Paramount+ Pulls Multiple Titles off Service, Joining Other Streamers in Removing Content
It appears that many streaming services began 2023 with a resolution to trim down. Unlike many in the public at large, however, these services seem intent on actually fulfilling those resolutions.
Paramount+ is now the latest streamer to make cuts to its content library. According to Deadline, Paramount+ is removing seven titles from its service, including some series featuring highly recognizable actors.
The most high-profile removal from the service is “Real World: Homecoming.” The newest iteration of the beloved reality show came to Paramount+ in 2021, and has not yet officially been canceled by Paramount Global. News of such a cancelation could follow quickly, however, given that it would make little sense for Paramount to remove past episodes while still intending for future episodes to appear on Paramount+.
Other series removed from the platform include Jordan Peele’s “Twilight Zone” reboot, the true-crime drama “Interrogation” starring Peter Sarsgaard, Michael Chiklis’ “Coyote,” the black comedy “Guilty Party” helmed by Kate Beckinsale, “No Activity,” and the animated series “The Harper House.”
Paramount+ is just the latest streamer owned by Paramount Global to feel the pinch of content cuts. Earlier this week, SHOWTIME mothballed several original series and removed existing seasons from its platform. The most recent removals come just days after Paramount announced that it would be combining SHOWTIME and Paramount+ into one streaming and linear entity.
That merger is likely — in some way or another — why these shows will no longer be available to users. Paramount Global is likely paring down on less-popular content for the launch of the unified service. Streamlining the product will make it easier to maintain from a technical standpoint, and make content discovery easier for users as well. However, the biggest reason that the industry has seen for content being removed from services is purely financial. By dropping titles from the services, companies no longer have to pay out monies to their cast, crews, and creators.
Paramount is not the only company to engage in well-publicized content cuts recently. HBO Max spent much of the latter half of 2022 slashing its content library, drawing the ire of many content creators it had been working with. Netflix also canceled two nearly-complete films earlier this week, but it’s unlikely the cuts at that service or Paramount+ will reach the HBO Max levels.
STARZ and AMC+ have also had to hop on the content-removal train, to the disappointment of their viewers.
Content removal once seemed anathema to streaming providers, but the market is changing rapidly. Streamers must find the most efficient means of monetizing their customers if they’re going to survive long-term, and can’t afford to be saddled with the costs of maintaining unpopular shows on their servers. Although it’s likely few streamers will have to make major cuts the way HBO Max did last year, more content removals are probably on the way around the streaming industry.
Paramount Plus
Paramount+ is a subscription video streaming service that includes on-demand access to 40,000+ TV show episodes from BET, CBS, Comedy Central, MTV, Nickelodeon, Nick Jr. and more. The lineup includes “1883,” “Tulsa King,” “Star Trek: Discovery,” Nickelodeon’s “SpongeBob SquarePants,” and “PAW Patrol.” Subscribers can watch the NFL, college football, The Masters, college basketball, UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa, Serie A, and NWSL. The service also offers the option to watch your live CBS affiliate. The upgraded ad-free package includes premium movies and shows from Showtime.