Bell Media and CBS Corporation Announce Long-Term Content Licensing and Trademark Agreement for SHOWTIME® in Canada

– For the first time ever, the SHOWTIME brand comes to Canada –
– Bell Media's streaming service, CraveTV, to imminently launch new SHOWTIME Collection featuring hundreds of hours of SHOWTIME series, specials, and documentaries –
–New SHOWTIME-branded programming block to debut on Bell Media's Pay TV service,
The Movie Network –

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TORONTO and LOS ANGELES, Jan. 29, 2015 /CNW/ - Bell Media, Canada's premier multimedia company, and CBS Corporation announced today a long-term, content licensing and trademark agreement for SHOWTIME^® in Canada. The exclusive, landmark deal will bring the SHOWTIME brand to Canada for the first time, with hundreds of hours of past, present, and future SHOWTIME programming being made available across Bell Media platforms in English and French, including its new premium TV streaming service, CraveTV, as well as its leading pay television service, The Movie Network (TMN). 

** Media Note ** – Download photos at http://www.bellmedia.ca/pr/tv/movie-network/showtime-collection

The agreement marks a significant expansion for SHOWTIME programming in Canada, and builds upon the previous CBS/Bell Media agreement that licensed current SHOWTIME series on pay TV in the country. Over the course of the new agreement, CraveTV and TMN will become Canada's exclusive home of SHOWTIME-owned first-run programming as well as almost its entire catalog of scripted and unscripted series, documentaries, and specials.

"This new partnership with CBS Corporation illustrates Bell Media's commitment to provide additional value to subscribers of CraveTV and The Movie Network, while significantly extending CraveTV's advantage over its streaming competitors," said Kevin Crull, President, Bell Media. "SHOWTIME has clearly become one of TV's preeminent brands, and its slate of world-class and award-winning scripted and unscripted series, documentaries, and specials guarantee our subscribers more of the premium TV they want on the platform of their choice."

"The SHOWTIME premium brand is growing in stature around the world as well as in the U.S., with acclaimed, highly successful programming that will stand out anywhere," said Armando Nuñez, President and CEO of the CBS Global Distribution Group.  "We're excited to expand this business in a major way with Bell Media and shine a big spotlight on SHOWTIME in Canada."

"This is a great moment in the history of SHOWTIME, when for the first time our award-winning programming will be distributed and aggressively marketed as one brand beyond the United States," said David Nevins, President, Showtime Networks Inc. "This ground-breaking new deal was driven by the depth and breadth of our critically acclaimed original series. Bell Media, with their incredible range of platforms, is uniquely positioned to present SHOWTIME to Canadian audiences in whatever form they choose to watch us."

CraveTV will launch a new SHOWTIME-branded environment imminently, featuring the SHOWTIME Collection with hundreds of hours of exclusive SHOWTIME series and specials. At launch, the collection will exclusively feature the immediate past seasons of current hits like THE AFFAIR, RAY DONOVAN, and PENNY DREADFUL. Also part of CraveTV's SHOWTIME Collection are big-buzz SHOWTIME originals like MASTERS OF SEX, NURSE JACKIE, BROTHERHOOD, SLEEPER CELL, WEEDS, THE BIG C, THE UNITED STATES OF TARA, PENN & TELLER: BULLSHIT!, and more. The SHOWTIME Collection will also feature the complete star-studded and exclusive library of acclaimed SHOWTIME music, documentary, and comedy specials, all adding up to the addition of nearly 600 assets at launch.

Later in 2015, a SHOWTIME-branded programming block will debut on The Movie Network, providing a home for SHOWTIME content on The Movie Network and promoting the SHOWTIME Collection on CraveTV.

SHOWTIME and its critically acclaimed, award-winning original series continue to make their mark on the cultural landscape. In 2014, the network was honoured with 24 Primetime Emmy® Award nominations, including the most lead actor/actress nominations of any television network (broadcast or cable). SHOWTIME also received nine 2015 Golden Globe Award nominations, the most ever for the network, and was awarded two wins for THE AFFAIR, including Best TV Drama Series. SHOWTIME has grown by 90% over the past decade to cross the 23 million-subscriber mark in the United States. The growing lineup of SHOWTIME programming includes THE AFFAIR, RAY DONOVAN, PENNY DREADFUL, HOUSE OF LIES as well as the upcoming series HAPPYISH. In addition to original series, the premium network features comedy and music specials, provocative documentaries, and hard-hitting sports programming.

