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  • ViacomCBS adds 6 million global subscribers to reach 36 million mark

    ViacomCBS adds 6 million global subscribers to reach 36 million mark

    New Delhi: ViacomCBS added six million new streaming subscribers in the first quarter of 2021, reaching a total of 36 million global streaming subscribers said the company on Friday, while reporting financial results for the quarter ended 31 March.

    The entertainment giant delivered 69 per cent year-over-year growth in streaming subscription revenue, largely driven by the significant momentum of Paramount+. The year-over-year growth in streaming advertising revenue was 62 per cent, reflecting the continued domestic growth and international expansion of advertising supported streaming service Pluto TV.

    ViacomCBS’ cable networks unit also grew quarterly revenue 14 per cent to $3.26 billion.

    “In Q1, we accelerated our expansion in streaming with the launch of Paramount+ further enhancing ViacomCBS’ ecosystem of premium, pay and free services. The strong consumer response we have seen is evident in today’s numbers. In addition, we now have almost 50 million global Pluto TV MAUs,” said president and CEO Bob Bakish.

    On Paramount+, the biggest drivers of sign-ups were live sports and specials, including the Super Bowl, NCAA Tournament, UEFA Champions League, Oprah with Meghan and Harry and The Grammy Awards, as well as kids’ content, and original programming, including The Stand and Star Trek: Discovery. Globally, Nickelodeon programming was a significant driver of sign-ups and engagement on Paramount+.

    Showtime OTT delivered its best quarter ever in signups, streams and hours watched, driven by originals, including Your Honor and Shameless, as well as theatricals, said the company.

    “Our early momentum in streaming is a testament to the breadth and relevance of our differentiated offerings, as well as our opportunities for growth through Paramount+, as we continue to ramp the availability of live sports, original series and blockbuster movies over the course of the year. ViacomCBS also achieved another strong quarter of results in our advertising and affiliate businesses, which continue to demonstrate the extraordinary power of our company to reach audiences and deliver for our partners globally,” added Bakish.

    Paramount+ will be available in 45 markets by the end of 2022, said the company, which expects to have up to 75 million streaming subscribers globally by 2024. Management has ambitious plans to compete with the likes of Netflix and Disney+ in the streaming arena, and to direct billions of dollars into content investment for its services in the coming years.

  • Tom Ryan takes charge as ViacomCBS Streaming president & CEO

    Tom Ryan takes charge as ViacomCBS Streaming president & CEO

    MUMBAI: ViacomCBS has restructured its global leadership, with the biggest change-up coming in the form of Pluto TV CEO Tom Ryan being appointed president and CEO of Streaming.

    In his new role, Ryan will overlook CBS All Access, which will relaunch as Paramount+ in early 2021. He will continue to hold on to his remit at Pluto TV while also taking charge of the company’s global streaming strategy.

    Marc DeBevoise will step down from his roles as ViacomCBS’s chief digital officer and president-CEO of ViacomCBS Digital. He will serve in an advisory capacity for the remainder of the year.

    ViacomCBS Networks International (VCNI) COO Kelly Day will take on an expanded role as president of streaming for VCNI, overseeing all non-US digital and streaming platforms.

    The media conglomerate also announced that Pierluigi Gazzolo will step down from his position as president, streaming and studios, at VCNI.

    ViacomCBS president and CEO Bob Bakish said, “ViacomCBS has a unique opportunity to combine the best of our brands in a seamless ecosystem of must-watch, direct-to-consumer services for audiences around the world. As we plan for the launch of Paramount+, bringing together the leaders of our streaming platforms to create a unified global organization will enable us to execute a holistic strategy across both free and pay.”

    As president and CEO of ViacomCBS Streaming, Ryan will lead the company’s effort to further accelerate the growth of its free and paid streaming services. He will now work closely with the team on programming strategy, platform development and marketing.

    “I couldn’t be more excited to work with this talented team and build on their momentum, especially as we approach the launch of Paramount+,” Ryan further added. “Together, we will leverage ViacomCBS’s beloved portfolio of brands, strong content pipeline and an extensive network of partners to deliver must-watch on-demand, live and exclusive original programming to viewers everywhere.”

    The ViacomCBS reshuffling comes after Disney, WarnerMedia, and ZEE have similarly moved to restructure their organizations with the aim of accelerating direct-to-consumer streaming strategies.

