Is Paramount + Worth It?
Not to be outdone by Disney and Warner Bros., Viacom recently announced its own streaming service , creatively called Paramount +, to launch on March 4th. An unrelenting number of new streamers – Disney +, Discovery +, Apple TV + and all the pros. Consider that when placed next to legacy companies like Hulu and Netflix, it becomes overwhelming. You might be wondering if it’s worth it. Here’s what Paramount + has to offer to help you decide if joining is right for you.
What’s this?
Paramount + is not as new as it sounds. It will effectively replace the existing CBS-All Access streaming platform, which launched back in 2014. Paramount + is committed to offering its viewers a broader range of content following the merger of CBS and Paramount parent Viacom in 2019 . The updated service will cover additional Viacom brands including BET, Comedy Central, Smithsonian Channel and Nickelodeon, as well as various films from the Paramount Pictures library. Live broadcasts of sports events and news are also present. This seems like a relatively clever rebrand for a streaming service with a reputation for not being impressive (unless you’re a Star Trek fan). A new look and more content can help new subscribers.
How Paramount + Works
If you already own CBS All Access, your account will automatically be transferred to Paramount + on March 4th (far from the disastrous transition from HBO / HBO Go / HBO Now to HBO Max.) Current CBS All Access subscribers will use their existing logins to login. access to the platform with a new brand, no additional settings are required.
If you’re new to the platform, you can sign up for CBS All Access now to get a one-week free trial. After that, the cost is $ 5.99 per month for the limited ad plan, or $ 9.99 per month for free viewing. Subscribers can also purchase an annual service upfront for $ 59.99 (no commercial use for $ 99.99), which will save you approximately $ 10-20 depending on your package choice.
Paramount + (through the future CBS All Access) is currently offering a 50% discount on subscriptions between now and the launch of the updated service. Join CBS All Access by 11:59 pm on March 3 and pay a full year in advance using discount code PARAMOUNTPLUS and you will receive annual service for just $ 2.50 per month. But is the year of the acclaimed CBS All Access worth even that?
What are you getting
Paramount + takes over CBS All Access, including all of the platform’s popular original shows and content library . Here you can catch RuPaul’s Drag Race alongside originals such as Star Trek Discovery, the rebooted Twilight Zone and Stephen King’s remake of The Stand . If you’re a fan of Avatar: The Last Airbender or Legend of Korra , there is already talk of Paramount + being home to a franchise expansion – at least after the current contracts with Netflix expire.
Paramount + can be a good bet if you want to watch more shows from the current seasons otherwise broadcast elsewhere. (After completing two seasons of You Are the One, available on Netflix, I signed up for a free trial of CBS All Access, realizing that I could continue to watch meaningless reality television there.) In addition to meeting my need for a terrible reality show, Paramount + – This promises to add 10,000 new programs from Viacom’s vast library, including films from Paramount Pictures (up to 2,500 of them by the summer, according to Variety , including new Paramount + exclusives such as the sequel Pet Sematary ) and even more TV shows from subsidiaries of Viacom. other streamers, Paramount +, will get their fair share of exclusive new series … eventually. Variety has a rundown of what we can expect over the next few years, including a spin-off of Criminal Minds , a show based on the Halo video game series, a TV adaptation of Paramount films from Love Story to The Italian Job , Frasier revival, Real World Season 1 Reunion and much more.
In an even more exciting news, Paramount also announced that the premiere of some of its future blockbusters in 2021, including the seventh film, “Mission: Impossible” and “Quiet location 2”, will be held on strimingovom service just 45 days after its launch in cinemas . This is not exactly what Warner Bros. plans to release new films on HBO Max in 31 days concurrently with their theatrical debut (a controversial strategy that seems to have paid off so far as far as you can measure ), but it definitely makes Paramount + that much more appealing.
With an ad-free subscription, customers can also download programs for offline viewing like most other streamers in 2021.
Viacom has yet to release an exhaustive list of devices that support the platform, but it’s safe to assume it will include all of those currently offered by CBS All Access, including:
- Apple TV
- iPhone and iPad
- Android TV
- Android phone and tablet
- Chromecast
- Amazon Fire TV
- TV Portal
- Playstation 4
- Samsung TV
- Vizio TV
- LG TV
- Roku
- Xbox
- Xfinity Flex
It’s hard to say, at least for now, if the added content will be enough to help Paramount + compete against the likes of Netflix, Hulu, and Prime Video, but with the chance of getting a full year at an already lower price point for the 50% off, it probably should be worth it. check. (Just be sure to set your calendar to a cancellation reminder when the first year expires, at half price.) This article was updated at 6:50 pm ET on February 24 to include the latest news on plans to debut new films on Paramount + in 45 minutes. days after they hit theaters, and again on February 25th to add more detail to the original Paramount + original series’ planned roadmap.