In a year marked by unprecedented challenges, ViacomCBS’ domestic distribution group secured a string of successful deals and partnerships.

The distribution division is responsible for negotiating with partners to carry ViacomCBS broadcast and cable networks. Following the merger of Viacom and CBS a year ago, ViacomCBS’ distribution team brought its expanded portfolio of leading broadcast, news, sports, and popular entertainment brands to the negotiation table—leading to agreements that increased revenue for ViacomCBS and unlocked value for its partners. The team closed major carriage deals with Verizon, Comcast, DISH, and YouTube TV, as well as broadcast affiliate deals with Nexstar, Meredith, Sinclair, and Cox Media Group.

“When you take a look at our portfolio, it is one of the most-watched that any content group can offer. It reaches all demos and features must-have content, including the CBS broadcast network, sports, cable brands like MTV, BET, and Comedy Central, and our premium offering with SHOWTIME,” says Ray Hopkins, president of ViacomCBS U.S. Networks Distribution. “If distributors want to be competitive, they need to do a deal with us.”

On January 4, as a capstone to its year of deals, ViacomCBS announced a new agreement with Hulu. The company’s live TV subscription streaming service, Hulu + Live TV, which previously offered subscribers CBS content, including CBS Broadcast stations, CBS Sports Network, Pop TV, Smithsonian Channel, will also introduce legacy Viacom channels like MTV, Nickelodeon, BET, Comedy Central, Paramount Network. The deal ensures that Hulu + Live TV subscribers now have access to the entire breadth of ViacomCBS content across news, sports and entertainment for the first time.

New Team, Same Goals

The ViacomCBS U.S. Networks Distribution team was one of the first departments within the company to combine following the merger. The team only spent one day in the office together before the COVID-19 pandemic forced everyone to work from home.

“With big deals coming up, we knew we needed to create a cohesive team quickly. People were going to be working remotely around the clock, so we had to ensure that they felt like they were part of something bigger. It sounds obvious, but we needed to foster relationships within the department so people could not only get the work done, they could feel good about doing it,” says Deena Demasi, EVP, Marketing for ViacomCBS’ U.S. Networks Distribution.

Demasi and her team instituted a couple of measures to create a cohesive culture virtually so the teams could feel closer and build personal relationships. They worked with Hopkins to pen weekly notes that reveal a more personal side of the leader, as well as a newsletter about what’s happening in the organization. They also set up meeting opportunities called “three cups of coffee,” where employees have 15-minute coffee chats with someone they may not know from another team within the distribution group. The group launched virtual lunch-and-learns and curated sessions on wellness and diversity and inclusion to give team members a chance to expand their skills and connections.

“It’s important that people feel connected and valued. Not just because we want them to be happy, but because that enables them to do their best work,” Demasi says.

For Mickey Carter, EVP, U.S. Networks Distribution, who came from the CBS side, the process of bringing the teams together has been a great exercise in preparing for the challenges that they quickly faced due to COVD-19.

“It’s one of those experiences where it's either going to be really rough and tear you apart, or it's going to galvanize you. Thankfully, the experience galvanized us-- we had to figure out quickly how to work well together, how to get to know each other from remote locations, and, ultimately, how to trust each other,” he said.

Creating a Virtual “War Room”

Last May, ViacomCBS announced an expanded distribution deal with YouTube TV to debut 14 ViacomCBS channels to the streaming service, which previously carried CBS broadcast stations, CBS Sports Network, Pop TV, Smithsonian Channel, The CW and SHOWTIME.

“Pre-merger, Viacom had two holes in distribution, with YouTube TV and Hulu Live,” says Josh Clark, SVP, U.S. Networks Distribution, who worked with Hopkins to close the Hulu deal. “We got both of these done within the first year of being a newly combined group, which proves both the value of the merger and the successful melding of two great deal teams.”

Another one of the highlights in the distribution division’s year of landmark deals was reaching an agreement with DISH. Negotiations in the industry typically occur in what would be called a “war room” setting, but that dynamic was forced to change due to COVID-19.

DISH was the first virtual deal and cross-company deal for ViacomCBS. This forced new environment helped the team come together more closely, especially after merging together from the respective Viacom and CBS sides only weeks prior.

“Based upon past dealings, we have good relationships and I think people trust the words coming out of our mouths,” says Carter. “That means a lot when you're trying to get deals done under difficult circumstances. Relationships matter and I think that we have good relationships and those help you get through even really difficult situations and circumstances when you're trying to close the deal.”

These deals are often challenging, says Clark. He explains that the added combination of a work-from-home environment amplified that complexity in the beginning. However, being able to pull an all-nighter from his own home vs. adding on a commute has its benefits.

“I've done deals where you are in the war room. You can go over every line of a several-hundred-page contract in real time with the other party. The downside is that you’re usually on their turf,” he says. “There are a lot of deals in more recent history that were done remotely. The only negative for us is that we’re not in the same room as our own team. So, it required a lot of phone calls or talking over Zoom at all hours of the night.”

Partnering with Broadcast Affiliates

In addition to expanding its distribution footprint, ViacomCBS also bolstered relationships with its affiliates—securing deals with Sinclair, Cox, Nexstar, and Meredith. In the Q3 earnings results in November, President and CEO Bob Bakish reported that affiliate revenue for CBS grew 25% year-over-year, driven by growth in retransmission fees and strong subscription streaming revenue.

Nexstar is ViacomCBS’ largest affiliate partner, reaching 15% of U.S. households in cities like Raleigh and Las Vegas. Meredith is one of the company’s largest Affiliate group owners. In 2020, the affiliate deals renewed all seven of their CBS Affiliate partnerships including Atlanta, Phoenix and St. Louis.

“There are 210 markets across the country where every one of our CBS affiliates is available on multiple platforms,” says David Comisar, SVP, affiliate distribution at CBS Television Network, who has been with the company for 25 years. “We try to craft an opportunity for each affiliate that would be attractive to them, not only because of the revenue they can generate, but also because of the impact they can have in their communities by combining their local content with our premium news, sports and entertainment programming.”

With 2020 behind them, the U.S. Networks Distribution team has already started off 2021 on a high note, thanks to Hulu, and the relationships the team has built over the course of the last year will power continued success, according to Hopkins.

“I’m proud of how our team has come together, and we’re just getting started,” said Hopkins. “We generated a lot of momentum over the past year and are excited to keep it going."