Paramount Skydance Corp (PSKY) 2025 Q1 法說會逐字稿

Good afternoon. My name is Nadia, and I'll be the conference operator today. At this time, I would like to welcome everyone to Paramount Global's Q1 2025 earnings conference call. (Operator Instructions)

午安.我叫納迪亞，今天我將擔任會議主持人。現在，我歡迎大家參加派拉蒙全球 2025 年第一季財報電話會議。（操作員指示）

At this time, I would now like to turn the call over to Jamie Morris, Paramount Global's EVP, Investor Relations. You may now begin your conference call.

現在，我想將電話轉給派拉蒙全球投資者關係執行副總裁 Jamie Morris。您現在可以開始電話會議了。

Good afternoon, everyone. Thank you for taking the time to join us for our first quarter 2025 earnings call. Joining me for today's discussion are Paramount's co-CEOs Brian Robbins, Chris McCarthy and George Cheeks and; our CFO, Naveen Chopra. Please note that in addition to our earnings release, we have trending schedules containing supplemental information available on our website. Before we start, I want to remind you that certain statements made on this call are forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties.

大家下午好。感謝您抽空參加我們的 2025 年第一季財報電話會議。參加今天討論的還有派拉蒙的聯合執行長 Brian Robbins、Chris McCarthy 和 George Cheeks；我們的財務長 Naveen Chopra。請注意，除了我們的收益報告外，我們的網站上還有包含補充資訊的趨勢時間表。在我們開始之前，我想提醒您，本次電話會議中所做的某些陳述是前瞻性陳述，涉及風險和不確定性。

These risks and uncertainties are discussed in more detail in our filings with the SEC. Some of today's financial remarks will focus on adjusted results. Reconciliations of these non-GAAP financial measures can be found in our earnings release or in our trending schedules, which contains supplemental information, and in each case, can be found in the Investor Relations section of our website.

我們向美國證券交易委員會提交的文件中對這些風險和不確定性進行了更詳細的討論。今天的一些財務評論將集中在調整後的結果。這些非公認會計準則財務指標的對帳表可在我們的收益報告或趨勢圖中找到，其中包含補充信息，在每種情況下，均可在我們網站的投資者關係部分找到。

Now I will turn the call over to Chris.

現在我將把電話轉給克里斯。

Thanks, Jamie, and good afternoon, everyone. Thank you for joining us on our Q1 2025 earnings call. I'm Chris McCarthy, and I'm joined here by my fellow Co-CEOs, George Cheeks and Brian Robbins. I'll start pricing, we are very pleased with our performance in the quarter. Our focused execution with high-performing content drove strong results across the company.

謝謝，傑米，大家下午好。感謝您參加我們的 2025 年第一季財報電話會議。我是克里斯·麥卡錫，和我們一起出席的還有我的聯合執行長喬治·奇克斯和布萊恩·羅賓斯。我將開始定價，我們對本季的表現非常滿意。我們專注於執行高效能內容，為整個公司帶來了強勁的業績。

Total company revenue grew 2% year over year, excluding the Super Bowl, DTC OIBDA improved nearly $180 million year over year, and we generated $123 million of free cash flow. We're off to a good start for 2025. And important to note, we have not seen a meaningful impact due to the dynamic macro environment. That said, looking forward, given the uncertainty, we are prioritizing key investments while taking incremental steps to streamline noncontent expenses. Now let's get into some of the highlights of Q1.

除了超級盃外，該公司總營收年增 2%，DTC OIBDA 較去年同期成長近 1.8 億美元，我們產生了 1.23 億美元的自由現金流。2025 年我們已經有一個好的開始。值得注意的是，我們並未看到動態宏觀環境帶來的重大影響。儘管如此，展望未來，鑑於不確定性，我們將優先考慮重點投資，同時採取漸進措施精簡非內容支出。現在讓我們來了解一下第一季的一些亮點。

Starting with DTC, where we continue to focus on driving profitable growth. Paramount+ ended the quarter with 79 million global subscribers, up 11% year over year, including 1.5 million new subscribers in the quarter. Global watch time per user increased, up 17% year over year and churn improved 130 basis points year-over-year. Taken together, Paramount+ revenue increased 16% year over year. Now this success was driven by our differentiated content strategy of fewer, bigger breakthrough original series, where we continue to see great momentum.

從 DTC 開始，我們將繼續專注於推動獲利成長。截至本季度，Paramount+ 全球訂閱用戶數量為 7,900 萬，年增 11%，其中包括本季新增 150 萬訂閱用戶。全球每位用戶的觀看時間較去年同期成長 17%，流失率較去年同期改善 130 個基點。總體而言，Paramount+ 的營收年增 16%。現在，這一成功是由我們的差異化內容策略推動的，即更少、更大的突破性原創劇集，我們繼續看到這一強勁勢頭。

In the US, Paramount+ again, had the second most top 10 SVOD originals for the quarter. That includes Landman and 1923, which were our number one and number two starts, an engagement driver respectively. Looking across both Q4 and Q1 combined, Paramount+ had 25% of the top 10 SVOD originals, second only to the market leader and 2.5 times greater than the next closest competitor. On the premium tier in the US, Dexter Original Sin was the most streamed Showtime series ever, and that was followed by Yellowjackets, which was the second most stream Showtime series ever.