About CraveTV
All you can watch, for $4/month. Created for TV lovers and devoted exclusively to television, CraveTV^TM is Canada's premium subscription on-demand video streaming service, providing the most robust lineup of superior television content in the country. From TV's most-acclaimed dramas and beloved comedies to documentaries, music, and factual programming, CraveTV features thousands of hours of premium non-kids TV programming, representing hundreds of unique titles. Designed to complement the traditional television ecosystem, and available to all TV providers, CraveTV is available to Eastlink, TELUS Optik TV, Bell Fibe TV, Bell Satellite TV, and Bell Aliant FibreOP TV subscribers, and is coming soon to Northwestel and other CCSA members. Available through traditional set-top boxes, the service is also available via mobile apps and the web, with game consoles and smart TVs coming soon. CraveTV is from Bell Media, Canada's premier multi-media company with more than a decade of leadership delivering Canada's most-watched and most-acclaimed television programming across the Pay, Specialty, and Network TV landscapes. For more on CraveTV, visit www.CraveTV.ca.

About The Movie Network:
The Movie Network is a pay television service available in eastern Canada delivering premiere access to Hollywood hit movies, new and exclusive HBO content, critically acclaimed SHOWTIME series and first-rate Canadian programming to subscribers. The Movie Network service includes five 24-hour multiplex channels – The Movie Network, HBO Canada, MExcess, MFun! and MFest. All five multiplex channels are simulcast in High Definition and joined by TMN GO, a multi-platform video streaming service, and The Movie Network OnDemand. The Movie Network is a division of Bell Media, which is part of BCE Inc. (TSX, NYSE: BCE), Canada's largest communications company. More information about The Movie Network is available at www.themovienetwork.ca.

About Bell Media
With passion and an unrelenting commitment to excellence, Bell Media creates content and builds brands that entertain, inform, engage, and inspire audiences through the platforms of their choice. Bell Media is Canada's premier multimedia company with leading assets in television, radio, out-of-home advertising, and digital media. Bell Media owns 30 local television stations led by CTV, Canada's #1 television network; 35 specialty channels, including TSN and RDS, Canada's most-watched specialty channels in English and French; and four pay TV services, including The Movie Network and Super Écran. Bell Media is also Canada's largest radio broadcaster, with 106 licensed radio stations in 54 markets across Canada. Bell Media owns Astral Out-of-Home, one of Canada's most dynamic and innovative out-of-home advertising companies with a network of more than 9,500 advertising faces in Québec, Ontario, Alberta, and British Columbia. Bell Media also operates more than 200 websites; delivers TV Everywhere with premium subscription on-demand streaming service CraveTV^TM, as well as its innovative GO video streaming services including CTV GO, TMN GO, and TSN GO; holds an equity stake in digital startup Hubub; is partners in Cirque du Soleil Media, a joint venture with Cirque du Soleil; and owns Dome Productions Inc., a multi-platform production company. Bell Media is part of BCE Inc. (TSX, NYSE: BCE), Canada's largest communications company. For more on Bell Media, please visit www.bellmedia.ca. 

About CBS Corporation
CBS Corporation (NYSE: CBS.A and CBS) is a mass media company that creates and distributes industry-leading content across a variety of platforms to audiences around the world. The Company has businesses with origins that date back to the dawn of the broadcasting age as well as new ventures that operate on the leading edge of media. CBS owns the most-watched television network in the U.S. and one of the world's largest libraries of entertainment content, making its brand —"the Eye" — one of the most recognized in business. The Company's operations span virtually every field of media and entertainment, including cable, publishing, radio, local TV, film, and interactive and socially responsible media. CBS's businesses include CBS Television Network, The CW (a joint venture between CBS Corporation and Warner Bros. Entertainment), CBS Television Studios, CBS Global Distribution Group (CBS Studios International and CBS Television Distribution), CBS Consumer Products, CBS Home Entertainment, CBS Interactive, CBS Films, Showtime Networks, CBS Sports Network, POP (a joint venture between CBS Corporation and Lionsgate), Smithsonian Networks, Simon & Schuster, CBS Television Stations, CBS Radio and CBS EcoMedia. For more information, go to www.cbscorporation.com.

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SOURCE Bell Media