Paramount Plus will expand its partially ad-supported tier to Canada and Australia starting next month, with plans to deploy its premium ad-free plan across Europe, starting this month in France, and the UK, Ireland, Germany, Switzerland and Austria later this year.
Paramount Plus' "Basic (with ads)" plan will be priced at $6.99 in both local currencies within Canada and Australia, with Premium priced at €10.99 a month in Europe.
"Our pricing strategy and a market-by-market approach to our offering is key to providing customers choice, flexibility and value," said Marco Nobili, executive VP and international GM of Paramount Plus, in a statement. "The ‘Premium’ tier has demonstrated great success in Canada, Australia and Latin America, and I am confident this offering will enable us to reach new subscribers in Europe, as well. As we launch ‘Basic (with ads)’ in our international markets, we can also offer our incredible content at an even more competitive price to ultimately increase our reach and expand our advertising offerings to partners."
Also read -- Point-Counterpoint: Should Paramount Plus Be Thrown Off the Mountain?
Paramount Plus' expansion comes as the equity analyst community begins to express grave doubts that Paramount will stop losing gobs of money on subscription streaming in the foreseeable future. Paramount's DTC losses have narrowed of late, but they show no sign of completely ending soon.
Standing out among the bearish crowd has been LightShed Partners' celebrity analyst, Rich Greenfield, who last week called the creation of Paramount Plus a "critical mistake."
On Tuesday, Greenfield also questioned the international expansion plans.
Insanity: Doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a diffferent result Anyone at $PARA authorizing the expansion of Paramount+ should be terminated immediately https://t.co/PkSjnifjLC https://t.co/8n4gdWbpoTMarch 19, 2024