  • ViacomCBS to rebrand CBS All Access to Paramount + for early 2021 launch

    ViacomCBS to rebrand CBS All Access to Paramount + for early 2021 launch

    MUMBAI: Paramount+ is the brand name of the new global streaming service that ViacomCBS will be rolling out in Australia, Latin America and the Nordics in early 2021. This was revealed by the company’s president & CEO Bob Bakish who had announced in June 2020 that its subscription video on demand CBS All Access will be rebooted and relaunched with additional premium programming.  

    Said Bakish: “Paramount is an iconic and storied brand beloved by consumers all over the world, and it is synonymous with quality, integrity and world-class storytelling. With Paramount+, we’re excited to establish one global streaming brand in the broad-pay segment that will draw on the sheer breadth and depth of the ViacomCBS portfolio to offer an extraordinary collection of content for everyone to enjoy.”

    Read more news on Paramount 

    Bakish also announced a slate of fresh shows and series which would be available to subscribers of Paramount+:

    .  The  Offer, a scripted limited event series from Paramount Television Studios, based on Oscar-winning producer Al Ruddy’s extraordinary, never-revealed experiences of making The Godfather. The 10-episode event series is written and executive produced by Michael Tolkin (Escape at Dannemora and The Player). Ruddy will also serve as executive producer, and Emmy-winning producer Leslie Greif (Hatfields & McCoys) will executive produce and be a writer on the series.

    .  Lioness, a spy drama created by Taylor Sheridan (Yellowstone) with Sheridan, Jill Wagner, David Glasser, David Hutkin, and Bob Yari set to executive produce. Based on a real-life CIA program, Lioness follows a young Marine recruited to befriend the daughter of a terrorist to bring the organization down from within. The series is produced by Paramount Network and 101 Studios.

    Read more news on ViacomCBS

    .  A reimagination of the Emmy®-nominated series Behind the Music entitled MTV’s Behind The Music – The Top 40, which will unlock MTV’s vault from the past 40 years for a unique and intimate look at the 40 biggest artists of all time, through their voices and their eyes. The series will be produced by Creature Films and MTV Studios.

    .  The Real Criminal Minds, a true crime docuseries based on the hit CBS Television series, and produced by XG Productions in association with CBS Television Studios and ABC Signature.

    .  The service is also developing a revival of The Game  as part of BET’s programming on Paramount +  from CBS Television Studios and Grammnet Productions.

    The new original series announced today join the service’s previously announced plans for Kamp Koral, a new original children’s series from Nickelodeon’s SpongeBob Squarepants, and the service’s role as the exclusive SVOD home to The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge on the Run in early 2021. Additional new original content will be announced ahead of launch.

    This programming will join  CBS All Access’  robust existing offering of more than 20,000 episodes and movies from BET, CBS, Comedy Central, MTV, Nickelodeon, Paramount Pictures and more, as well as exclusive original series including  The Good Fight, The Twilight Zone, Tooning out on The News, No Activity, Why Women Kill, Interrogation, The Thomas John Experience, and Tell Me A Story, The Stand, The Man Who Fell to Earth,, The Harper House, Guilty Party, Star Trek: Discovery Star Trek: Picard, animated series Star Trek: Lower Decks, Star Trek: Strange New World.

    Since the transformation of  CBS All Access  began in late July, the service has experienced significant growth and engagement. With the addition of a diverse mix of content, including UEFA, Big Brother Live Feeds, star Trek: Lower Decks, and more than 3,500 episodes from across ViacomCBS’ brands, the service broke a new record for total monthly streams in August and experienced one of its best months ever in terms of new subscriber sign-ups. In addition, the average age of new subscribers in August was measurably younger than the service’s overall average subscriber age, due in large part to the addition of UEFA and the newly added content from various ViacomCBS brands.

    Leading up to the early 2021 rebrand to Paramount + ,  CBS All Access  will expand its content offering to more than 30,000 episodes and movies and continue to develop additional original series across brands including BET, CBS, Comedy Central, MTV, Nickelodeon, Paramount Pictures and more, transforming it into a diversified super service for the ViacomCBS portfolio.

