T-Mobile Adds to Streaming Arsenal  With a Free Year of Paramount+

(Bloomberg) -- T-Mobile US Inc. will offer a free year of the Paramount+ streaming service under an agreement with ViacomCBS Inc., extending the mobile carrier’s effort to attract new customers through giveaways.

The service will be made available to both T-Mobile and Sprint subscribers on regular monthly plans, as well as any of its home internet consumers, the Bellevue, Washington-based wireless carrier said in a statement today. The service begins Nov. 9 and is open to both new and existing Paramount+ subscribers.

T-Mobile has been piling on the streaming-service giveaways as competition cranks up among wireless carriers racing to sign new subscribers to higher-priced plans. The carrier pioneered the video promotions when it started including Netflix with its wireless service plans, and in August added a free year of Apple TV+.

For ViacomCBS, the deal adds momentum to Chief Executive Officer Bob Bakish’s plan to use beloved entertainment properties like SpongeBob SquarePants and Star Trek to build a direct relationship with viewers as the cable TV business fades. 

ViacomCBS earlier Thursday reported third-quarter subscriber additions of 4.3 million for its streaming services, which include Paramount+ and Showtime, taking the total to 47 million. That compares with 214 million for Netflix Inc. and 116 million for Walt Disney Co., which reports earnings next week. 

Streaming revenue at ViacomCBS reached $1.08 billion, just shy of the average analyst estimate of $1.09 billion. Its adjusted earnings per share matched estimates of 76 cents.

“The partnership with T-Mobile is a key part to our growth strategy as we continue to scale Paramount+ to become a global leader in streaming,” said Jeff Shultz, ViacomCBS’s chief strategy officer and chief business development officer, said in the T-Mobile statement. 

T-Mobile and ViacomCBS rose less than 1% in early trading.

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