Paramount+’s Secret Takeover

As we continuously await the FCC decisions to get to work on their CBS license transfer instead of loitering around and sending vague responses for not finishing it, Paramount has quietly continued to do what it needs to do to survive in the current economic environment. Its flagship streaming service, Paramount+, is now up to 79 million subscribers and is doing better than what most executives and analysts thought it was capable of.

But the one thing that is stirring the conversation is that Paramount+ had the second-most Top 10 SVOD originals in the US. Behind Netflix and ahead of its competitors, such as Prime Video, Max, and, surprisingly, Disney+, it demonstrates the cohesion of its streaming operations, especially since the departure of Bob Bakish.

1924 (Paramount+)

We all know who's responsible for this: Taylor Sheridan. 

Sheridan has created some of, if not all of, Paramount+'s biggest hits. And yes, they're bigger than the Star Trek shows on there. Without the mothership series of Yellowstone in the US, it has been successful internationally. (We don't track Peacock's viewership, but Yellowstone is doing well for NBCUniversal for however long they have it; 2027, according to a report) Without the mothership, Sheridan produced 1883, the prequel series, to much applause and viewership.

He went on to create many other series, the follow-up 1923 (which was watched over 1.06  billion minutes, almost as much as an average big Netflix series), the upcoming 1943, and many other series including Tulsa King, Landman (watched by over 15 million viewers in the 2024–25 season), Mayor of Kingstown, Lawmen: Bass Reeves, and Lioness. It was also announced that CBS would get its own Yellowstone series, currently titled Y: Marshals, which will premiere midseason next year in 2026, while the new Yellowstone sequel series goes to Paramount Network (it was stated by Bloomberg that it will be able to stream on Paramount+).

MobLand (Paramount+)

Outside the SheridanVerse, Paramount is looking to ramp up some new content to diversify itself. With the recent success of MobLand, a crime drama by Ronan Bennett starring Tom Hardy that's showing its success as a Top 10 series for the streamer, with 385 minutes being watched in the first 4 episodes, and Happy Face, Paramount is seemingly looking for more drama-based series. Star Trek: Strange New Worlds returns in July, Criminal Minds: Evolution just returned with its 3rd season (technically 17th season), and a new NCIS spinoff based on the characters Tony & Ziva will debut in August.

Speaking of NCIS, which has over 786 million minutes across Paramount+, Hulu, and Netflix, CBS is also a significant factor in Paramount+'s success in the US. The network closely competitive to Netflix is giving Paramount+ a necessary boost in viewership with their biggest show, Tracker, which was watched by over 17 million viewers this season. Despite sitting out in the NBA rights race, the NFL and the UEFA Champions League also help them in the sporting race. CBS could have a chance at something new with ESPN's MLB rights and UFC rights up for grabs. Chris McCarthy, one of the CEOs in the trio, has shared a hint of interest.

And don't turn off (Paramount+ with) Showtime. It has been reigning on its successful series like The Agency, and with the return of The Chi and the new Dexter sequel series, Dexter: Resurrection. We can't forget about Yellowjackets, which generated buzz throughout the season with more than 500 million minutes watched.

South Park (Comedy Central)

We can't forget the elephant in the room with South Park. After 5 years of being locked away and seemingly no promotion at times on (HBO) Max, which is rebranding back because of its identity crisis within their company, South Park's streaming rights finally lands back with its rightful owner at Paramount, which will help ease the confusion that was caused by the "streaming events" deal. (which is a lawsuit with WBD still pending a decision)

(EDITOR'S NOTE: While writing this piece, Deadline dropped a bomb that while South Park's exclusive rights on HBO Max expires on June 30 and Paramount+ getting the chance to start streaming as soon as July 1, they are reporting that Paramount are in talks with WBD to give HBO Max non-exclusive rights to the series, presumably as reparations and as a settlement for the lawsuit)

With South Park's streaming rights with Paramount and assuming the new leadership with Skydance giving the creators a renewal and their liberties, we might see South Park as the first scripted cable series to stream the next day on Paramount+. (Season 27 premieres July 9 on Comedy Central)

This will, in turn, start transitioning most of their cable content to next-day streaming. Warner Bros. Discovery stated during its upfront that it was working for them and could work for Paramount in the current environment. When Paramount shut down most of their TVA apps, many consumers felt lost trying to catch up on the latest episodes. This will benefit their networks, like MTV and Nickelodeon, and reignite value in them. This is an important step for those networks in the long run, especially when Skydance was said to lower its dependence on cable networks.

Paramount knows that the median audience for Paramount+ is the late 30s/early 40s median audience, so it's good that they're taking note and stepping back on what's not working, despite hurting the small audience who watches content similar to the now-removed content from the service. When the right time comes through, some of the removed content will return to the service and, if not, possibly also get licensed to other services for quick cash. That way, they won't completely alienate the preexisting audience for that content.

SpongeBob SquarePants (Nickelodeon)

One of those audiences that feels like it's been scaling back just a little is the kids and family core, primarily dominated by YouTube, Netflix, and Disney+. SpongeBob SquarePants is among Paramount+'s most-watched "acquired" programs, with over 600 million minutes watched. In comparison, Bluey is watched over 907 million minutes. According to a data chart from Precise.tv, less than 20% of kids binge-watch Paramount+, 9th overall among streamers. In comparison, around 43% of kids binge-watch YouTube.

Despite this, Paramount is still interested in investing in kids and families, having had success with SpongeBob and Paw Patrol, and relaunching franchises including Dora, TMNT, and Fairly OddParents, among others.

The reality TV genre was also scaled back with the many removals based on low-watched seasons of reality shows and the removal of said shows. This is why it's essential that the current seasons of reality shows on MTV need their push on Paramount+ with next-day streaming alongside the linear premieres. So far, only The Daily Show on Comedy Central capitalizes on this method.

While the Skydance merger and new executives may change some outlooks for the company, Paramount looks to remain diligent in this streaming era. As almost every company has stepped back in the race, declaring Netflix the winner, Paramount+ still has some room and steps to make to continue to make a name for itself. Only below HBO Max in streaming numbers by 40 million, P+ will eventually capitalize on its newfound success when the right amount of content comes through. HBO Max's overreliance on HBO deters the already misguided WBD. Make way for the little Paramount that could.