Paramount anticipates profitability on streaming by 2025

Paramount is anticipating being profitable on streaming by the end of 2025, company leadership told investors Wednesday.

As part of a report to investors on fourth-quarter earnings from last year, the company said it had reached 67.5 million subscribers on Paramount+ after netting 4.1 million in the fourth quarter of 2023.

Subscription revenue grew 43 percent, Paramount said, attributing the increase to new subscriber growth and pricing increases for its direct-to-consumer streamer Paramount+.

Advertising revenue on linear television, however, was down 15 percent, reflecting what the company called “continued softness in the global advertising market and a 5 percentage point impact from lower political advertising.”

“Our disciplined execution and strong content offering drove our results in 2023, as we continue to evolve our business for profitable growth in 2024 and beyond,” said president and CEO Bob Bakish. “We now expect to reach domestic Paramount+ profitability in 2025 — a significant milestone. Looking ahead, we continue to be focused on maximizing the return on our content investments and scaling streaming, while transforming the cost base of our business.”

Paramount’s report to investors comes as the company explores a potential sale amid larger questions about its profitability. On Tuesday, CNBC reported talks of a possible merger between Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery had stalled out.

Paramount owns several of the country’s largest media brands, including CBS, MTV and Nickelodeon.