ViacomCBS renames itself Paramount
New name is meant to encompass ‘collective power of our global assets,’ company leaders say
Fox Business Flash top headlines for February 11
Check out what's clicking on FoxBusiness.com.
ViacomCBS Inc. said it is renaming itself Paramount Global and will refer to itself as Paramount, underscoring the company’s emphasis on its Paramount+ streaming service and evoking the heritage of its roughly century-old film studio.
ViacomCBS Chair Shari Redstone unveiled the name change at an investor presentation Tuesday, saying it reflected the company’s "promise to be the best." Before the presentation began, ViacomCBS played a video showing Ms. Redstone and ViacomCBS Chief Executive Bob Bakish driving up to the event in Bumblebee, an alien disguised as a bright yellow car from the company’s "Transformers" franchise.
GET FOX BUSINESS ON THE GO BY CLICKING HERE
"It is who we are, and it is who we are destined to be," Ms. Redstone said. "And that is why today we are thrilled to announce that ViacomCBS has become Paramount Global, or simply Paramount."
ViacomCBS said the name change would take effect Thursday, adding that the company’s new ticker symbols would be PARAA for Class A shares and PARA for Class B shares.
FILE PHOTO: ViacomCBS headquarters is pictured in New York, New York, U.S. December 5, 2019. REUTERS/Kate Munsch/File Photo (REUTERS/Kate Munsch/File Photo / Reuters Photos)
The move is the latest indication that media companies are increasingly shifting their attention from traditional television toward video streaming, which shows more potential for growth.
Both Walt Disney Co. and AT&T Inc.’s WarnerMedia have reorganized themselves to focus on their streaming services—Disney+, ESPN+ and Hulu for Disney, and HBO Max for WarnerMedia.
WARNERMEDIA AND VIACOMCBS ARE EXPLORING POSSIBLE SALE OF CW NETWORK
Comcast Corp. , meanwhile, has made building Peacock’s subscriber base a priority as the company seeks to become a streaming giant in its own right. Comcast doubled its content spending for Peacock to $3 billion this year.
In an interview, Mr. Bakish said that the decision to rename the company was inspired by earlier research into renaming the CBS All Access streaming service. The company found that the Paramount name was recognizable globally and evoked quality among respondents. The new name also promotes the streaming service, Mr. Bakish said.
"Now anytime we talk about our company, we have the association with our flagship service," Mr. Bakish said.
Shari Redstone arrives for Variety's Power of Women luncheon in New York City. . REUTERS/Brendan McDermid - RC145C2CC810
When asked whether he thought ViacomCBS would look to acquire assets like Starz or AMC Networks Inc., Mr. Bakish said in the interview that he didn’t find them "particularly interesting in the context of what we have." He said the company’s SkyShowtime joint streaming venture with Comcast is currently aimed at relatively smaller international markets, adding that he is satisfied with the company’s existing configuration in the U.S.
ViacomCBS said Tuesday that Paramount+, its flagship streaming service, added 7.3 million subscribers in the latest quarter to reach 32.8 million total subscribers. Paramount+ is vying for streaming subscribers in a field that has become increasingly competitive. Netflix Inc. added 8.3 million subscribers in the latest quarter, missing its own projections of 8.5 million, while Walt Disney Co. reported 11.8 million new Disney+ subscribers.
ViacomCBS Inc. unveiled a new management team and operating structure for its iconic Paramount Pictures movie and television production unit that Chief Executive Bob Bakish said would better position it for the streaming era.
ViacomCBS, which also has streaming services for Showtime and BET as well as the kids-oriented service Noggin, said it now has 56 million total streaming subscribers.
Overall, the company said net profit rose to $2.06 billion, or $3.11 a share, from $810 million, or $1.31 a share, a year earlier. Revenue rose 16% to $8 billion, boosted by strong streaming-subscriber growth.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| VIAC | NO DATA AVAILABLE | - | - | - |
ViacomCBS also said its popular "Yellowstone" cable series would expand, extending the show’s next season by four episodes. The fifth season will be split into two installments of seven episodes each, and used to launch several new streaming shows from co-creator Taylor Sheridan.
Elsewhere during the investor presentation, ViacomCBS executives said the company was planning to premiere new shows including a version of Nickelodeon’s popular "Dora the Explorer" children’s program and additional movies from its "South Park" franchise on Comedy Central.
ViacomCBS said it spent more than $14.7 billion on programming in 2021. That’s less than Disney but more than rivals including AT&T, Amazon.com Inc. and Apple Inc., according to projections from research firm Ampere Analysis.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE ON FOX BUSINESS
In his remarks at the investor presentation, Mr. Bakish said that ViacomCBS reached its subscriber results a year early, adding that the company was on track to hit its subscriber targets for 2024 by the end of this year.
"When it comes to realizing our streaming goals, we’re moving fast and gaining even more speed," he said.
Write to Benjamin Mullin at Benjamin.Mullin@wsj.com and Kimberly Chin at kimberly.chin@wsj.com