在美國，Paramount+ 再次成為本季 SVOD 原創劇集排名第二的平台。其中包括 Landman 和 1923，他們分別是我們的第一和第二號發車手。縱觀第四季度和第一季度，Paramount+ 佔據了 SVOD 原創節目前 10 名的 25%，僅次於市場領導者，並且是第二大競爭對手的 2.5 倍。在美國付費電視網中，《嗜血法醫：原罪》是 Showtime 史上播放次數最多的劇集，緊隨其後的是《黃蜂女》，後者是 Showtime 史上播放次數第二多的劇集。

Now turning to international. All of these series are delivering strong results, combined with South Park and Yellowstone, where we have these series exclusively. South Park continues to be a top starch driver and a top engagement driver. And starting this July, the series will be coming to Paramount+ in the US.

現在轉向國際。所有這些系列都取得了強勁的成績，加上《南方公園》和《黃石》，這些系列都是我們獨家擁有的。南方公園繼續成為頂級的推動者和頂級的參與推動者。從今年 7 月開始，該劇集將登陸美國 Paramount+。

Now turning to Yellowstone, the series remains the number one start driver and the number one engagement driver for us internationally. And the momentum will continue as we expand the franchise with three new series, starting with the Dutton Ranch, which will premier globally in Q4. That's followed by the franchise's first procedural, the Marshals premiering on CBS and next day on Paramount+ globally starting in Q1 of 2026. And later next year, the anthology series will continue with the next chapter 1944. Looking ahead, we have a great slate of returning hits and big new originals.

現在轉向黃石賽道，該系列賽仍然是我們在國際上排名第一的髮車手和參與度最高的車手。隨著我們擴大特許經營範圍並推出三部新劇集，這一勢頭將繼續下去，首先是將於第四季度在全球首播的達頓牧場 (Dutton Ranch)。隨後，該系列的第一部劇集《法警》將在 CBS 首播，並於 2026 年第一季開始在 Paramount+ 上全球首播。明年晚些時候，該選集系列將繼續推出下一章《1944》。展望未來，我們擁有一系列精彩的回歸熱門作品和全新原創作品。

Our new series, Mobland premiere at the end of Q1, becoming Paramount+ biggest global series launch ever. And today, Criminal Minds: Evolution returned. Next week, Showtime series, The Shy premiers on the premium tier in the US. Now the second half of the year, we'll see more originals to maximize the impact of increased viewership. Starting in July with South Park, followed by Dexter: Resurrection, Showtime's biggest franchise returns with star Michael C. Hall. And in August, sees the first-ever NCIS streaming extension with Tony & Ziva. Followed by Taylor Sheridan's powerful slate of Originals, starting with Tulsa King in September, then Mayor of Kingstown in October. Last year's smash-hit Landman returns in November, plus the all-new Yellowstone franchise extensions, The Dutton Ranch.

我們的新劇集《Mobland》於第一季末首播，成為 Paramount+ 有史以來最大的全球劇集發布。今天，《犯罪心理：進化》回歸。下週，Showtime 系列《The Shy》將在美國付費頻道首播。現在到了下半年，我們將看到更多原創作品，以最大限度地發揮增加收視率的影響。Showtime 最大的系列劇將於 7 月開播，先是《南方公園》，隨後是《嗜血法醫 2：復活》，主演是邁克爾·C·豪爾。8 月份，《海軍罪案調查處》將首次推出串流延長版，由 Tony 和 Ziva 主演。隨後是泰勒謝裡丹 (Taylor Sheridan) 的一系列強大原創作品，首先是 9 月的《塔爾薩之王》(Tulsa King)，然後是 10 月份的《金斯敦市長》(Mayor of Kingstown)。去年大獲成功的 Landman 將於 11 月回歸，此外還有全新的黃石特許經營擴展項目 The Dutton Ranch。

Now turning to Pluto TV, the service delivered its highest consumption ever, with global viewing time up 26% year over year. Now monetization has been softer than expected due to the influx of supply. We anticipate supply-demand dynamics will stabilize over time and the continued increases in engagement on Paramount+ and Pluto will lead to improved monetization over time. Turning to D2C profitability. We've made great progress driven by subscriber growth, ARPU expansion and churn reduction, combined with the disciplined approach to managing investment. And as a result, we continue to expect Paramount+ domestic profitability for 2025.

現在來看看冥王星電視，該服務的消費量達到了有史以來的最高水平，全球觀看時間同比增長了 26%。現在，由於供應的湧入，貨幣化進程比預期要緩慢。我們預計供需動態將隨著時間的推移而趨於穩定，且 Paramount+ 和 Pluto 參與度的持續增加將導致貨幣化程度的增加。轉向 D2C 獲利能力。在用戶成長、ARPU 擴大和客戶流失減少以及嚴謹的投資管理方法的推動下，我們取得了巨大進展。因此，我們繼續預計 Paramount+ 將在 2025 年實現國內盈利。

And now I'll turn it over to George.

現在我將把發言權交給喬治。

Thanks, Chris. For TV media, we continue to leverage our content investments in sports, news and entertainment across linear and streaming with a focus on increasing cost efficiencies. On the revenue side, since early last year, we've renewed key affiliate deals that secure revenue and support streaming growth. This approach has contributed to the combination of affiliate and D2C subscription revenue returning to growth on a total company basis in Q1.

