CBS Pursuing Stand-Alone Strategy

Les Moonves

The top executive at CBS Corp. said the company was following a strategy based on wringing the most dollars out of content and distribution, even as it considers a potential tie-up with sister corporation Viacom Inc., according to Variety.

“We are in the very early stages” of considering a possible merger with Viacom, said CBS Chairman and CEO Leslie Moonves in remarks made at an annual investor conference held by UBS. “There are a lot of lawyers, a lot of bankers. We are very happy with the way we are as a standalone company.” When it comes to Viacom, Moonves said. “Anything could happen.”

The owners of CBS and Viacom, which are controlled by the Redstone family through their ownership of movie-exhibition company National Amusements Inc., have placed pressure on both to consider the idea of coming together. In September, National Amusements sent a letter asking both companies to explore the idea of a merger. Viacom and CBS were joined together in 2000, then separated a few years later by Sumner Redstone.

But Moonves placed more emphasis during his talk on CBS’ interest in making its way on the rapidly changing terrain of the media industry. CBS has taken steps to reduce its reliance on advertising, said Moonves, and is instead working to monetize content and distribution rights. CBS remains in talks, he said, with Google’s YouTube about a paid streaming deal. And the company expects to nab four million subscribers to its subscription video-on-demand “All Access” service by 2020, he said.