Golden Globes to Stay on CBS, Paramount Plus for Five More Years
The Golden Globes will remain on CBS and Paramount Plus for five more years, according to a new deal between Paramount and Dick Clark Productions, which owns the awards ceremony. The new agreement kicks off with the January 2025 broadcast, keeping the Globes on CBS and Paramount Plus through January 2029.
CBS picked up the rights to the Golden Globes last year and aired its first edition of the film and television awards show on Sunday, January 7. The 81st Annual Golden Globe Awards averaged nearly 10 million viewers, according to Nielsen’s live plus seven day national ratings, up nearly 50% from last year and the show’s largest audience since its pre-pandemic airing in 2020. That broadcast also was the third-largest live-streamed CBS special event ever on Paramount Plus in terms of reach, according to Paramount. Broadcast TV is increasingly reliant on sports (especially football) and live events to draw big audiences.
“CBS’ collaboration with the Globes for this year’s broadcast was a big win for both of us and established strong momentum for awards shows in 2024,” George Cheeks, president and CEO of CBS, said in a statement. “The Globes is a one-of-a-kind live event that adds another marquee special and valuable promotional platform to CBS’ annual calendar.”
“We’re so proud to continue to call CBS our home for the Golden Globes,” Jay Penske, chairman and CEO of Penske Media and Dick Clark Productions, also said in a statement. “CBS stepped up for the Globes during a very challenging time, and inherently understood its value, while having the foresight, imagination and conviction to bring this iconic show to its many platforms. We’ve long admired CBS’ commitment to some of the greatest cultural live events and partnering for the long term further cements this show’s legacy and incredible place in history.”
The Golden Globes was formerly run by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA) and had aired on NBC since 1996. There, the show, which featured celebrities partying while receiving awards, drew in an audience second only to the Oscars. That in turn drew a big license fee: NBC was reported to pay HFPA $60 million a year for the privilege of airing the show.
But a 2021 exposé in the Los Angeles Times that questioned the HFPA’s ethics and diversity upended the organization, eventually causing it to dissolve. NBC skipped the Golden Globes in 2022 but gave it one more shot in 2023. In the meantime, the Globes were sold to a joint venture between Dick Clark Productions, which is owned by Penske Media, and Eldridge Industries. Today, the Golden Globes are viewed in more than 185 countries around the world.
