Linear TV Will Remain “A Strong Business For Decades To Come,” Paramount President-To-Be Jeff Shell Says
deadline.comJeff Shell, the former CEO of NBCUniversal who will become president at Paramount Global as part of Skydance’s pending takeover, is ultra-bullish on the future of linear TV. “Obviously, linear is going to keep declining.
I think we’re realistic about that,” Shell said during an investor call about Skydance’s $8 billion investment in Paramount, which will give it control of major linear assets including CBS and a portfolio of local broadcast stations. “It’s been declining at about 8% a year when you factor everything in.
We think that’s obviously going to continue as the MVPD universe gets smaller. … We don’t know if there’s a floor somewhere.” Despite the downtrend, “I personally think the linear business is going to be a strong business for decades to come,” Shell maintained. “We’ll be sitting here in 10, 20 years talking about a significant amount of viewership on the CBS network.
But it’s going to become part of the equation instead of the driving part of the equation, which is why you’ve got to be involved in both sides.
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