ViacomCBS Raising $3 Billion From New Stock Offerings To Invest In Streaming

ViacomCBS said Monday it’s looking to raise $3 billion with two concurrent stock offerings and plans to use the combined net proceeds for general corporate purposes, including investments in streaming, following the recent launch of Paramount+.

The company is offering $2 billion worth of its Class B common stock and $1 billion of its Series A Mandatory Convertible Preferred Stock, according to filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Morgan Stanley and J.P. Morgan are acting as joint book-running managers for the offerings.

Paramount+ is the last of the big-ticket services to enter the streaming wars. The rebranded CBS All Access launched in the U.S. on March 4 at a premium price of $9.99 a month. A $4.99 monthly ad-supported option is set to debut in June. It is also rolling out in Latin America, Canada and the Nordics this month, followed by Australia later this year, with additional markets to come.

At an investor event in late February, before the launch, execs highlighted programming and predicted total streaming customers – including for Showtime, BET+ and Pluto TV – will hit 65-70 million by the end of 2024 with the majority coming from Paramount+.

Paramount+ will feature a content catalog of more than 30,000 episodes, 2,500 movie titles and 1,000-plus live sporting events and news coverage. More than 50 new series across multiple genres will bow during the next two years on the streamer, which promises 7,000 episodes of kids content, 5,000 of reality and 6,000 of comedy.

A number of theatrical movies will hit Par+ after a 45-day theatrical window, including Mission: Impossible 7, A Quiet Place Part II and PAW Patrol: The Movie.