ViacomCBS added 4.3 million global streaming subscribers in its third quarter ended in September, driven by the Paramount+ service, to reach nearly 47 million global paid users, the entertainment company reported on Thursday.
It had ended the second quarter with more than 42 million global paid streaming customers after adding about 6.5 million in the April-June period. For the third quarter, analysts had on average forecast 3.9 million additions. In the first quarter, running from January through March, the company had added 6.0 million.
Quarterly streaming revenue surpassed $1 billion for the first time, ViacomCBS highlighted. The firm's global streaming revenue jumped again in the latest quarter, including gains in subscription and advertising revenue, led by ad-supported streamer Pluto TV, which also added users in the latest period.
Also on Thursday, the conglomerate unveiled a new streaming distribution deal with T-Mobile. The wireless company will give new and existing customers on post-paid plans a free year of the advertising-supported tier of Paramount+. After a year, the service will automatically renew for $4.99 per month, or whatever price the service will then have.
In its third-quarter earnings report, ViacomCBS posted a 1 percent advertising revenue gain over the year-ago period, which had been hit by the coronavirus pandemic, and higher distribution revenue.
ViacomCBS' total quarterly revenue came in slightly ahead of Wall Street estimates.
The conglomerate's film unit benefited from the success of Paw Patrol: The Movie and more business for A Quiet Place Part II, which had debuted in the second quarter. But quarterly revenue fell 2 percent to $580 million on lower licensing revenue. Adjusted operating income before depreciation and amortization in the film unit declined by $16 million to $38 million, "reflecting lower profits from current year releases as a result of higher distribution costs, as well as distribution costs associated with anticipated releases."
Wells Fargo analyst Steven Cahall in mid-October lowered his forecast for third-quarter global paid streaming user net additions from 5 million. "The rollout of international markets timing is the main driver behind our modest revision lower," he explained. That lowered his global sub count estimate to 46.1 million as of the end of September.
ViacomCBS was created in December 2019 via the recombination of Viacom and CBS Corp. Its paying streaming services are led by the former CBS All-Access, which beefed up and rebranded in the U.S. on March 4 as Paramount+, and Showtime OTT.