Broadcast TV network CBS last week announced that it is planning to create original shows for a number of streaming video services. The announcement was made by CEO Les Moonves during the company's earnings call.
CBS's TV studio "will be producing more and more shows for more and more outlets, including major streaming companies and other emerging distributors", Moonves said. Although he didn't reveal which services CBS is working with, a company spokesperson later confirmed that Moonves was talking about creating new original shows for Netflix, Amazon, Hulu, and more.
Formed in 2006, the CBS Television Studios (CTS) is best known for shows such as NCIS, a series about crime scene investigators working for the Navy.
Although the studio primarily creates shows for CBS and its sister networks, it is also working with other networks. Moonves noted that ABC will air a CBS-produced series called "The Club" for the first time this season.
While television broadcasters have dominated the content distribution market for decades, the dynamics are now changing, with streaming video services like Netflix carving out a new distribution system. In fact, by announcing that CBS will create shows exclusively for Internet, the company seems to have accepted that their monopoly is coming to an end.
In addition, Moonves also said that the company is no longer interested in acquiring CNN now that 21st Century Fox has abandoned its attempt to take over Time Warner.