Paramount+ loses subs but Mission Impossible saves the day

Nathan Jolly

August 1, 2025 9:51

Paramount Global has turned a modest profit in the second quarter of the year, describing a decline in Paramount+ subscribers as a one-time blip. The earnings call will be the last before the company is taken over by Skydance Media.

For the June quarter, Paramount Global — parent company to Network 10 in Australia and CBS, Nickelodeon, and Comedy Central in the US — posted revenue of A$10.6 billion, up 1% year-on-year.

The company turned a A$620.8 million profit for the quarter, compared to a A$8.28 billion loss in the prior quarter, which was fuelled by a one-time A$9.34 billion impairment charge as it devalued its cable networks.

Traditional TV revenue slipped 6% to A$6.2 billion after a 4% drop in overall ad revenue, and a 7% drop in cable TV revenue.

Paramount+ lost 1.3 million subscribers in the quarter, dropping from 79 million to 77.7 million. The company puts this down to the end of an international bundled promotion.

Paramount’s Q2 results (in USD)

Despite the drop in the latest quarter, Paramount+ enjoyed a 26% year-on-year subscriber leap, “the largest viewership growth among all subscription services in the U.S,” according to co-CEO George Cheeks.

Subscription revenue leaped 22% year-on-year, while total revenue for the service increased by 15%, to $2.1 billion. Pre-tax operating income jumped from just $26 million in the prior year, to $157 million.

Paramount’s movie arm saw a 2% revenue increase, to A$1.07 billion, driven by the success of Mission Impossible – The Final Reckoning, which has earned more than A$918 million at the box office to date.

Theatrical revenue increased 84%, while licensing and other revenue for the division dropped by 19%, the fall primarily due to “lower licensing of animated content,” according to Paramount.

Mission Impossible drove success for Paramount’s movies division.

Paramount Global’s $8 billion sale to Skydance Media is expected to close on August 7.

Non-executive chair Shari Redstone used the earnings release to say farewell to the business her family has run for close to four decades.

“I am proud that when the Skydance transactions close we will be turning over a healthy business with a strong foundation for long-term growth and value creation,” she said.

“I will be forever grateful to the people of the company and the shareholders who have supported us.”