謝謝，克里斯。對於電視媒體，我們繼續利用線性和串流媒體對體育、新聞和娛樂的內容投資，並專注於提高成本效率。在收入方面，自去年年初以來，我們續簽了關鍵的聯盟協議，以確保收入並支持串流媒體成長。這種方法促使聯盟和 D2C 訂閱收入在第一季恢復了公司整體的成長。

In advertising, we're leveraging our content portfolio with live sports being more valuable than ever. In Q1, TV media advertising, excluding the Super Bowl was flat year-over-year, powered by the NFL playoffs and March Madness. We recently kicked off our Upfront Dinners. We're once again highlighting the strength of our mass appeal programming, paired with Paramount's unique set of broadcast, cable, theatrical and streaming platforms across free and pay. Clients consistently remind us that in challenging markets, there are a few partners that provide the reach, brand safety and impact of the Paramount portfolio.

在廣告方面，我們利用我們的內容組合，讓現場體育賽事變得比以往任何時候都更有價值。第一季度，受 NFL 季後賽和瘋狂三月的推動，除超級盃之外的電視媒體廣告收入比去年同期持平。我們最近開始了我們的預付晚餐活動。我們再次強調了我們大眾吸引力節目的優勢，並結合了派拉蒙獨特的免費和付費廣播、有線、戲劇和串流媒體平台。客戶不斷提醒我們，在充滿挑戰的市場中，有一些合作夥伴可以提供派拉蒙產品組合的覆蓋範圍、品牌安全性和影響力。

CBS continues to deliver audiences at scale across sports and entertainment. The NCAA championship game averaged 18 million viewers, capping the most watched final four weekends since 2017. The Master Sunday broadcast scored nearly 13 million viewers, the largest final round of golf on any network in seven years, and CBS will win a record-setting 17th consecutive season as the most watched broadcast network with 8 of the top 10 shows.

CBS 繼續在體育和娛樂領域吸引大量觀眾。NCAA 冠軍賽平均吸引了 1800 萬觀眾，創下 2017 年以來總決賽四個週末觀看人數最多的紀錄。大師賽週日播出的比賽吸引了近 1,300 萬觀眾，是七年來任何電視網絡上收視率最高的高爾夫決賽，而哥倫比亞廣播公司 (CBS) 將創紀錄地連續第 17 個季度成為收視率最高的電視網絡，前十場比賽中共有 8 場收視率最高。

CBS' network audience grew 3% in the quarter. compared to last year with the Super Bowl and was up 12% without the sports comp. At the same time, streaming of CBS prime time shows on Paramount+ increased by 35%. Another example of multi-platform strength, according to Nielsen competitive data for all broadcast and streaming shows, since October, CBS has six of the top 20 slots, second only to Netflix with Tracker and Matlock ranking number four and number five, respectively. This pipeline is poised to continue.

本季度，哥倫比亞廣播公司的網路觀眾成長了 3%。與去年超級盃相比，不包括體育賽事則上漲了 12%。同時，CBS 黃金時段節目在 Paramount+ 上的播放量增加了 35%。多平台優勢的另一個例子是，根據尼爾森所有廣播和串流節目的競爭數據，自 10 月以來，CBS 佔據了前 20 名中的 6 個席位，僅次於 Netflix，而 Tracker 和 Matlock 分別排名第四和第五。這條管道即將繼續延伸。

Yesterday, we announced CBS's prime time schedule for the '25, '26 season. The new shows will include franchise expansions for FBI, Fire Country and Blue Bloods. And as Chris pointed out, CBS will premiere the first broadcast procedural drama from the Yellowstone universe. And as always, we remain laser-focused on efficiency with all our content investments, monetizing current and library programming across our platforms and through licensing. Brian?

昨天，我們宣布了 CBS 25、26 賽季的黃金時段節目表。新劇將包括《FBI》、《烈焰國度》和《警察世家》的系列擴展。正如克里斯所指出的，哥倫比亞廣播公司將首播黃石宇宙的首部廣播節目。像往常一樣，我們仍然高度重視所有內容投資的效率，透過我們的平台和許可將當前和圖書館的節目貨幣化。布賴恩？

Thanks, George. In Filmed Entertainment, we are continuing our focus on delivering a slate with widespread audience appeal and one that balances investment across titles and drives downstream revenue. The performance of the segment in Q1 was strong, thanks to the major theatrical success of Sonic the Hedgehog 3, delivering box office sales of nearly $500 million, our franchise best which continued to excel in both home entertainment and streaming. Sonic 3 was a top acquisition driver on Paramount+ following its mid-February release and ranks as a top five movie on the service. Not only did the growing fan base come to the service for Sonic 3, but we also saw a nice lift for Sonic 2 and the Knuckle series on Paramount+.

謝謝，喬治。在電影娛樂方面，我們將繼續致力於推出具有廣泛觀眾吸引力的作品，並平衡各個作品的投資並推動下游收入。該部門在第一季表現強勁，這得益於《刺猬索尼克 3》在影院取得的巨大成功，其票房收入接近 5 億美元，創下了我們系列電影的最高紀錄，並且在家庭娛樂和流媒體領域繼續表現出色。《索尼克 3》自 2 月中旬上映以來，就一直是 Paramount+ 上最受追捧的電影之一，並躋身該服務上票房排名前五名的電影之列。不僅越來越多的粉絲加入了《索尼克 3》的服務，我們還看到《索尼克 2》和 Paramount+ 上的《Knuckle》系列也獲得了不錯的成長。

Another huge win for us was the streaming performance of Gladiator 2, which became the number one movie in Paramount+ history. And speaking of powerhouse franchises, Mission Impossible: The Final Reckoning promises to be a global event with its premiere on May 23. Mission continues to be instrumental in lifting the value of Paramount IP, permeating almost every line of business across the organization since the film franchises inception nearly 30 years ago.

