Quick Read
• DirecTV and U-Verse customers will soon get free access to Paramount Plus as part of their Showtime subscription.
• Paramount relaunched its flagship Showtime channel under the “Paramount Plus with Showtime” name this month; other Showtime channels are unaffected by the rebrand.
• DirecTV charges $12 per month for a Showtime subscription, which will eventually include complementary access to Paramount Plus.
Satellite and streaming TV provider DirecTV says it will soon offer customers with a Showtime subscription access to the Paramount Plus with Showtime streaming service as part of their plan.
The announcement comes as Paramount Global rebrands its flagship multiplex movie network under the same Paramount Plus with Showtime name as its cornerstone subscription-based streaming service.
The main Showtime networks, Showtime East and Showtime West, will adopt the Paramount Plus branding as part of the change, while ancillary channels like Showtime 2, Sho X BET, Showtime Extreme and Showtime Family Zone will remain unchanged. As part of the rebranding, Paramount is incorporating more Paramount Plus original films and series into Showtime, with programs like “1883,” “1923” and “Halo” landing on cable and satellite television for the first time.
For years, eligible cable and satellite customers with Showtime subscriptions have used a standalone Showtime Anytime app to stream content online. Last month, Paramount executives affirmed the company would shut down the Showtime Anytime app and move customers over to Paramount Plus with Showtime, once it is able to fully integrate the service with its cable and satellite partners.
This week, DirecTV affirmed it will soon offer access to the Paramount Plus with Showtime app if a customer subscribes to the Paramount Plus with Showtime multiplex movie network as part of their DirecTV subscription, though it offered no definitive date on when the perk will be available. The subscription will remain priced at $12 per month when purchased through DirecTV, and satellite and streaming customers will also have access to a number of linear Showtime channels, depending on how they receive service.
DirecTV via Satellite, DirecTV via Internet and U-Verse TV subscribers will get access to Paramount Plus with Showtime’s East and West feeds, along with the 10 Showtime, Flix and The Movie Channel multiplex channels. (Flix and The Movie Channel are also owned by Paramount.) Those with DirecTV Stream will get the East Coast feed of Paramount Plus with Showtime, along with six Showtime multiplex channels. The Movie Channel and Flix are not offered.
All customers will have access to Paramount Plus with Showtime on-demand through the DirecTV and U-Verse TV platforms, and all will get complementary access to the Paramount Plus with Showtime app as part of their Showtime subscription in the future, DirecTV said.
Paramount Plus is also available as a standalone purchase, without a DirecTV or U-Verse TV subscription, priced at $6 per month with advertisements (but now Showtime content) or $12 per month for Paramount Plus with Showtime (which also includes live access to a subscriber’s local CBS station or affiliate).
All Paramount Plus plans include streaming access to regionally-televised National Football League (NFL) games, as well as live soccer games and access to a curated selection of free streaming channels like CBS News and CBS Sports Golazo Network.
