BET


Paramount abandons sale plan for BET

Paramount Global has given up on plans to sell a majority stake in BET Media Group, according to a report in the Wall Street Journal. According to the paper, the company revealed yesterday that it would end the bidding process for the outfit having concluded that a sale would not enable it to deleverage its […]

Paramount explores Noggin and BET Media sales

Paramount Global, the company behind streaming platform Paramount+, is reported to be plotting the sale of online kids platform Noggin. News that the company wants to sell the service follows similar rumours that it is also looking to divest BET Media. Paramount has not commented on the Noggin rumours, but the Wall Street Journal cited […]

Paramount exploring BET sale with Tyler Perry, Byron Allen named as potential buyers

Paramount Global is exploring a sale of BET Media, with Tyler Perry and The Weather Channel owner Byron Allen among potential suitors. The BET division is focused on Black culture and includes flagship network BET, streamer BET+, VH1 – which moved into the division last year – and BET Studios. The latter was launched by Paramount in […]

Paramount shifts VH1 brand into BET ecosystem

Paramount CEO Bob Bakish has unveiled the next phase of his internal company reorganisation, moving the iconic MTV spin-off channel VH1 into the Black Entertainment (BET) Media Group, which includes BET, BET+, BET Her, BET Studios and BET Digital. In a memo, he said the move is part of his blueprint to “accelerate the transformation […]

ViacomCBS ups Scott M. Mills to CEO of BET

ViacomCBS has announced the promotion of Scott M. Mills to the role of CEO of BET. Mills previously served as president of the broadcaster since 2018, and has overseen the expansion of it from a linear broadcaster to a streaming operator with BET+. He is attributed to making BET “the largest commissioner of Black premium […]

BET goes all-digital in UK with My5 shift

ViacomCBS has announced the shift of black entertainment network BET to My5, making the BVOD service the official home of the channel in the UK.  BET content has been on My5 since 2018 and the brand has had five consecutive quarters of YoY growth on the BVOD. The media giant also announced that it will […]

ViacomCBS launches BET in Brazil via AVOD Pluto TV

ViacomCBS Networks International (VCNI) is rolling out its Black audience-focused network BET in Brazil via AVOD service Pluto TV. BET will debut on 26 March as a 24/7 channel, featuring an array of shows from its US sibling such as Being Mary Jane, Real Husbands Of Hollywood, American Soul, Boomerang, and Tyler Perry’s Assisted Living. VCNI said more content would […]

CBS All Access and Showtime reach collective 10 million subs for ViacomCBS

ViacomCBS’s premium streaming services – CBS All Access and Showtime – have reached a collective 10 million subscribers, the company has said.  Speaking at the Television Critics Association winter press tour, CBS Interactive CEO and ViacomCBS chief digital officer Marc DeBevoise confirmed the milestone, and said that the broadcaster is “in a great position to […]

BET+ to launch September 19

Viacom-owned BET is launching its premium SVOD on September 19. The African American-targetted SVOD will launch in the US at US$9.99 per month and feature over 1,000 hours of existing and new original content.  BET+, a joint venture between BET Networks and Tyler Perry Studios, was announced in June. Scott Mills, president of BET Networks, […]

OTT platforms to benefit from CBS/Viacom merger “in the very near future”

The OTT platforms of ViacomCBS will see a boost from the just-concluded merger “quite soon”, the company’s top execs have confirmed. Speaking on a conference call, CBS chairman and CEO Joe Ianniello identified direct-to-consumer streaming as one of the company’s key pillars of growth, and said that the breadth of content made available by the […]