamed "Paramount+ with Showtime" premium tier was raised from $9.99 to $11.99 per month while the "Essential" plan was raised from $4.99 to $5.99 per month. The Showtime Anytime app was discontinued on December 14, 2023. That same month on December 6, Paramount announced that the apps for Nickelodeon, Nick Jr., MTV, Comedy Central, Paramount Network, and Showtime would be discontinued soon. The apps were discontinued on January 31, 2024, although this did not include CBS' app. The reason was to encourage more users to sign up for Paramount+. Paramount+’s sister streaming service Noggin was shut down on July 2, 2024 for the same reason. Noggin originally ceased operations as a television service on September 28, 2009, in favor of the Nick Jr. Channel.