Showtime gets a new name as Paramount pivots in rebrand

The premium channel Showtime will be rebranded with a new name in January and will feature certain original series from the streaming platform Paramount+, the channel’s parent company announced Monday.

Starting Jan. 8, 2024, Showtime will rebrand to “Paramount+ with Showtime,” Paramount Global, Showtime’s parent company, said in a statement.

Paramount Global said the rebrand marks the “first of its kind multiplatform brand that integrates streaming and linear content.”

The rebranded version of Showtime will give subscribers access to new Showtime titles along with certain Paramount+ original series, including the first season of “Halo,” the first four seasons of “Star Trek: Discovery,” the first two seasons of “Mayor of Kingstown” and the platform’s new series, “Sexy Beasts.”

The rebranded name, “Paramount+ with Showtime,” was previously used for a streaming service bundle released in August.

Beginning Aug. 28, some Showtime cable subscribers were able to transfer their Showtime information to Paramount+ to start a new “Paramount+ with Showtime” plan.

However, not all Showtime subscribers will see the transfer option int the coming months, Paramount+ said.

Those who don’t will be required to cancel their Showtime streaming subscription before starting a new combined subscription. Account types ineligible for the transfer are listed on the Paramount+ website.

Showtime, launched in 1976, is known for several hit shows including “Billions,” “The Chi,” “Weeds,” and “Dexter.”

Showtime quickly emerged as one of HBO’s main competitors, and it often reached for the television network’s identity, as Michael Kackman, an associated professor of television at the University of Notre Dame, told The Washington Post.

Kackman told the Post he believes Showtime is “leaning back on their oldest name,” after stepping away from their “branded identity.”

“They’re leaning back on the film studio name,” he told The Post. “They’re clearly still trying to build interconnections across not just streaming platforms but traditional cable, linear cable and broadcast TV.”