ViacomCBS reported a revenue loss of 3 per cent since its media merger in December, while at the same time announcing that it was creating a new streaming service to expand on its CBS All Access platform.
Revenue at the end of the first quarter fell to $6.87billion from $7.09billion, a drop of 3 per cent from the same time a year ago, reports ViacomCBS.
Full-year revenue increased by 2 per cent, driven by growth in advertising, affiliate and content licensing, operating income, net earnings and diluted earnings per share.
The earnings were the first reported since Viacom and CBS were merged in December, after two failed previous attempts, and included merger-related expenses.
The merged company called itself a ‘global content powerhouse,’ in pointing out that it was no. 1 in domestic audience share ‘in key demographics’, and because it made $1.6 billion in annual revenue from its domestic streaming and video business.
Bob Bakish, president and chief executive officer of ViacomCBS (center left) and Shari Redstone, the company’s chair, celebrate the company’s merger in December during the opening bell at Nasdaq in New York on Dec. 5
ViacomCBS called itself a ‘global content powerhouse,’ in pointing out that it was no. 1 in domestic audience share ‘in key demographics’, and because it made $1.6 billion in annual revenue from its domestic streaming and video business
Bob Bakish, president and CEO of ViacomCBS, said the merged company had made ‘significant progress integrating and transforming’ itself after the merger.
‘We see incredible opportunity to realize the full power of our position as one of the largest content producers and providers in the world,’ he said in a statement released along with the quarterly earnings on Thursday.
As part of that strategy, ViacomCBS, announced that it will launch a new ‘House of Brands’ product that will leverage its ‘scaled assets in film and TV,’ in a move that keeps the momentum going of its already successful CBS All Access streaming service.
CBS All Access, started in 2014, gained traction with viewers by broadcasting exclusive, original programming and broke its subscription record last month with the premiere of ‘Star Trek: Picard’, the latest installment in the classic TV and film franchise starring Patrick Stewart, reprising his role as Capt. Jean Luc Picard of the Starship Enterprise.
CBS All Access, which started in 2014, broke its subscription record last month with the premiere of ‘Star Trek: Picard’, the latest installment in the classic TV and film franchise starring Patrick Stewart, reprising his role as Capt. Jean Luc Picard of the Starship Enterprise
The new streaming service will be accessible by paid subscription, complimenting the company’s paid Showtime cable network and advertiser-supported video on demand service Pluto TV, which Viacom had purchased a little over a year ago for $340 million.
The new service is expected to include content from the company’s entertainment, news and sports offerings.
Among the highlights are the kids favorite Nickelodeon cable network, which features lovable ‘SpongeBob SquarePants’; pioneering music video network MTV, which found new life with reality TV shows like ‘Jersey Shore’; and ‘Comedy Central,’ which has aired 23 seasons of its raunchy South Park cartoon show.
The archives of the storied Paramount Pictures are also expected on the service. These include the ‘Indiana Jones’ films, ‘Mission Impossible’ and ‘Transformers’ franchises.
Melissa Molinaro from MTV’s ‘Jersey Shore’ reality TV show, which is to be included in ViacomCBS’ new streaming service
ViacomCBS’ storied Paramount Pictures distributed this weekend’s box-office leader, ‘Sonic the Hedgehog’.
‘Sonic the HedgeHog’, which ViacomCBS’ Paramount Pictures distributed and was the weekend’s box office leader, stars comedian Jim Carrey. The movie’s box office provided a much-needed lift to the studio after a string of duds.
Paramount also distributed this past weekend’s box office leader, ‘Sonic the HedgeHog’, starring Jim Carrey, providing a much-needed lift to the studio after a string of duds.
The film version of the popular Sega video game made more than $70 million domestically over the four-day, President’s Day weekend, and made $113 worldwide.
It was the biggest take for a video-game inspired movie, according to studio estimates, besting the performance of last year’s ‘Detective Pikachu,’ released by rival studio Warner Bros.
ViacomCBS says that the planned service will ‘reaffirm and expand the value of entertainment, news and sports – through on demand and live experiences – for audiences around the world.’