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    CBS streaming service to grow with Viacom, Paramount videos

    By SHOOTUpdated:No Comments1454 Views
    In this Jan. 12, 2020, file photo Chief Digital Officer, ViacomCBS, and CEO and President, CBS Interactive, Marc DeBoise speaks at the Executive Presentation during the CBS TCA Winter 2020 Press Tour at the Langham Huntington Hotel in Pasadena, Calif. ViacomCBS is planning a new streaming service that incorporates the existing CBS All Access platform and adds content from Viacom brands like MTV and BET as well as Paramount movies. (Photo by Willy Sanjuan/Invision/AP, File)

    By Mae Anderson, Technology Writer

    NEW YORK (AP) --

    ViacomCBS is planning a new streaming service that will combine the existing CBS All Access service with Paramount movies and shows from Viacom channels such as MTV and BET.

    The move had been expected since CBS and Viacom combined in August to better compete in the increasingly competitive streaming environment. 

    CBS was one of the first media companies to launch its own streaming service. Its $6-a-month service CBS All Access includes original programming such as new "Star Trek" series and a revival of "The Twilight Zone." The service also has old and current broadcast shows.

    Since then, Disney launched its $7-a-month Disney Plus service, while Comcast's NBCUniversal and AT&T's WarnerMedia have services coming, tapping movies and shows from their channels and production studios. The companies are all trying to challenge Netflix, Amazon and other established players in the streaming arena as their channels face challenges from people ditching cable TV subscriptions.

    In a call Thursday with investors, CEO Bob Bakish said ViacomCBS plans to add "substantial content" to CBS All Access to create a "combined 'House of Brand' product."

    That means adding content from Viacom properties Nickelodeon, Comedy Central, MTV, BET and Smithsonian and movies from the Paramount library. 

    Bakish said the new service is designed to fill the gap between ViacomCBS' free ad-supported service, PlutoTV, and its premium Showtime service, which costs $11 a month. It is set to launch later this year. Bakish did not say how much the new service will cost or whether its name will remain CBS All Access.

    The CBS and Showtime streaming services now have 11 million monthly active users combined. ViacomCBS is targeting 16 million by the end of the year. PlutoTV has 22 million monthly active users, and ViacomCBS is targeting 30 million by the end of the year.

    Separately, WarnerMedia said it reached a deal with Google's YouTube TV service to offer the upcoming HBO Max as an add-on to YouTube TV's $50-a-month subscription. It will cost extra, but the price wasn't immediately disclosed. HBO Max will cost $15 on its own, though some AT&T customers will get it for free. AT&T has said it was working on deals to bundle HBO Max with other companies that offer HBO to their services.

    Tags:Bob BakishCBS All AccessParamountViacomCBS



    Christmas TV movies are in their Taylor Swift era, with 2 Swift-inspired films airing this season

    Friday, November 22, 2024
    This image released by Hallmark Media shows Hunter King, left, and Tyler Hynes in a scene from "Holiday Touchdown: A Chiefs Love Story. (Joshua Haines/Hallmark Media via AP)

    Two new Christmas TV movies have a Taylor Swift connection that her fans would have no problem decoding.

    "Christmas in the Spotlight" debuts Saturday on Lifetime. It stars Jessica Lord as the world's biggest pop star and Laith Wallschleger as a pro football player, who meet and fall in love — not unlike Swift and her boyfriend, Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce.

    "It's clearly inspired by Taylor and Travis, but I don't know them and I don't know what is going on behind the scenes. I only know what's been put out there," said Eirene Tran Donohue, a longtime, devoted fan who jumped at the opportunity to write a script even loosely based on her favorite musician.

    She was inspired by the couple's support of each other's accomplishments, particularly Kelce's ease with dating the star despite the glare of the spotlight, adding, "I love the way that he celebrates her."

    Tran Donohue wants fellow Swift fans to know she wrote the script with them in mind.

    "There are so many Easter eggs," she said of little details added that a Swift fan would pick up on. "I put in as many as I could."

    Then, on Nov. 30, Hallmark will air "Holiday Touchdown: A Chiefs Love Story." Instead of a nod to Swift, it's an ode to family traditions and bonding, like rooting for a sports team. Hallmark's headquarters is also in Kansas City, so it makes sense why the company chose the Chiefs to be highlighted.

    In this story, written by Julie Sherman Wolfe, sparks fly when a new employee for the Chiefs organization (Tyler Hynes) meets a woman — played by Hunter King — whose family's dedication to the team goes back generations.

    Sherman Wolfe, a San Francisco 49ers fan, said she got the call a week after Super Bowl LVIII, when the Chiefs... Read More

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