ViacomCBS Streaming Service Paramount+ To Launch In March

ViacomCBS is planning a March 4 rollout of Paramount+, its new streaming service rebranded from CBS All Access, the company said in a press release on Tuesday (Jan. 19).

The newly rebranded entertainment platform will be launched first in the U.S. and Latin America, followed by the Nordic countries on March 25 and Australia mid-year. CBS All Access Canada will rebrand as Paramount+ on March 4 and an expanded array of programming will be introduced later in 2021.

ViacomCBS has planned an investor event on Feb. 24 to go over its streaming strategy and to report fourth-quarter and full-year financial results.

“The presentation will deliver a comprehensive overview of the company’s streaming strategy, including Paramount+, Pluto TV and Showtime OTT,” according to the release.

CBS and Viacom closed a $30 billion media merger in 2019. CBS owns the CBS Television Network, CBS News, 15 CBS-TV stations, Showtime and the publisher Simon & Schuster. Viacom owns movie studio Paramount and numerous cable networks, including BET, Comedy Central and MTV.

Paramount+ will introduce new entertainment options beyond the offerings of CBS All Access, a subscription service launched in 2014. CBS All Access is estimated to have roughly eight to nine million subscribers, according to Variety.

The scaling of CBS All Access has been a priority for ViacomCBS CEO Bob Bakish since before the merger, Variety said. CBS All Access included live streaming of the network’s shows, including NFL games, as well as original series and library shows.

The pandemic has boosted signups for new streaming services as people looked for more entertainment outlets. The Consumer Subscription Retail Services Report: How Subscription Providers Can Sustain Their Momentum Through the COVID-19 Pandemic, a PYMNTS and Recurly collaboration, indicated that some 22 percent of survey respondents said they added new streaming services since the pandemic began.