Paramount+ Makes a Big Change to Showtime

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It’s been a long climb to the mountaintop for Paramount+, which actually began as “CBS All Access” back in 2014. The service includes content from all the cable networks, studios, and outlets under the Paramount Global parent company, including CBS, Nickelodeon, and Paramount Pictures. For years, Showtime was available as a separate subscription, or as an add-on at the highest tier of Paramount+. Tying those two brands together led to some confusion for users, and now the company is disentangling them.

The reason is that “a sampling of Showtime programming” is now available on the cheaper “Essential” plan for Paramount+ subscribers, which means it is not the exclusive province of the more expensive plan. Now, Paramount+ essential costs $7.99 per month, while Paramount+ Premium costs $12.99 per month. The cheaper plan features some advertisements, and does not include as much Showtime content as the Premium plan.

Commenters were quick to associate this move with the recent change at Warner Bros. Discovery. The company’s in-house streamer launched in 2020 as HBO Max, reflecting the popularity of the stand-alone streaming services for the HBO network. However, this service also included content from all of WBD’s subsidiaries, and there were some concerns that users were put off by the “HBO” branding. The streamer was renamed Max in 2022, but earlier this year, that course was reversed and it was renamed HBO Max once again.

There are similar branding shifts taking place throughout the streaming industry as parent companies try to streamline their assets while taking full advantage of all the brand names under their control — from legendary logos like Amazon’s MGM+ to stubbornly popular new outlets like Discovery+. For Paramount+ users, the only change will be the names and logos, so this one may skate by unnoticed.