    “The response from consumers in just the early weeks of the service’s expansion already illustrates the tremendous opportunity ahead of us in bringing these phenomenal ViacomCBS brands together in one premium streaming home under the new Paramount +  name,” said ViacomCBS chief digital officer & ViacomCBS Digital CEO Marc DeBevoise. “With the addition of even more content from across the portfolio as well as the new exclusive originals we are announcing today, we look forward to the early 2021 rebrand and bringing existing and new subscribers more of the compelling, genre-spanning live sports, breaking news and mountain of entertainment ViacomCBS has to offer.”

    Earlier this month ViacomCBS Networks International (VCNI) president & CEO David Lynn had said that the super streamer would not be launched in India as it already has successful streaming operations in Voot and Voot Select in partnership with Viacom18 and Reliance. 

  • Paramount TV chief Amy Powell fired over alleged insensitive remarks

    Paramount TV chief Amy Powell fired over alleged insensitive remarks

    MUMBAI: After 14 years, chief of Paramount TV Amy Powell has been fired over alleged insensitive remarks – which she has emphatically denied.

    The incident occurred during a studio notes call for Paramount Network’s First Wives Club reboot, which is being penned by Girls Trip co-writer Tracy Oliver and will feature a predominantly black cast.

    Paramount CEO Jim Gianopulos was quoted stating, “Last week, multiple individuals came to us to raise concerns around comments made by Amy Powell in a professional setting, which they believed were inconsistent with our company’s values. Having spent the past several days conducting a thorough investigation into this matter and speaking to those who were present, our human resources and legal teams came to the same conclusion, and we have made the decision to terminate Amy’s employment, effective immediately,” according to Hollywoodreporter.com.

    The company immediately started looking for Powell’s replacement. In the interim, Paramount COO Andrew Gumpert will provide operational support.

    “There is no truth to the allegation that I made insensitive comments in a professional setting — or in any setting. The facts will come out and I will be vindicated,” Powell responded in a statement.

    Powell joined Paramount in 2004 and was appointed as chief of its relaunched TV division in 2013.

  • &Privé HD to showcase top notch film titles at prime time

    &Privé HD to showcase top notch film titles at prime time

    MUMBAI:  Ooh la la! Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd’s premium English movie channel &Privé HD has even bigger plans to tickle the fancy of its exclusive audience. The channel has announced that its prime time programming slot from 9 pm to 12 pm every day will feature some very recent gee-whiz award nominated or winning titles. Among the titles which will be on offer includes: the critically acclaimed Steven Spielberg directed, Meryl Streep Tom Hank starrer The Post,  the Aaron Sorkin directed Molly’s Game, the Luca Gauadagnino directed, James Ivory written Call Me By Your Name. Most of the films in this slot will be those which were released theatrically in the US in the last two months of the calendar year 2017.  The overall catalogue of &Privé HD today consists of 450 library and 48 premieres. At launch,  it was at 350 titles with 40 premieres.

    The new content been curated from different studios and distributors such as Paramount, Reliance, Tanvir and PVR. “We picked up the content from small, small producers from Europe who own  three to six movies. That meant dealing with close to 30 independent studios globally,” says  Zeel business cluster head – premium & FTA GEC channels Aparna Bhosle. Some of these will be available on Zeel’s soon to be launched OTT play – Zee5.

    It has plans to push the top daily pick movie through newspapers like the Times of India and Hindustan Times. “On the digital front, we will be using Google and YouTube banners or video promos,” reveals Bhosle.

    &Privé HD, which competes with Star Movies Select HD, MN+ and Sony le Plex for the estimated  Rs 600 core English movie advertising pie, has been doing well since its launch in September 2017 with its non-conformist 22-50 age group viewers. It was number one in its fifth week with the film Lion and also in the month of December in six metros according to  BARC ratings claims Bhosle. The channel has gained a lot of traction in Mumbai and Delhi.

    “The way we design and package the channel – it is the constant effort and is the endeavour that the ad rates should increase,” Bhosle points out. “The ad rates are absolutely comparable to channels that are considered leaders in the space.”

    Bhosle is hoping to expand the channel’s distribution with deals being signed with distribution platform operators that have not been showcasing &Privé HD as yet. “Talks are still in progress with Videocon D2H, as they had some bandwidth issue at the time of launch. We are planning to have a deal with Hathway in some time” she adds.

