ViacomCBS Overhauls Film Strategy With New Theatrical Windows, Epix Pact
Brent Lang, provided by
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Paramount Pictures is entering the streaming era in a big way, one that will see the 108-year old studio overhaul the way it releases and licenses the movies it makes.
As part of that effort, Paramount will substantially shrink the amount of time its films are in theaters. At the same time, the studio has adjusted its pay TV output deal with Epix in order to provide thousands of movie titles to the nascent Paramount Plus streamer.
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In conjunction with ViacomCBS’ investor presentation today, Paramount Pictures will disclose that it is experimenting with a shorter exclusive exhibition window for theatrical releases. Instead of the traditional 90 days between theatrical release and the first home entertainment availability, Paramount will look to a 30-day frame for most titles and a 45-day theatrical window for tentpole titles including the upco
Twilight Zone Cancelled Ahead of Paramount+ Launch
Jordan Peele s buzzy revival of
The Twilight Zone will not return for a third season, making it the biggest CBS All Access show not to make the transition to Paramount+ when the new platform launches on March 4. The series ran for two, ten-episode seasons beginning in 2019, with the second, now final, season releasing on June 25, 2020.
The Twilight Zone both Rod Serling s original series and the Peele/Simon Kinberg reimagining will be available to stream on Paramount+, but when the series was conspicuously absent from the mountain (get it? Because Paramount?) of announcements made earlier today, fans started to suspect it was in trouble.
Photo: Allmy (Shutterstock)
Not to be outdone by Disney and Warner Bros., Viacom recently announced its own streaming service, creatively named Paramount+, will launch on March 4. The unrelenting number of newer streamers Disney+, Discovery+, Apple TV+ and all the plus-es you can think of when placed alongside legacy companies like Hulu and Netflix, is becoming overwhelming. You may be wondering if this one will be worth it. Here is a look at what Paramount+ has to offer, to help you decide if joining up is right for you.
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What is it?
Paramount+ isn’t as new as it seems. It will effectively replace the existing CBS-All Access streaming platform, which launched back in 2014. Paramount+ aims to offer a wider range of content to its viewers in the wake of the 2019 merger between CBS and Paramount’s parent company, Viacom. The relaunched service will cover additional Viacom brands, including BET, Comedy Central, the Smithsonian Channel, and Nickelodeon, as well as va
ViacomCBS will enter the streaming wars with Paramount Plus on March 4
Steven Zeitchik, The Washington Post
Feb. 24, 2021
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And then there was Frasier.
ViacomCBS on Wednesday announced its beefed-up streaming service Paramount Plus, highlighting a dizzying mix of existing content, new shows and revivals of long-owned properties like the Seattle-set sitcom, in the latest bid by a media company to win streaming dollars. This is a big day, a new day - a new beginning, said ViacomCBS chairman Shari Redstone, speaking from a virtual presentation on the Paramount lot in Los Angeles.
The company is betting that renaming and supercharging CBS All Access - its existing service -with a vast supply of new content will help it compete with Disney s Hulu, Comcast s Peacock, Warner Media s HBO Max and, to a lesser extent, Netflix and Disney Plus.