Paramount+ Adds Live Channels for Lean-Back Viewing

Paramount+ is rolling out live programming channels on its service, which will give paid subscribers the option to watch shows just like they would on linear TV. The new way to watch, which will roll out today to all Paramount+ subscribers, will include more than a dozen themed channels based around various content genres and franchises, including kid-friendly programming, crime and justice-related programming, reality TV competition series and Star Trek shows. In all, 18 channels will be available at the start, and Paramount+ will continue to roll out new channels later this month. The channels will be programmed 24/7 so viewers will be able to find something to watch right away no matter when they start channel-surfing. Rediscovering channel-surfing The move is designed to minimize the frustration some consumers face of searching for the perfect thing to watch in an on-demand environment and give users the ability to start watching something right away. It also quite intentionally looks a lot like Paramount+’s sister streamer Pluto TV, which is expected to make $5 billion this year by programming hundreds of free ad-supported always-on channels. “Even in the era of on-demand, there is clearly a strong consumer appetite for reimagined linear channels that provide effortless, lean-back entertainment,” Tom Ryan, the president and CEO of ViacomCBS Streaming, said in a statement. “Inspired and informed by the winning model Pluto TV pioneered and popularized, these highly curated channels underscore the power of our unified streaming organization and serve as a product differentiator in the SVOD space, by offering subscribers yet another way to experience and discover programming on Paramount+.” The channels will join other live viewing experiences already available on Paramount+, including live viewing of NFL and UEFA coverage and breaking news from CBSN and Entertainment Tonight. Paramount+’s new live channel offering, which Ryan first hinted at when Paramount+ debuted in March, adds to the growing trend among streaming services, including NBCUniversal's Peacock, to build out live channels and mimic the viewing experience of old-school linear TV. Other streamers, including Peacock and Roku, have also rolled out live channels to varying degrees of success. Giving viewers the ability to channel surf instead, as opposed to hunting for the perfect program on which to press play, isn’t just designed to help consumers find something to watch—it can also help boost overall advertising inventory that streamers can monetize, Adweek previously reported. “There’s just an immense amount of content being produced, but where is all of it going to air?” Cara Lewis, evp, video investment, Dentsu Aegis, previously told Adweek. “These channels are a way to get old and new content out there. Platforms know the consumer is shifting there, so they need to get scale and they need to get inventory in order to have something to sell.” With Always-On Channels, Streamers Are Looking More and More Like Traditional TV