    The channel – by virtue of its positioning – is aimed at high net worth homes and individuals who can afford a high definition viewing package. Their tribe has swelled to around 14 million in India today. And Bhosle believes that it is this audience which will ensure that the English movie genre will continue to do well. “The OTT platforms will never affect the business of English movies channels. Yes, they could offer some competition – but finally content is king,” she says.

    Adds an analyst: “A part of the audience that consumes &Privé HD content  has access to massive internet bandwidth as well as smart TVs in their homes. They could not care how they consume – through OTT or through linear TV. If &Privé HD can lure them to watch the linear TV service of the channel, then it could be on a good wicket. Additionally, all these movies are freely available on pirate streaming and  torrent sites. How it manages to curtail the pirates will also help build its audience.”
    That’s a challenge the entire media and entertainment sector faces.

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  • Viacom net earnings plummet on restructuring & programming charges

    BENGALURU: Viacom Inc (Viacom) reported a steep decline of 60.1 percent in net earnings for the quarter ended 31 March 2017 (Q2-17, current quarter) as compared to the corresponding year ago quarter – year-on-year (y-o-y). Operating income decreased 43.3 percent y-o-y in the current quarter. The company in its earnings release says that reported operating income reflects restructuring and programming charges of $280 million resulting from the execution of new strategic initiatives, including the prioritization of six flagship brands: BET, Comedy Central, MTV, Nickelodeon, Nick Jr. and Paramount.

    Net earnings attributable to Viacom for Q2-17 were $121 million as compared to $309 million in Q2-16. Operating income for Q2-17 was $332 million as compared to $586 million in the corresponding year ago quarter.

    Viacom reported 8.5 percent y-o-y increase in revenue for Q2-17 at $3,256 million as compared to $3,001 million reported for the corresponding year ago quarter.

    Viacom president and CEO Bob Bakish said, “In the second quarter, Viacom delivered continued top-line improvement, with growth in affiliate revenues, international media networks and across every business segment of Paramount Pictures. Additionally, we executed quickly on our strategic plan, making significant organizational changes to better focus and align Viacom’s brand portfolio and ensure strong leadership, including the appointment of Jim
    Gianopulos to chart a new course at Paramount. We are working diligently to cement Viacom as a partner of choice in the industry, presenting new and reinvigorated brand strategies for our advertisers, producing creative and flexible new opportunities with our distributors and recommitting ourselves to be the home for the world’s best talent.”

    “Viacom also took significant steps forward on our plan to strengthen our balance sheet, improve our leverage profile and enhance liquidity. Since the end of our first fiscal quarter, we completed a successful hybrid debt offering, redeemed outstanding debt and executed on the sale of non-core assets, including the pending sale of our stake in EPIX. There is a lot of work still to do, but we are making important changes at Viacom, taking substantial strides towards revitalizing our portfolio of brands and returning the company to consistent top-line growth,” Bakish added.

    The company has two major segments – Media Networks and Filmed Entertainment.

    Media Networks

    Media Networks revenue for the current quarter increased y-o-y by a marginal 0.5 percent despite a 1.2 percent decline in advertising sales. The segment reported revenue of $2,394 million for Q2-17 as compared to $2,381 million in Q2-16. Adjusted operating income declined 7.2 percent to $747 million from $845 million in the year ago quarter.

    Media Networks advertising revenue declined 1.2 percent y-o-y in Q2-17 to $1,109 million from $1,123 million. Worldwide advertising revenues increased 1 percent, excluding a 2-percentage point unfavourable impact from foreign exchange. Domestic advertising revenues decreased 4 percent, driven by higher pricing more than offset by lower impressions. International advertising revenues increased 11 percent. Excluding foreign exchange, which had an 11-percentage point unfavourable impact, international advertising revenues grew 22 percent. The gains in international advertising were driven by the acquisition of Telefe, which had a 17- percentage point favourable impact, and continued growth in Europe says Viacom.

    Affiliate revenue in the current quarter increased 2.4 percent y-o-y to $1,156 million from $1,129 million. Domestic and international affiliate revenues increased 1 percent to $975 million and 10 percent to $181 million, respectively. The growth in domestic revenues principally reflects rate increases, partially offset by a modest decline in subscribers and a decline in revenues from SVOD and other OTT agreements. Excluding foreign exchange, which had a 4-percentage point unfavourable impact, international affiliate revenues increased 14 percent. The increase in international revenues reflected the impact of rate increases, subscriber growth and new channel launches, as well as higher revenues from SVOD and other OTT agreements. International affiliate growth included a 4-percentage point favourable impact from the acquisition of Telefe.

