Lots of rodeo and bull riding are about to show up for streaming audiences.
Pluto TV and PBR have announced a joint partnership that brings PBR’s current bull-riding-and-rodeo-based streaming service, PBR RidePass, exclusively to Pluto TV starting July 20.
The new content will be launched as both a linear channel on the service as well as an on-demand destination that will feature hundreds of hours of live professional bull-riding, rodeo, and other western sporting events.
In addition, as part of the partnership, Pluto TV will market its service to PBR fans and become one of the sport’s largest partners. The launch of PBR RidePass on Pluto TV will mark its transition from a subscription-based streaming service to an ad-supported streaming channel.
Programming will include marquee rodeos like the WCRA Triple Crown, Indian National Finals Rodeo, Bill Pickett Invitational Rodeo, and National High School Rodeo Finals, premier horse and equestrian events, including “Road to the Horse,” highlight shows, and western sports shoulder programming.
Pluto TV
Pluto TV is a free live TV streaming service that provides more than 350 channels of live TV and thousands of on demand movies and TV shows.
“This new relationship with Pluto TV allows PBR to super-serve fans with hundreds of events and thousands of hours of great western sports programming now available for free,” said Sean Gleason, Commissioner, and CEO, PBR. “With PBR’s linear and streaming live event content all within the ViacomCBS family through CBS and Pluto TV, we will benefit from tremendous synergies to grow this first-of-its-kind sports network.”
PBR RidePass first launched in February 2018, and brought coverage of live PBR tours along with dozens of rodeo and western sporting events to audiences. The addition of PBR RidePass programming to Pluto TV will complement its already strong lineup of western-themed programming that includes the Westerns Channel, the Pluto TV Westerns dedicated movie channel, and a newly-launched channel dedicated to the Steve McQueen Western series, Wanted Dead or Alive.
“Pluto TV is excited to be the new exclusive home for PBR RidePass, our first dedicated live sports and lifestyle channel featuring PBR’s marquee lineup of live rodeos, bull-riding, and western sports,” said Tom Ryan, CEO, and President of ViacomCBS Streaming. “We are the perfect destination to entertain PBR’s vast and loyal fanbase and are proud to be able to deliver this best-in-sport streaming content, for free, for the very first time.”
The first marquee rodeo to be carried live on Pluto TV is Days of 47 Cowboy Games and Rodeo on July 20-24 from Utah Fair State Park with all five rounds of competition streamed free on Pluto TV.