我們另一個巨大的勝利是《角鬥士 2》的串流媒體表現，它成為 Paramount+ 歷史上排名第一的電影。說到強大的系列電影，《不可能的任務 4：最終清算》將於 5 月 23 日首映，預計將成為全球大片。使命在提升派拉蒙 IP 的價值方面繼續發揮著重要作用，自近 30 年前電影系列誕生以來，使命幾乎滲透到了該組織的所有業務線。

Holistically, we've built our slate this year to balance the scope and scale of a film like Mission Impossible with other titles that span genres and budget levels, which better positions the studio for profitability. This includes Edgar Wright's The Running Man, a reboot of the comedy The Naked Gun, staring Liam Neeson and our family animation titles, Smurfs, and the SpongeBob movie Search for SquarePants, with the goal of driving profitability.

總體而言，我們今年的電影片單旨在平衡《碟中諜》等電影的範圍和規模以及其他跨類型和預算水平的電影，從而使工作室更好地實現盈利。其中包括艾德格萊特的《奔跑的人》、由連恩尼遜主演的喜劇《白頭神探》的翻拍版以及我們的家庭動畫作品《藍色小精靈》和《海綿寶寶》電影《尋找方形褲》，目標是提高獲利能力。

We successfully reduced average production costs on Paramount Pictures films by 35% over the last 24 months. All of this momentum across every aspect of our business is underpinned by our world-class entertainment offerings across all of our verticals. We have much to be excited about as we continue to advance the business. Every day, our teams remain focused on execution, delivering hit series, blockbuster films and live sports to audiences around the world, and we're seeing that pay off. We also remain on track to close our pending transaction with Skydance in the first half of this year.

在過去的 24 個月中，我們成功將派拉蒙影業電影的平均製作成本降低了 35%。我們業務各個方面的強勁勢頭都源於我們在各個垂直領域提供的世界一流的娛樂產品。隨著我們業務的不斷推進，我們有很多值得興奮的事情。每天，我們的團隊都專注於執行，為世界各地的觀眾提供熱門劇集、電影大片和體育賽事直播，我們也看到了回報。我們也將繼續按計劃在今年上半年完成與 Skydance 的未決交易。

Now let me turn it over to Naveen to provide more details on the financials. Naveen?

現在，讓我將話題交給 Naveen，讓他提供有關財務狀況的更多詳細資訊。納文？

Thank you, Brian. Good afternoon, everyone. In Q1, Paramount generated total company revenue of $7.2 billion and adjusted OIBDA of $688 million. Adjusted OIBDA reflects year-over-year improvements in D2C and filmed entertainment while results at TV Media were heavily impacted by the comparison to last year's Super Bowl. Free cash flow was $123 million, including $108 million in payments for restructuring and other initiatives.

謝謝你，布萊恩。大家下午好。第一季度，派拉蒙公司總營收為 72 億美元，調整後 OIBDA 為 6.88 億美元。調整後的 OIBDA 反映了 D2C 和電影娛樂的同比增長，而電視媒體的表現受到與去年超級碗相比的嚴重影響。自由現金流為 1.23 億美元，其中包括 1.08 億美元的重組和其他計畫支出。

Now let's turn to our operating segment results, starting with direct-to-consumer. In Q1, D2C continued to deliver healthy top line growth, up 9% year over year to $2 billion. Subscription revenue grew 16%, driven by Paramount+, but was somewhat offset by a 9% decline in DTC advertising revenue which includes an 800 basis points headwind from the comparison to last year's Super Bowl. Excluding this comparison, D2C advertising was down 1%, largely due to increased supply in digital video. This disproportionately affected Pluto TV, which has the greatest exposure to the indirect marketplace.

現在讓我們來看看我們的經營分部業績，從直接面向消費者開始。第一季度，D2C 繼續實現健康的營收成長，年增 9%，達到 20 億美元。在 Paramount+ 的推動下，訂閱收入成長了 16%，但 DTC 廣告收入下降了 9%，與去年的超級盃相比下降了 800 個基點，在一定程度上抵消了這一增長。除去這一比較，D2C 廣告下降了 1%，這主要是由於數位視訊供應增加。這對間接市場上曝光率最高的 Pluto TV 造成了不成比例的影響。

Despite the advertising headwinds, D2C OIBDA improved by $177 million to a loss of $109 million through a combination of healthy subscription revenue growth and continued expense management.

儘管面臨廣告阻力，但透過健康的訂閱收入成長和持續的費用管理，D2C OIBDA 仍改善了 1.77 億美元，虧損減少至 1.09 億美元。

Turning to TV Media. Q1 revenue and OIBDA trends reflect the comparison to CBS' broadcast of the Super Bowl last year. TV media advertising revenue, excluding the Super Bowl, was flat year-over-year, and we saw improvement compared to the underlying trends in Q4. Linear advertising in the quarter benefited from continued strength in sports, including strong demand for the NFL playoffs and the NCAA men's basketball tournament. Affiliate revenue declined 8.6% in the quarter, principally as a result of subscriber declines as well as the impact of recent renewals.

轉向電視媒體。Q1 收入和 OIBDA 趨勢反映了與 CBS 去年轉播超級盃的比較。除超級盃之外的電視媒體廣告收入與去年同期持平，與第四季的基本趨勢相比，我們看到了改善。本季線性廣告受益於體育賽事的持續強勁成長，包括對 NFL 季後賽和 NCAA 男子籃球錦標賽的強勁需求。本季聯屬營收下降 8.6%，主要由於用戶數量下降以及近期續訂的影響。

TV Media OIBDA was $922 million in the quarter. Expenses declined 4% year over year, primarily driven by the comparison to the Super Bowl. We remain highly focused on delivering incremental cost efficiencies and maximizing earnings in our TV media business. In Filmed Entertainment, we generated revenue of $627 million, up 4% year over year and OIBDA of $20 million, which compares to a loss of $3 million in the year ago quarter. Our Q1 results primarily benefited from the success of Sonic the Hedgehog 3, which was released late in Q4.