    Ancillary revenue was flat y-o-y t $129 million. Domestic ancillary revenues decreased 8 percent to $70 million while international ancillary revenues increased 11 percent to $59 million.

    Filmed Entertainment

    Filmed Entertainment revenues grew 36.6 percent to $895 million in Q2-17 from $655 million, reflecting gains in theatrical, licensing, home entertainment and ancillary revenues. Domestic revenues increased 25 percent to $458 million in the quarter, while international revenues increased 51 percent to $437 million.

    Filmed Entertainment segment’s adjusted operating loss narrowed to less than half $66 million from an operating loss of $136 million in Q2-16. The company says that the improvement principally reflected the various revenue increases, partially offset by higher operating expenses.

    Theatrical revenues rose 10 percent to $238 million, with revenues from current quarter releases up 73 percent compared to releases from Q2-16. Domestic theatrical revenues decreased 45 percent, while international theatrical revenues grew 98 percent, reflecting the strong international performance of xXx: Return of Xander Cage. Foreign exchange had a 3-percentage point favourable impact on international theatrical revenues.

    Licensing revenues increased 45 percent to $347 million in the quarter, primarily driven by Paramount Television production, as well as higher revenues from licensing arrangements with pay television and SVOD distributors. Domestic licensing revenues grew 85 percent, while international licensing revenues increased 24 percent.

    Home entertainment revenues increased 29 percent to $198 million in the quarter, reflecting the number and mix of current quarter releases. Domestic and international home entertainment revenues increased 23 percent and 49 percent respectively. Foreign exchange had a 5-percentage point unfavourable impact on international home entertainment revenues.

    Ancillary revenues increased 149 percent to $112 million, primarily driven by the sale of a partial copyright interest in certain current year releases related to a film slate financing arrangement. Domestic ancillary revenues increased 158 percent to $93 million while international ancillary revenues increased 111 percent to $19 million.

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  • Paramount blockbusters on Amazon Prime in India, deal signed

    MUMBAI: Amazon Prime will offer unlimited free fast delivery on India’s largest selection of products, early access to top deals and unlimited streaming of latest and exclusive movies, TV shows and Amazon Originals. Amazon has announced its association with Paramount to offer subscription streaming of Paramount’s new releases and fan-favorite films in India.

    Under the deal Amazon will have streaming rights to recent releases such as Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows, Star Trek Beyond, and 10 Cloverfield Lane, amongst others. In addition, Prime Video subscribers will also have rotating access to popular movies and classics from Paramount’s renowned library including franchises like Transformers, Indiana Jones, Mission: Impossible, Madagascar, Shrek and Kung Fu Panda.

    Amazon Prime Video India director and country head Nitesh Kripalani said, “Our goal is to provide our customers with the best movies – be it local or international. We are excited to work with Paramount to bring their future slate of films to our Prime Video customers along with some of the most popular movies in film history.”

    “We are delighted to have reached this agreement with Amazon to bring our world-class films to fans across India,” said Paramount TV Licensing & Distribution SVP Regional Sales Asia Pac Jonathan Greenberg said, “Our goal is to deliver our content to viewers how and when they want it and Amazon Prime Video offers an exceptional platform for fans to enjoy new and favorite films on demand.”

    Amazon Prime Video recently launched in India with an aim to bring customers the best entertainment experience.

  • Q2-2016: Viacom segments report decline in numbers

    Q2-2016: Viacom segments report decline in numbers

    BENGALURU: Viacom Inc (Viacom) reported 2.5 percent year-on year (YoY) drop (reduced by $77 million) in revenue for the quarter ended 31 March 2016 (Q2-2016, current quarter) at $2,381 million as compared to $2,452 million in Q2-2015. Revenue for the company’s Media Networks segment declined 2.9 percent YoY in the current quarter to $2,381 million from $2,452 million in the corresponding year ago quarter. Filmed Entertainment segment revenue declined 0.6 percent YoY to $655 million from $659 million in Q2-2015.

