A drastically different streaming landscape may be on the horizon. Reports late last week stated that Peacock and Paramount+ parent companies are in early-stage discussions of potentially merging the two platforms or joining forces in another way. A collaboration of sorts between Peacock and Paramount+ wouldn’t be the first time major streaming services have worked together to boost subscriptions for multiple platforms, but a merger of this scale would likely have considerable effects on the streaming industry.
Potential Mergers Have Been Discussed in the Past While Some Already Exist
Don’t get excited just yet, though. Those same reports say the discussions between the companies have not gone beyond brainstorming ideas. A potential merger shouldn’t come as too much of a surprise, though, as the two have a joint platform available on the European market called SkyShowtime.
Paramount+ has seemingly been shopping for a streaming partner in recent months. In late 2023, reports swirled that Paramount CEO Bob Bakish met with Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav about a potential merger between Paramount+ and Max. As of this writing, Paramount+ boasts 63 million subscribers while Max and Peacock have 82 million and 31 million, respectively. If Paramount+ were to combine subscribers with either Peacock or Max, it still would lag behind the top three streaming platforms: Netflix, Prime Video, and Disney+.
Upcoming Programming for Peacock and Paramount+
In the meantime, Paramount+ and Peacock will continue releasing new and exclusive content. Paramount+ just announced that Dennis Quaid has signed on to star in the upcoming series Happy Face, which dramatizes the story of the notorious serial killer with the eponymous nickname. Paramount+ is also gearing up to drop its upcoming film Little Wing, a coming-of-age story starring Succession’s Brian Cox, Yellowstone’s Kelly Reilly, and Cocaine Bear’s Brooklynn Prince.
Peacock is enjoying the success of its reality TV offerings and preparing to drop more. The U.S. version of The Traitors, currently airing its second season on Peacock, was just picked up by the platform for a third season, and the streamer has scheduled a filming date for a Season 2 cast reunion to be hosted by Andy Cohen. Couple to Throuple is now available to stream on Peacock, and new and returning NBC and Bravo reality series – including Below Deck, Summer House, Deal or No Deal Island, The Voice, and more – will soon be available to stream on the platform the day after network airings.
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