本季電視媒體 OIBDA 為 9.22 億美元。支出較去年同期下降 4%，主要原因是與超級盃相比。我們仍然高度致力於提高電視媒體業務的成本效率和最大化收益。在電影娛樂領域，我們的營收為 6.27 億美元，年增 4%，OIBDA 為 2,000 萬美元，而去年同期的虧損為 300 萬美元。我們第一季的業績主要受益於第四季末發布的《刺蝟索尼克 3》的成功。

Now let me provide some color on Q2. We starting with linear advertising, where sports demand continues to be robust. Although consistent with prior years, Q2 results will reflect a lower volume of sports versus Q1. In digital advertising, we expect trends in Q2 to look similar to the underlying trends in Q1. At Paramount+, we continue to expect healthy revenue growth driven by an acceleration in ARPU and consistent with our plan to achieve domestic plus profitability this year.

現在讓我對 Q2 進行一些說明。我們從線性廣告開始，其中體育需求持續強勁。儘管與往年一致，但第二季的業績將反映出體育賽事數量較第一季下降。在數位廣告方面，我們預計第二季的趨勢將與第一季的基本趨勢相似。在 Paramount+，我們繼續預期在 ARPU 加速推動下收入將實現健康成長，這與我們今年實現國內盈利的計劃一致。

Additionally, the combination of our traditional and streaming businesses will again yield net growth in total company affiliate and subscription revenue, a key indicator of our ongoing transition to streaming. Q2 subscribers will decline given the combination of content seasonality and the termination of an international hard bundle partnership. In Film, we expect strong revenue contribution from the release of Mission: Impossible –- The Final Reckoning.

此外，我們的傳統業務和串流媒體業務的結合將再次帶來公司聯營公司和訂閱總收入的淨增長，這是我們正在向串流媒體轉型的關鍵指標。由於內容季節性和國際硬捆綁合作關係的終止，第二季的訂閱用戶數量將會下降。在電影方面，我們預期《不可能的任務 4：最終清倉》上映將帶來強勁的營收貢獻。

However, given the timing of marketing spend for the film, we anticipate that this segment will generate an OIBDA loss for the quarter. In terms of free cash flow, we expect Q2 to look similar to last year, including cash restructuring payments of approximately $100 million. Looking further ahead, our priorities for the full year have not changed. We continue to expect to deliver Paramount+ domestic profitability for 2025. We're also working toward the full year OIBDA and free cash flow outlook we provided on our Q4 call.

然而，考慮到電影行銷支出的時間，我們預計該部門將在本季產生 OIBDA 損失。在自由現金流方面，我們預計第二季將與去年類似，包括約 1 億美元的現金重組支付。展望未來，我們全年的重點沒有改變。我們仍然預計 Paramount+ 將在 2025 年實現國內盈利。我們也正在努力實現我們在第四季度電話會議上提供的全年 OIBDA 和自由現金流展望。

Though growing macroeconomic uncertainty, particularly in advertising, has the potential to impact our results later in the year. In the meantime, we continue to proactively manage spend while prioritizing investment in key growth initiatives. Coming into 2025, we have continued driving D2C growth and significant improvements to profitability leveraging the powerful reach of broadcast, while capturing cost efficiencies and maximizing the value of our deep library and iconic IP.

然而，日益增長的宏觀經濟不確定性，尤其是在廣告領域，可能會影響我們今年稍後的表現。同時，我們繼續積極管理支出，並優先投資於關鍵成長計劃。進入 2025 年，我們將繼續推動 D2C 成長並顯著提高盈利能力，利用廣播的強大影響力，同時提高成本效率並最大限度地發揮我們深厚的庫和標誌性 IP 的價值。

Although we are operating in a dynamic macro environment, the progress we've made on our strategic priorities, combined with focused execution and some of the industry's most compelling and enduring content positions Paramount Global for the long term.

儘管我們是在動態的宏觀環境中運營的，但我們在戰略重點上取得的進展，加上有針對性的執行以及業內一些最引人注目和最持久的內容，為派拉蒙全球的長期發展奠定了基礎。

With that, operator, please open the line for questions.

接線員，請打開熱線來回答問題。

(Operator Instructions)

（操作員指示）

Steven Cahall, Wells Fargo.

富國銀行的史蒂文·卡霍爾 (Steven Cahall)。

Just first on advertising, interesting comment you made on Pluto and digital advertising and some of the pressure there. I think, Chris, you said that you expect that, that pricing pressure might abate over time. So I'm just wondering if you're seeing that yet. Is it firming up? There's a lot of new digital inventory coming to market from a variety of platforms. So just wanted to see if that's a trend you have line of sight on yet?