    Adjusted operating Income in the current quarter declined 29 per cent to $586 million from $822 million in Q2-2015. Media Networks adjusted operating income in Q2-2016 decreased 11 per cent to $805 million from $903 million in Q2-2015, reflecting revenue declines as well as an increase in programming expenses. Filmed Entertainment adjusted operating loss was $136 million, driven by the performance of certain films released in the quarter.
    Quarterly adjusted net earnings attributable to Viacom decreased to $303 million. Adjusted diluted earnings per share for the quarter were $0.76.

    A common trend across a number of media and entertainment verticals in the US for the quarter that ends 31 March is that revenues are at the lowest. In general as per this cycle, revenue can only go up from here for the other quarters if a business has a normal year. In the case of Viacom Inc., 31 March corresponds to the close of the second quarter of its fiscal, since the company’s financial year ends on 30 September.

    Viacom, executive chairman, president and chief executive cfficer Philippe Dauman, said, “Viacom’s brands are among the most popular and culturally connected in the world. Nickelodeon remains the number one network for kids and many of our other networks have shown sequential improvements in ratings and consumption across platforms. The continuing strength of our brands was validated by our recent renewals with Dish and Frontier on attractive terms. In the past year, we have successfully closed long-term carriage agreements with domestic distributors representing more than 44 million subscribers. Around the world we continue to expand the global reach of our networks, launching several new channels in the quarter. At Paramount, we are looking forward to upcoming blockbusters Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows and Star Trek Beyond this summer.”

    “We are responding to industry consumption shifts with innovative, thoughtful, and long-term strategic solutions and are generating meaningful results in many important areas, including content creation, data-based audience measurement and distribution innovation. There is much more work to be done, but we see the path to growth ahead and are very optimistic about our future,” he added.

    Media Networks

    This segment’s revenue and results have been mentioned above. Viacom says that domestic advertising revenues decreased 5 per cent, as pricing increases were more than offset by softer ratings at some of its networks. International advertising revenues declined 1 per cent, driven by a 7 per cent adverse effect of foreign exchange. Absent the impact of foreign exchange, international advertising revenues increased 6 per cent, driven principally by growth in Europe. Domestic affiliate revenues decreased 2 per cent, reflecting a modest decline in subscribers and a previously disclosed rate adjustment with a major distributor partially offset by rate increases across the remaining subscriber base. International affiliate revenues increased 4 per cent, driven by new channel launches, increased subscribers, and rate increases. Absent a 7 per cent adverse impact of foreign exchange, international affiliates revenues increased 11 per cent.

    Filmed Entertainment

    Filmed Entertainment revenues mentioned above decreased as an increase in license fees and theatrical revenues was more than offset by declines in home entertainment and ancillary revenues. The company says that excluding foreign exchange, which had a 2 per cent unfavourable impact, worldwide revenues increased 1 per cent. Worldwide theatrical revenues increased 6 per cent to $217 million in the quarter, reflecting revenues from Daddy’s Homeand The Big Short, both released late in the first fiscal quarter. License fees increased 17 per cent to $240 million in the quarter, driven by the licensing of certain titles for subscription video-on-demand services. Worldwide home entertainment revenues decreased $41 million in the quarter, primarily reflecting lower revenues associated with catalogue and third-party distribution titles.

  • Q2-2016: Viacom segments report decline in numbers

    Q2-2016: Viacom segments report decline in numbers

    BENGALURU: Viacom Inc (Viacom) reported 2.5 percent year-on year (YoY) drop (reduced by $77 million) in revenue for the quarter ended 31 March 2016 (Q2-2016, current quarter) at $2,381 million as compared to $2,452 million in Q2-2015. Revenue for the company’s Media Networks segment declined 2.9 percent YoY in the current quarter to $2,381 million from $2,452 million in the corresponding year ago quarter. Filmed Entertainment segment revenue declined 0.6 percent YoY to $655 million from $659 million in Q2-2015.

    Adjusted operating Income in the current quarter declined 29 per cent to $586 million from $822 million in Q2-2015. Media Networks adjusted operating income in Q2-2016 decreased 11 per cent to $805 million from $903 million in Q2-2015, reflecting revenue declines as well as an increase in programming expenses. Filmed Entertainment adjusted operating loss was $136 million, driven by the performance of certain films released in the quarter.
    Quarterly adjusted net earnings attributable to Viacom decreased to $303 million. Adjusted diluted earnings per share for the quarter were $0.76.

