Paramount+ Adds An Industry-Best 9.9 Million Subscribers, Crediting ‘Yellowstone’ And ‘Maverick’

Paramount+ had a lot to crow about content-wise during fourth quarter 2022, with the bow of Yellowstone season five and the debut of smash hit Top Gun: Maverick. It turns out those content wins led to major subscriber victories.

Paramount announced on Thursday an impressive 9.9 million growth in Paramount+ subscribers, bigger than any other streamer recorded during the same time. Paramount+ outpaced Netflix (up 7.7 million), Disney+ (down 2.4 million), Hulu (up 800,000) and Peacock (up 5 million).

“In 2022, our content engine definitively proved itself at the highest level,” Bakish said. “Think the year’s biggest domestic film, Top Gun: Maverick, and five other number ones. Here’s the number one show on television, Yellowstone, and its expanding universe, plus mass-market broadcast hits like FBI, NCIS and popular Paramount+ originals like Tulsa King, 1923 and Criminal Minds: Evolution.”

Paramount+ now sits at 56 million total subscribers, far ahead of Peacock’s 20 million paid subscribers though well behind Netflix’s 230.8 million and Disney+’s 161.8 million. It stands to gain more subscribers when Showtime is integrated into the streaming service later this year, but it still stands firmly in the second tier of streamers.

Still, the huge gains have clearly given Paramount some confidence. During the call, Paramount Global President and CEO Bob Bakish said Paramount+ will raise prices in 2023, buoyed by confidence in demand for its content.

Bakish noted that internationally, Yellowstone and Maverick were the top acquisition drivers.

During the call, executives noted they are focused on building a profitable streaming business, which has proven a challenge for everyone in the business. “Revenue at scale is critical to building a profitable streaming business across the globe,” Bakish said. “We will pursue this first and foremost by leveraging our compelling content that will also drive revenue growth as price increases.”

To that end, Paramount+ will raise prices for the premium tier by $2, to $11.99 and boost the bottom-level tier from $4.99 to $5.99. Executives noted the pricing will change in early third quarter, at which point Showtime will be added to the Paramount+ fold.

Bakish noted that the strategy depends on continued reliance on franchises that will bring subscribers to the service and keep them engaged. He singled out Taylor Sheridan, the man behind Yellowstone, Tulsa, Mayor of Kingstown and more, as critical to the sustained growth of Paramount+.

Paramount noted an overall decline in revenue of 7%, which it attributed to advertising losses, particularly at the international level. Revenue totaled $5.9 billion, and total ad revenue was off 5%. Chief Financial Officer Naveen Chopra projected advertising will return in 2023, particularly in the second half of the year.

Bakish said the company would focus partly in 2023 in expanding Paramount+ globally, while saying it was important to tailor strategies to the smaller regions where the service was deploying.

“Streaming is a global opportunity, and the international markets are an important part of that activity,” Bakish said. “We’re very much looking at this market by market.”