首先談談廣告，您對冥王星和數位廣告以及其中的一些壓力發表了有趣的評論。克里斯，我認為你說過你預計價格壓力可能會隨著時間的推移而減輕。所以我只是想知道你是否已經看到了這一點。它正在變堅固嗎？大量新的數位庫存從各種平台湧入市場。所以只是想看看這是否是您所關注的趨勢？

And then separately, maybe for George. So the FCC has been pretty vocal about some things that wants to do with affiliates and talking about reverse comp. I want to ask you to comment specifically on what the FCC may plan to do. But as you look at the reverse compensation contribution to your affiliate revenue, I think it's a little more than $1 billion. Is that something you think could have some pressure over time? Or do you think this is just a lot of noise and you'll be able to work around this and hold that line relatively flat?

然後分別針對喬治。因此，FCC 一直直言不諱地談論一些與附屬機構有關的事情以及反向補償。我想請您具體評論一下聯邦通信委員會可能計劃做什麼。但當你看看反向補償對你的聯屬收入的貢獻時，我認為它略高於 10 億美元。您認為隨著時間的推移，這可能會帶來一些壓力嗎？或者您認為這只是一大堆噪音，您可以解決這個問題並保持這條線相對平坦？

Steve, thanks for your question. This is Chris. I'll take the first part of that, and then I'll pass over to George to take the second piece of that. Listen, we're definitely pleased with our performance for the quarter. From the total AO perspective broadcast really was significant, CBS Sports and the stable hits really helped us to make up some for some softness in the digital space.

史蒂夫，謝謝你的提問。這是克里斯。我將負責第一部分，然後交給喬治負責第二部分。聽著，我們對本季的表現非常滿意。從整個 AO 角度來看，廣播確實意義重大，CBS 體育和穩定的熱門節目確實幫助我們彌補了數位領域的一些弱點。

Now as you know, last year, there were some new entrants that came into the digital supply space, which is impacting the volume of supply. Now we do definitely expect that, that is going to balance out as supply-demand dynamics will balance out. We've yet to see that at this moment, but we're confident that, that's going to happen. Now more importantly, though, Steve, we are very pleased with the engagement that we continue to drive at both Paramount+ and Pluto. At the end of the day, this is a hits-driven business, and our hit volume and hit content continues to drive more and more engagement. And over time, we are definitely confident that, that will turn into increased monetization.

如您所知，去年有一些新進入者進入數位供應領域，這對供應量產生了影響。現在我們確實預計，隨著供需動態平衡，這種情況將會平衡。目前我們還沒有看到這種情況，但我們相信，這種情況會發生。不過，現在更重要的是，史蒂夫，我們對 Paramount+ 和 Pluto 繼續推動的參與感到非常高興。從根本上來說，這是一個由點擊量驅動的業務，我們的點擊量和點擊內容將繼續推動越來越多的參與。隨著時間的推移，我們堅信這將轉化為更高的貨幣化。

Great. Hi, it's George. So look, Steve, the relationship between CBS and our affiliate partners is really a mutually beneficial one. We provide valuable content and our affiliates provide scale distribution. We're investing heavily in must-have live sports and the most watched primetime entertainment schedule. Now if this dynamic were to change, it would be difficult for us to continue to fit that bill. And in that case, the affiliates and local viewers, they would be harmed. So we have a strong record of securing partnerships with all our station groups, including renewing 60 CBS affiliates over the past year alone. So I think that will continue.

偉大的。你好，我是喬治。所以，史蒂夫，你看，哥倫比亞廣播公司和我們的附屬合作夥伴之間的關係確實是一種互惠互利的關係。我們提供有價值的內容，我們的附屬機構提供規模分發。我們正在大力投資必不可少的現場體育賽事和收視率最高的黃金時段娛樂節目。現在，如果這種動態發生變化，我們將很難繼續滿足這項要求。在這種情況下，分支機構和當地觀眾都會受到損害。因此，我們在與所有電台集團建立合作夥伴關係方面有著良好的記錄，僅去年一年就與 60 家 CBS 附屬機構續簽了合作關係。所以我認為這種情況將會持續下去。

Robert Fishman, MoffettNathanson.

羅伯特·菲什曼、莫菲特·納桑森。

Can you help us think about the right balance in licensing your library and some of these new original content to third-party streamers versus keeping the content exclusively for Paramount+? Just curious if an arms dealer licensing strategy is still able to command the strong economics that it once did? And then maybe if I can shift over to sports, given the success of sports driving the strong viewership that you talked about on CBS, just interested in your current thoughts on bidding for more sports rights like ESPN's MLB package or the -- you have the UFC package that's in the marketplace now. How do you differentiate between must-have and nice to have?

您能否幫助我們思考在將您的庫和一些新的原創內容授權給第三方串流媒體與將這些內容專門保留給 Paramount+ 之間如何取得適當的平衡？只是好奇軍火商許可策略是否仍然能夠像以前一樣控制強大的經濟？然後，也許我可以轉到體育話題，鑑於您在 CBS 上談到的體育運動成功吸引了大量觀眾，我只是想知道您目前對競標更多體育賽事版權的想法，比如 ESPN 的 MLB 套餐或——您現在在市場上擁有的 UFC 套餐。如何區分「必備品」和「有則更好」？

Robert, this is Brian. I'll take the licensing piece. Content licensing is a growth business for us. In particular, our secondary licensing business. Our content is valuable, and it drives demand for us. That said, we believe in using our most valuable IP to grow our owned and operated assets. That doesn't mean we're not going to continue to license that product as well, maybe on a co-exclusive basis or after it premieres on one of our owned and operated stations. But we believe that's the best path for our content.