    A common trend across a number of media and entertainment verticals in the US for the quarter that ends 31 March is that revenues are at the lowest. In general as per this cycle, revenue can only go up from here for the other quarters if a business has a normal year. In the case of Viacom Inc., 31 March corresponds to the close of the second quarter of its fiscal, since the company’s financial year ends on 30 September.

    Viacom, executive chairman, president and chief executive cfficer Philippe Dauman, said, “Viacom’s brands are among the most popular and culturally connected in the world. Nickelodeon remains the number one network for kids and many of our other networks have shown sequential improvements in ratings and consumption across platforms. The continuing strength of our brands was validated by our recent renewals with Dish and Frontier on attractive terms. In the past year, we have successfully closed long-term carriage agreements with domestic distributors representing more than 44 million subscribers. Around the world we continue to expand the global reach of our networks, launching several new channels in the quarter. At Paramount, we are looking forward to upcoming blockbusters Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows and Star Trek Beyond this summer.”

    “We are responding to industry consumption shifts with innovative, thoughtful, and long-term strategic solutions and are generating meaningful results in many important areas, including content creation, data-based audience measurement and distribution innovation. There is much more work to be done, but we see the path to growth ahead and are very optimistic about our future,” he added.

    Media Networks

    This segment’s revenue and results have been mentioned above. Viacom says that domestic advertising revenues decreased 5 per cent, as pricing increases were more than offset by softer ratings at some of its networks. International advertising revenues declined 1 per cent, driven by a 7 per cent adverse effect of foreign exchange. Absent the impact of foreign exchange, international advertising revenues increased 6 per cent, driven principally by growth in Europe. Domestic affiliate revenues decreased 2 per cent, reflecting a modest decline in subscribers and a previously disclosed rate adjustment with a major distributor partially offset by rate increases across the remaining subscriber base. International affiliate revenues increased 4 per cent, driven by new channel launches, increased subscribers, and rate increases. Absent a 7 per cent adverse impact of foreign exchange, international affiliates revenues increased 11 per cent.

    Filmed Entertainment

    Filmed Entertainment revenues mentioned above decreased as an increase in license fees and theatrical revenues was more than offset by declines in home entertainment and ancillary revenues. The company says that excluding foreign exchange, which had a 2 per cent unfavourable impact, worldwide revenues increased 1 per cent. Worldwide theatrical revenues increased 6 per cent to $217 million in the quarter, reflecting revenues from Daddy’s Homeand The Big Short, both released late in the first fiscal quarter. License fees increased 17 per cent to $240 million in the quarter, driven by the licensing of certain titles for subscription video-on-demand services. Worldwide home entertainment revenues decreased $41 million in the quarter, primarily reflecting lower revenues associated with catalogue and third-party distribution titles.

  • Paramount to release first 2 films digitally under flexible distribution plan

    Paramount to release first 2 films digitally under flexible distribution plan

    MUMBAI: Paramount Pictures announced the home entertainment release dates of the first two films in the studio’s digital revenue-sharing initiative with theatrical exhibitors. Scouts Guide To The Zombie Apocalypse and Paranormal Activity: The Ghost Dimension will debut on digital platforms for sale and rental beginning 8 December and 15 December, respectively.

     

    Under the revenue-sharing agreement with select theatrical exhibitors, the films were eligible to be released on home entertainment platforms 17 days after they dipped below 300 domestic theaters, giving consumers unprecedented early access to enjoy the movies at home following their theatrical runs. Paranormal Activity: The Ghost Dimension was released in theaters on 23 October and Scouts Guide To The Zombie Apocalypse was released on 30 October.

     

    “This innovative agreement with exhibitors enables us to make these two films available to home viewers much earlier than usual, following their natural lifecycle in theaters. This flexible distribution model allows us to maximize the revenue potential of these films, satisfy consumer demand through legitimate digital access, while respecting and preserving an exclusive theatrical window,” said Paramount Pictures president of worldwide distribution and marketing Megan Colligan.

     

    Exhibitors participating in the initiative – including AMC Theatres, Cineplex Entertainment, National Amusements, Alamo Drafthouse Cinema, Southern Theatres and Landmark Cinemas – will receive a percentage of any of the studio’s digital revenue for the period of digital availability through 90 days from the initial US theatrical release, with each exhibitor’s share proportional to its theatrical gross market share.