CBS Corporation

The CBS Corporation is an American media conglomerate headquartered in New York City, NY.

Business

The company was formed in 1970 as a CBS movie of the restructuring of the syndication department of the radio network, Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS ), but was already 1971 in Viacom, an acronym for Video & Audio Communications, renamed. Due to new rules from the Federal Communications Commission in 1973 the Television Networks own Syndicationunternehmen forbidden to own what Viacom was spun off.

On 1 January 2006 the company was renamed CBS Corporation and founded the "new" Viacom, to which the parts of the company - were transmitted - essentially MTV Networks and Paramount Pictures. As part of this allocation, the focus of the orientation of the CBS Corporation moved to the United States. The Group includes television and radio networks, radio stations and a publishing group, one is also active in the production and distribution of television content, as well as the management of billboards (billboards ).

Chief Executive Officer of the company is Leslie Moonves, Sumner Redstone is the majority shareholder who holds the shares (71%) of his National Amusements holding company.

History

1970-2005 (as Viacom )

In 1987, the U.S. cinema chain National Amusements, Viacom and operate cable channels and produced television programs.

After 1991 failed takeover of Paramount Pictures by Time Inc., Viacom could take over the company Paramount. This included the purchase of Simon & Schuster, Blockbuster's Video and Music Stores, Warner - Amex Satellite Entertainment, Showtime Networks, Paramount Communications, the TV channel Nickelodeon and MTV, as well as theme parks, cinema chains, television and radio stations.

CBS was bought out in 1995 by Westinghouse Electric Corporation conglomerate. The traditional Westinghouse Group then decided to restructure towards a pure media group to attack, bought in 1996 an additional Infinity Broadcasting and began the old core businesses for sale; The division defense systems went 1996 to the defense group Northrop Grumman, recently followed in 1998 the field of nuclear power engineering,. at British Nuclear Fuels plc went. As part of this restructuring Westinghouse changed its name in 1997 in CBS Corporation.

After a relaxation of media laws in the U.S. Viacom 1999, the former parent company, which was called at that time, CBS Corporation, take over 36 billion U.S. dollars. Sales of Viacom before the merger with CBS Corporation amounted to 20.2 billion U.S. dollars.

In Germany, the Group has made headlines in 2004 with the purchase of 75.8 % of the shares of Viva Media AG. Since June 2005, Viva is fully owned by Viacom.

Although the Group stood financially well, the share price did not develop as hoped. Different investors complained that the Group only for conservative investors is interesting and the shrinking U.S. advertising market, which made ​​the traditional terrestrial networks, prevents the growth of the entire company.

These objections eventually also touched on Sumner Redstone, who was over 70% equity interest largest single shareholder and chairman of the group and had an interest to investors who exaggerated the value of his holdings in the air. The text introduced by Redstone in March 2005 proposal to split the company into two separate public companies was approved by the Board on 20 June 2005. The formulated objective was the division into a company, which included the barely growing U.S. market ( terrestrial networks, books, advertising) and a company, which included the lucrative global market ( global cable channels and film production / distribution ).

For one of the two future companies was planned to revive the short-lived CBS Corporation name and by the allocation request on the radio one hand, and cable television, and film on the other hand, resulted inevitably in broad outline the structure that had been before the merger in 1999. The CBS Corporation would again include CBS, after which it was named. Thus all parts of the business of the CBS Corporation have been assigned, which were classified as the Network CBS, as a " slow-growing ": the TV Network United Paramount Network (UPN), the Radio Network Infinity Broadcasting, the terrestrial radio and television stations of the Viacom Group, the pay-TV platform Showtime networks, the billboard company Viacom Outdoor, the publishing house Simon & Schuster, Paramount Theme Parks and finally Paramount Television, the Fernsehproduktionsarm and Fernsehvertriebsarm of Paramount Pictures. Was designated for the leadership of the CBS Corporation, the longtime head of entertainment of CBS and vice-president of Viacom, Leslie Moonves.

Legally, it is at the CBS Corporation to the former Viacom, whose name has been changed. The situation created by a spin-off of "new" Viacom, however, is not legally the successor company of the old Viacom, but a new foundation, on which the parts of the company - essentially, MTV Networks and Paramount Pictures, Paramount Home Entertainment - have been transferred. This division has been completed on 1 January 2006.

From 2006 ( when CBS Corporation)

The first month of the CBS Corporation was strongly influenced by internal restructuring and consolidation, it was new CBS Outdoor in the sign of the new parent company of Infinity Broadcasting, CBS Radio Network and from Viacom Outdoor. On January 17, Leslie Moonves announced that Paramount Television and CBS Productions under the new unified brand CBS Paramount Television ( name of copyright CBS Studios, Inc.) were combined.

On 24 January 2006, the CBS Corporation announced surprisingly announced that it has reached an agreement with Time Warner and Tribune Entertainment on the two ailing television networks UPN and The WB in September 2006 - at the start of the new television year 2006-2007 out - to The CW Television Network ( The CW short ) merge.

Already on 27 January 2006 was followed by the announcement that it is working because the Paramount Parks to sell; Cedar Fair, the company announced on May 22 that it will take over the theme parks for nearly 1.3 billion U.S. dollars in the third quarter of 2006.

On 15 May 2008 CBS Corporation CNET Networks acquired for $ 1.8 billion and merged this business with Last.fm in the Division CBS Interactive.

Activities and Brands

  • Television Networks: CBS Television Network (200 stations ), The CW Network
  • TV channel: CBS transmitter (16), The CW transmitter (8)
  • Television production / distribution: CBS Television Studios, CBS Studios International, CBS Television Distribution
  • Film-/Fernsehstudioateliers: CBS Studio Center, CBS Television City, CBS Films
  • DVD Production / Sales: CBS Home Entertainment
  • Business License / Merchandising: CBS Consumer Products, Westinghouse Electric Corporation
  • Pay TV: Showtime Networks, Smithsonian Networks, CBS Sports Network
  • Internet and online networks: CBS Interactive
  • Radio: CBS Radio ( 130), CBS Interactive Music Group ( Radio.com, last.fm, mp3.com )
  • Outdoor / Billboards: CBS Outdoor
  • Publisher: Simon & Schuster
  • Music rights / productions: CBS Records
  • Marketing Solutions: CBS Connections
  • Restaurants: CBS Scene
  • Environmental projects: EcoMedia
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