Paramount Global and Charter Communications said they reached a new carriage agreement that gives the cable operator’s Spectrum customers Paramount’s streaming services as well as its broadcast and cable programming.
Charter signed a similar deal with The Walt Disney Co. last year. The cable company believes its customers should continue to get the programming media companies are moving to streaming without having to pay more.
The new deal gives Charter’s Spectrum subscribers the ad-supported versions of Paramount Plus and BET Plus, as well as networks including CBS, Comedy Central and Nickelodeon.
Financial terms were not disclosed.
"From the outset, Paramount has embraced Charter's goal of evolving the video distribution model, and we have appreciated their willingness to collaborate on a solution that benefits our mutual customers and the video industry as a whole," said Tom Montemagno, executive VP, programming acquisition for Charter.
“Spectrum continues to transform the cable bundle to become the best destination and value for video customers and we expect to continue to add more enhancements like this in the near future,” Montemagno said.
The deal comes with Paramont’s future ownership in question. There have been several bidders for Paramount and having a carriage deal with the nation’s largest cable operator should bolster Paramount’s value.
”We are very pleased to renew and expand our long-standing partnership with Charter to provide continued access to Paramount's leading portfolio of broadcast, entertainment, news and sports brands,“ Ray Hopkins, president of U.S. Networks Distribution at Paramount, said. “This innovative deal celebrates our mutual commitment to deliver flexibility, choice and value for audiences everywhere, and we look forward to bringing even more of our fan-favorite programming to Spectrum customers through our direct-to-consumer streaming services for the first time.”
Under the deal:
- Charter will continue to carry Paramount’s CBS owned-and-operated broadcast television stations, along with all of Paramount's current cable networks and Paramount Plus with Showtime, in relevant tiers across all Spectrum TV Select packages, Mi Plan Latino, TV Choice and TV Stream.
- Later this year, Paramount Plus Essential and BET Plus + Essential will be made available at no additional cost to all Spectrum TV Select packages and Mi Plan Latino customers through the Xumo Stream Box or any other Paramount Plus supported device, and the Paramount Plus with Showtime plan will continue to be received at no cost by all of Spectrum's Paramount Plus with Showtime linear customers as well.
- Spectrum customers that have Paramount Plus + Essential included will be offered the opportunity to upgrade to the ad-free version of Paramount Plus with Showtime later this year.
