Business

Ahead of its paid streaming launch in Latin America, Paramount+ to broadcast Brazil and Argentina top's division soccer league

Meanwhile, ViacomCBS reported that its free-ad based streaming service, Pluto TV, already available in Latin America, reached 43 million global monthly active users

FILE PHOTO: ViacomCBS headquarters is pictured in New York, New York, U.S. December 5, 2019. REUTERS/Kate Munsch
  • Paramount Plus will gather live sports, breaking news, and entertainment;
  • But, at first, live content and sports will be only available for the audience in the U.S;
  • The launch in Latin America is set for March 4, but only with the service’s entertainment part, without live news and sports.

Ahead of its paid streaming service launch in Latin America on March 4, ViacomCBS‘s President and CEO Bob Bakish announced on Wednesday that Paramount Plus will broadcast Brazil’s Brasileirão, its top division of men’s soccer league, and Argentina’s men top league of soccer as well in the US.

“We will bring more than 1,000 live sports tournaments on Paramount Plus,” said Bakish, citing NFL, Women’s National Soccer League, and Neymar, Messi, and Ronaldo‘s main soccer championships.

READ ALSO: Disney+ subscribers base to surpass Netflix’s in 2026

Bakish stated that Paramount Plus will be the only streaming service working with 24/7 news, local news, and in the US. In other words, it will gather live sports, breaking news, and entertainment. But, at first, all of this will be only available in the U.S. According to ViacomCBS‘ press relations team in Brazil, sports, live content, and news, in general, will not be streamed for the Brazilian audience at this first moment of the launch.

On the entertainment side, Paramount Plus will have more than 36 original series launched this year and more than 5,000 episodes of reality shows. “We will have a new reality series debut every single month,” he said.

Paramount Plus will also have content for kids, and more than 2,500 movies. According to Bakish, the streaming service will have originals up to 40 days after their launch on theaters.

The rebranded service will include episodes and movies from ViacomCBS-owned BET, CBS, Comedy Central, MTV, Nickelodeon, and Paramount Pictures, including original series such as The Twilight Zone and The Good Fight.

Meanwhile, ViacomCBS reported that its free-ad based streaming service, Pluto TV, already available in Latin America, reached 43 million global monthly active users and added it is on the way to be a billion-dollar business.

Photo: ViacomCBS/Screenshot

In ViacomCBS’s fourth-quarter results announced on Wednesday, the firm said it had amassed 19.2 million paid subscribers to All Access (the name before the rebranding to Paramount Plus) and other streaming properties. That was up 7.2% from the previous quarter but significantly below totals for Netflix, with 200 million, and Walt Disney’s Disney+, with 94.9 million.

READ ALSO: Netflix’s top 10 movies and TV shows in Mexico during 2020

While ViacomCBS was an early entry to streaming – it launched CBS All Access in 2014 – the service has been best known for Star Trek shows, and its content investment has paled in comparison to Netflix and Disney. CBS’ 2019 merger with Viacom – a sister company also controlled by the Redstone family – allowed for more content, including films from Paramount Pictures.

It will cost $6 per month with limited commercials and $10 per month for a commercial-free option, the same rates as for CBS All Access.

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