羅伯特，這是布萊恩。我將接受許可部分。內容授權對我們來說是一項成長業務。特別是我們的二級許可業務。我們的內容很有價值，它推動了我們的需求。也就是說，我們相信利用我們最有價值的智慧財產權可以增加我們擁有和經營的資產。這並不意味著我們不會繼續授權該產品，也許是以共同獨家的方式，或者在我們擁有和經營的某個電台首播之後。但我們相信，這是我們內容的最佳途徑。

Great. Thanks, Robert. On the sports side, look, I believe we have a very robust sports portfolio. We've got core franchises. We feel very good about it, but we're always going to be open and opportunistic. We'll continue to take a disciplined approach. And our goal will always be to ensure that we have the optimal sports portfolio. We're always looking for sports rights that really matter and that really drive audience and scale.

偉大的。謝謝，羅伯特。在體育方面，我相信我們擁有非常強大的體育投資組合。我們擁有核心特許經營權。我們對此感覺很好，但我們將始終保持開放和機會主義的態度。我們將繼續採取嚴謹的態度。我們的目標始終是確保我們擁有最佳的運動組合。我們一直在尋找真正重要且能夠真正吸引觀眾並擴大規模的體育賽事版權。

Ben Swinburne, Morgan Stanley.

摩根士丹利的本‧斯溫伯恩 (Ben Swinburne)。

It's probably for Naveen but obviously interested in what everyone's take on it is. Naveen, you mentioned you expect another quarter of net subscription revenue growth in Q2. So streaming growing fast enough to offset the linear declines. As you take a longer-term view, can you talk a little bit about the expectations you have for linear declines and streaming growth, kind of the drivers behind those things? I'd be curious if you think what we're seeing in linear this year is unusual based on some of the renewals you had last year? Or if this is sort of normal trend? And how you think about the drivers of D2C subscription revenue growth kind of longer term from the scale that you've achieved today with Paramount+?

它可能適合 Naveen，但顯然對每個人對此的看法很感興趣。Naveen，您提到預計第二季淨訂閱收入將再成長一個季度。因此串流媒體的成長速度足以抵消線性下降。從長遠來看，您能否談談對線性下降和串流媒體成長的預期，以及這些因素背後的驅動因素？我很好奇，您是否認為根據您去年的一些更新，我們今年看到的線性情況是不尋常的？還是這是正常趨勢？從 Paramount+ 目前取得的規模來看，您如何看待 D2C 訂閱營收長期成長的驅動因素？

Yeah, Ben, thanks for the question. So look, on the linear side of the business, the two major drivers there are the rate of, call it, pay-TV subscriber decline in the ecosystem more broadly and then the nature of the deals that we negotiate. The -- certainly, the primary factor that is driving the revenue trend is the subscriber decline. And I think that will likely continue to be the case. There has been some impact from deal renewals in the last couple of quarters.

是的，本，謝謝你的提問。因此，從業務的線性方面來看，有兩個主要驅動因素：更廣泛的生態系統中付費電視用戶下降的速度，以及我們談判的交易的性質。當然，推動收入趨勢的主要因素是用戶數量的下降。我認為這種情況很可能會持續下去。過去幾季的交易續約產生了一些影響。

But if I look at the trends, for instance, in Q1, I don't expect major changes over the next few quarters there. So the net of what you're seeing in terms of sub declines and deal renewals, I think in Q1 is indicative of what we'll see over the next few quarters. On the streaming side, the growth drivers there are very clear. It is continued subscriber growth. It is improvements in churn and ARPU, which ultimately drive revenue growth. And given that it's largely a fixed cost business, the more we can scale that revenue, we see significant improvements in profitability, similar to what you've seen over the course of both 2024 and continue to move forward in 2025.

但如果我看一下趨勢，例如第一季的趨勢，我預計未來幾季不會發生重大變化。因此，我認為，就第一季的訂閱量下降和交易續約情況而言，您所看到的淨情況可以預示未來幾季的情況。在串流媒體方面，其成長動力非常明確。用戶數量持續成長。客戶流失率和 ARPU 的改善最終推動了收入的成長。鑑於這主要是一項固定成本業務，我們越能擴大收入，獲利能力就越能顯著提高，類似於您在 2024 年和 2025 年期間所看到的情況。

Richard Greenfield, LightShed.

理查德·格林菲爾德，LightShed。

Chris, I was watching your interview or read your interview the other day about Taylor Sheridan and I think the amount of times that you mentioned Taylor Sheridan between you and George earlier, it's obvious how important Taylor Sheridan is to Paramount's current and future. I'm curious why you haven't thought to acquire 101 Studios to be fully vertically integrated with Taylor? 101 has been reportedly been for sale on and off for several years. I mean, I guess, another way of asking the same question is like, why is the current state of your relationship with Taylor Sheridan the optimal model for maximizing value for Paramount?

克里斯，前幾天我看了你關於泰勒·謝裡丹的採訪，我想從你之前和喬治之間提到泰勒·謝裡丹的次數來看，很明顯泰勒·謝裡丹對派拉蒙的現在和未來有多麼重要。我很好奇，為什麼您沒有想過收購 101 Studios 來與 Taylor 進行完全垂直整合？據報道，101 號大樓已斷斷續續出售數年。我的意思是，我想，提出同一個問題的另一種方式是，為什麼您與泰勒·謝裡丹的當前關係狀態是最大化派拉蒙價值的最佳模式？

Rich, thanks for your question, and thanks for reading the article. Listen, we absolutely value both of those parties. Let me first start by saying that there are two separate entities, Taylor and 101. Now Taylor is a very gifted and unique creative. When Paramount has an exclusive with him through 2028. And we own all the IP that comes out of that. We have a great relationship with him, deep partnership that we built over time, and it's working. The results really speak for themselves. And we're confident that, that partnership and the hits will continue. Now as it relates to 101, they're absolutely a preferred partner.

