Paramount Streaming CEO Tom Ryan on Pluto TV Turning 10, What’s Next for Paramount+ and More: Streaming Biz Is ‘Underestimated by the Market’
variety.comTodd Spangler NY Digital Editor Tom Ryan co-founded the free, ad-supported streaming service Pluto TV, which launched 10 years ago with a linear TV-like grid and a cluster of “live” channels stocked with online videos.
Viacom, one of Paramount Global’s two predecessor companies, acquired Pluto TV for $340 million in cash in January 2019. Ryan stayed on board as chief exec of Pluto, and in October 2020 he assumed leadership for the parent company’s entire streaming operations, including CBS All Access, which relaunched as Paramount+ in early 2021.
To Ryan, CEO of Paramount Streaming, Pluto’s first decade — during which it soared to 80 million monthly active users as of last year — is just the beginning. “I think we’re still scratching the surface,” he said in an interview with Variety.
Pluto TV has major potential to expand internationally with its integrated distribution model, he said: “It’s really a universally appealing product around the world.” As for the Paramount+ side of the house, which has soaked up billions of dollars of investment and remains unprofitable, Ryan disputes Wall Street naysayers who believe the subscription play is a lost cause.
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