By Stuart Thomson
Paramount+ is to launch on Sky platforms in the UK, Ireland, Italy, Germany, Switzerland and Austria next year as part of a new multi-year distribution agreement that also includes the extended carriage of ViacomCBS’ portfolio of pay TV channels and the renewal of Sky as an ad sales partner in select markets.
Paramount+ is the latest app to come to the Sky Q advanced TV platform, adding more than 10,000 hours of content to the service.
Upon launch, Sky Cinema subscribers will get the bonus of Paramount+ included at no additional cost, providing access to two fantastic services side by side with more than 10,000 hours of extra content for one affordable price. As part of this partnership, Paramount Pictures’ feature films will remain available on Sky Cinema in the UK and will join Sky Cinema in Germany and Italy in 2022. All other Sky customers will be able to subscribe to Paramount+ as an add-on to their account.
Paramount+ features content from brands and studios including Showtime BET, CBS, Comedy Central, MTV, Nickelodeon, Paramount Pictures and the Smithsonian Channel, in addition to local content.
Titles that will become available through 2022 in the UK, Ireland, Italy and the German-speaking countries include HALO, The Offer and the new iCarly series.
From Showtime the service will offer The Man Who Fell to Earth, Ripley, Super Pumped, and American Gigolo, in addition to titles from ViacomCBS, such as Kamp Koral: SpongeBob’s Under Years, Star Trek: Prodigy, and MTV Unplugged.
Paramount+ will also be available direct-to-consumer in UK, Ireland, Italy and GSA through the Paramount+ app for iOS and Android and across supported connected TV devices and OTT platforms. Pricing and local content offering will be announced at a later date.
ViacomCBS and Sky have also reached a multi-year extension for carriage of ViacomCBS’ linear channels — including Comedy Central, MTV and Nickelodeon — in the UK, Ireland, Italy and German-speaking Europe.
ViacomCBS renewed its multi-year agreement with Sky as an ad sales partner for all platforms and channels in the UK and Italy. Sky Media will continue to handle ad sales across the ViacomCBS portfolio of channels, including Channel 5 in the UK.
“We are thrilled to expand our long-standing partnership with Sky to continue delivering ViacomCBS’ leading portfolio of premium entertainment brands to Sky customers and importantly bring Paramount+ to new audiences in all Sky markets, including the UK, Ireland, Italy, and GSA. This transformative distribution deal is key to accelerating our global ambitions in streaming while also supporting Sky’s strategic objectives to better serve audiences with greater flexibility in how they consume our content across all platforms,” said president and CEO, ViacomCBS Networks International, Raffaele Annecchino.
EVP and chief executive, UK and Europe at Sky Stephen van Rooyen said: “This is another example of how we are innovating for our customers and further aggregating all the best apps and content together in one place on Sky Q, giving them more great TV to watch than ever before. Paramount+ is an excellent service with a huge range of fantastic films and TV series, and our new, broader agreement with ViacomCBS will benefit both businesses.”
