ViacomCBS Rumored to Launch All-In-One Streaming Service

Companies in media and technology are all-in on video streaming, and it looks like ViacomCBS intends to reposition itself in a crowded field.

CNBC reports that ViacomCBS will introduce a new platform that combines content from its array of assets.

It'll leverage CBS All Access to some degree, but sources indicate ViacomCBS targets a separate streaming service for the majority of its content.

Near the end of 2019, CBS and Viacom agreed to a deal that merged the two companies into a single conglomerate after a 2005 split, with control over a broadcast network, several cable channels such as MTV and Nickelodeon, CBS All Access, Showtime, Pluto TV, and production divisions including Paramount Pictures.

As competitors like The Walt Disney Company and Netflix expanded in recent years, CBS and Viacom saw each other as necessary partners to achieve long-term success.

Original programming will rely on existing properties.

Popular franchises such as SpongeBob SquarePants, Dora The Explorer, and Paw Patrol air on ViacomCBS' cable channels.

Old episodes could stream immediately, and exclusive spin-off series might get greenlit.

Anything that airs on Nickelodeon, MTV, VH1, BET, Comedy Central, and Paramount Network could appear on this service.

It's unknown what exactly ViacomCBS will choose to do, however. 

Additionally, that platform should tap into Paramount Pictures' film library.

ViacomCBS also acquired a stake in Miramax, a studio with around 700 films available.

It's legacy content that fills out a streaming service's catalog in the early stages, and ViacomCBS should find exactly that in these two studios.

Both paid and free tiers are expected.

The ad-free version should cost less than $10 per month, and the free tier will run traditional advertisements to monetize viewership.

Another paid tier might raise its price in order to bundle CBS All Access and Showtime.

Sources did not tell CNBC about the timeline for this platform's arrival.

It could take several months (or years) for third-party licensing deals to expire, and then ViacomCBS needs to design the infrastructure across various platforms.

Still, there does appear to be a good amount of content controlled by the company today.

Since both NBC Peacock and HBO Max are due out this spring, it's very unlikely ViacomCBS' platform will arrive within the next few months.

So the launch might take place in late 2020 or sometime in 2021.

ViacomCBS could scrap its plan, too.

It's a crowded field, and CBS All Access or Showtime could always absorb any content that would've gone toward the new platform.

But, even with these existing services, ViacomCBS might ditch them to build an entirely new subscription to participate in the streaming war better than it does today.

Companies in media and technology are all-in on video streaming, and it looks like ViacomCBS intends to reposition itself in a crowded field.

CNBC reports that ViacomCBS will introduce a new platform that combines content from its array of assets.

It'll leverage CBS All Access to some degree, but sources indicate ViacomCBS targets a separate streaming service for the majority of its content.

Near the end of 2019, CBS and Viacom agreed to a deal that merged the two companies into a single conglomerate after a 2005 split, with control over a broadcast network, several cable channels such as MTV and Nickelodeon, CBS All Access, Showtime, Pluto TV, and production divisions including Paramount Pictures.

As competitors like The Walt Disney Company and Netflix expanded in recent years, CBS and Viacom saw each other as necessary partners to achieve long-term success.

Original programming will rely on existing properties.

Popular franchises such as SpongeBob SquarePants, Dora The Explorer, and Paw Patrol air on ViacomCBS' cable channels.

Old episodes could stream immediately, and exclusive spin-off series might get greenlit.

Anything that airs on Nickelodeon, MTV, VH1, BET, Comedy Central, and Paramount Network could appear on this service.

It's unknown what exactly ViacomCBS will choose to do, however. 

Additionally, that platform should tap into Paramount Pictures' film library.

ViacomCBS also acquired a stake in Miramax, a studio with around 700 films available.

It's legacy content that fills out a streaming service's catalog in the early stages, and ViacomCBS should find exactly that in these two studios.

Both paid and free tiers are expected.

The ad-free version should cost less than $10 per month, and the free tier will run traditional advertisements to monetize viewership.

Another paid tier might raise its price in order to bundle CBS All Access and Showtime.

Sources did not tell CNBC about the timeline for this platform's arrival.

It could take several months (or years) for third-party licensing deals to expire, and then ViacomCBS needs to design the infrastructure across various platforms.

Still, there does appear to be a good amount of content controlled by the company today.

Since both NBC Peacock and HBO Max are due out this spring, it's very unlikely ViacomCBS' platform will arrive within the next few months.

So the launch might take place in late 2020 or sometime in 2021.

ViacomCBS could scrap its plan, too.

It's a crowded field, and CBS All Access or Showtime could always absorb any content that would've gone toward the new platform.

But, even with these existing services, ViacomCBS might ditch them to build an entirely new subscription to participate in the streaming war better than it does today.