CBS Corp CEO Leslie Moonves, who was given the additional title of executive chairman this week, is planning more original content and looking at taking some of his network's shows off the air and putting them exclusively on its subscription-based CBS All Access service, to compete with the growing popularity of Netflix Inc and Hulu.
It is a bold but not sudden move for the traditional television executive running a network known for its older viewers, who approached the digital TV revolution gingerly but is now pushing his company to its forefront.
The network's push to ramp up its online All Access service - which offers its shows on PCs, tablets and smartphones for $5.99 a month - comes as media companies are rethinking their business models and their relationships with streaming video providers, treating them more like competitors than allies.
Advertising is still important for CBS - home of the Super Bowl this year - but the focus is shifting to new revenue streams.
"When I started this job 20 years ago, advertising was everything to this company," Moonves told Reuters in an interview in his Los Angeles office as he prepared to travel to the San Francisco Bay Area for the big game. "Advertising will still remain important, but it's not nearly as important as some of these new ways of getting revenue, such as interactive."
Moonves is also considering putting shows on All Access from the CW Network, its joint venture with Time Warner Inc's Warner Bros, which produced the offbeat hits Crazy Ex-Girlfriend and Jane the Virgin. Ultimately, Moonves said he wants the service to include content from its Showtime subsidiary, best known for Homeland and Dexter, and possibly shows from other partners.
