Paramount Global has released its fourth-quarter financial results, reporting a streaming loss ahead of its planned sale to Skydance Media. The company had previously stated that the timing of content releases and marketing expenses would lead to a Q4 streaming loss, despite expectations for Paramount+ to reach domestic profitability in 2025. For the direct-to-consumer (DTC) segment, which includes Pluto TV and BET+, Paramount posted an adjusted OIBDA loss of $286 million, improving from a $490 million loss in the same period last year. Additionally, the studio saw a $1.2 billion improvement in full-year DTC adjusted OIBDA, reducing the loss to $497 million.
Paramount+ added 5.6 million new subscribers in the latest quarter, bringing its total to 77.5 million. This is a jump from the 3.5 million subscribers added in the previous quarter. However, the company anticipates slower subscriber growth in early 2025, given the timing of content releases.
The company’s fourth-quarter revenue grew 5% to $7.98 billion, compared to $7.63 billion in the previous year. Despite this, Paramount reported a net loss of $224 million, a shift from its $514 million profit in Q4 2023.
DTC revenue rose 8% to $2.01 billion, supported by growth in Paramount+ and cost efficiencies. Furthermore, the TV media division saw a 4% decline in revenue to $4.98 billion, due to lower linear TV ad revenue and fewer sporting events on CBS, though this was partially offset by an increase in political advertising.
Meanwhile, the filmed entertainment division saw a 67% revenue jump to $1.08 billion, largely driven by upcoming releases like Gladiator II and Sonic the Hedgehog 3.
During an earnings call, Brian Robbins, Paramount’s co-CEO, emphasized the company’s focus on franchise growth and leveraging Paramount’s extensive content library.
The studio reported an operating income of $129 million, down from $404 million in the same quarter last year. Additionally, the company’s per-share loss was 33 cents, compared to a 77-cent per-share gain in the previous year.
Co-CEOs George Cheeks, Chris McCarthy, and Robbins, said, “We are proud of the transformative year we delivered since becoming co-CEOs, which marks a significant turning point for Paramount as we shift into a streaming-first company. DTC profitability improved $1.2 billion in 2024, driven by an impressive year at Paramount+, where we added 10 million new subscribers and delivered a 33% increase in revenue, which gives us great confidence Paramount+ will achieve full-year domestic profitability for 2025.”
The planned sale of Paramount Global to Skydance Media remains on track and is expected to close in the first half of 2025.