Rich，感謝您的提問，也感謝您閱讀這篇文章。聽著，我們絕對重視這兩個政黨。首先我要說的是，有兩個獨立的實體，泰勒和 101。泰勒是一位非常有天賦且獨特的創意者。派拉蒙與他簽訂了 2028 年的獨家協議。我們擁有由此產生的所有知識產權。我們與祂保持著良好的關係，這種深厚的夥伴關係是我們長期以來建立的，而且非常有效。結果確實不言而喻。我們相信，這種合作關係和成功將會持續下去。現在就 101 而言，他們絕對是首選合作夥伴。

We love working with them and David and what he and his team have built and so much so that we've invested in them. But we do like that the relationship we have. We think the incentives are based on where they should be. And so we maintain -- we plan to keep that -- the current process and the current relationship as it is. Now related to Taylor, he really helped us to learn some new models.

我們非常樂意與他們和戴維一起工作，也樂意欣賞他和他的團隊所創造的一切，因此我們對他們進行了投資。但我們確實喜歡我們現在的關係。我們認為激勵措施應基於其應在的位置。因此，我們維持——我們計劃維持——當前的進程和當前的關係。現在與泰勒有關，他確實幫助我們學習了一些新的模型。

He's a unique creative and we built a model that was uniquely around him as opposed to forcing him through our structure. Now we've since used that as a playbook to bring in new creatives. And Jez Butterworth is one of the most recent ones, where we've seen great success with him with The Agency and most recently with Mobland. And Mobland, as we talked about, was the biggest global premier that we've had on Paramount+ to date. So listen, we love the relationship with Taylor. We're welcoming new creatives, and we definitely will continue to use 101 as the preferred partner, but we like the relationships we have today.

他是一個獨特的創意者，我們圍繞著他建立了一個獨特的模型，而不是強迫他接受我們的結構。現在我們已經將其作為策略來吸引新的創意。傑茲·巴特沃斯 (Jez Butterworth) 是最近加入的其中一位，我們看到他與 The Agency 以及最近的 Mobland 合作取得了巨大成功。正如我們所說，Mobland 是迄今為止我們在 Paramount+ 上最大的全球首映。所以聽著，我們喜歡與泰勒的關係。我們歡迎新的創意人才，我們肯定會繼續將 101 作為首選合作夥伴，但我們喜歡目前的關係。

Rick Prentiss, Raymond James.

瑞克普倫蒂斯、雷蒙詹姆斯。

Obviously a lot of industry attention on streaming potential for bundling joint ventures, maybe M&A, domestic, international. Maybe if you can just walk through the different types of combinations and the pros and cons of how you think about your desire or interest in participating in some of those versus do nothing?

顯然，許多產業都專注於捆綁合資企業、併購、國內和國際的串流潛力。也許您可以簡單地介紹不同類型的組合，以及您對參與其中某些組合的願望或興趣以及不採取任何行動的利弊的看法？

Rick, it's Chris again. I'm happy to take that question. Listen, we're very happy with the success that we've had to date. We only launched this a few years ago, and we're already up to nearly 80 million global subs. Revenue this quarter up 16%. So real momentum. We're seeing great engagement growth, really good solid improvement in churn. And listen, all of that is driven by our hits. And we have a powerful combination between the CBS prime time slate, sports and our originals on streaming where we really are in a class of our own. So we feel great about the momentum.

里克，又是克里斯。我很高興回答這個問題。聽著，我們對迄今為止的成功感到非常高興。我們幾年前才推出這個服務，但全球訂閱用戶已經接近 8,000 萬。本季營收成長16%。真正的動力。我們看到了參與度的大幅成長，客戶流失率也得到了實際的改善。聽著，所有這一切都是由我們的熱門歌曲推動的。我們將 CBS 黃金時段的節目、體育賽事和串流媒體上的原創節目進行了強大的組合，真正獨樹一幟。因此，我們對這一發展勢頭感到非常滿意。

We're just on the cusp of Paramount+ domestic profitability. So we feel really good. Now listen, that said, we're always going to take an opportunistic look at different opportunities, whether that's bundling, whether that's doing something maybe more deeper with a partner, certainly nothing announced today. But I can say that we are big fans of bundles. In fact, we were some of the early movers.

我們正處於 Paramount+ 國內盈利的邊緣。所以我們感覺非常好。現在聽著，話雖如此，我們總是會抓住機會去尋找不同的機會，無論是捆綁銷售，還是與合作夥伴進行更深入的合作，當然今天沒有任何宣布。但我可以說我們是捆綁產品的忠實粉絲。事實上，我們是早期行動者之一。

But it's important that when we look at bundles, we do that at a very incremental audience point of view. So particularly when they're harder to secure. So you take something like what we did with Walmart, which has been and continues to be a great partnership for us, or whether we bundle with hard bundle internationally with some great partners to get some distribution. We'll continue to look at all types of bundles, but really going to take an opportunistic look at that at really what's going to drive the most value and what's going to accelerate our plans.

但重要的是，當我們考慮捆綁產品時，我們要從增量觀眾的角度來考慮。尤其是當它們更難獲得保護的時候。因此，您可以採取類似我們與沃爾瑪合作的方式，這對我們來說一直是、並將繼續是一個很好的合作夥伴關係，或者我們是否與一些優秀的國際合作夥伴進行捆綁銷售以獲得一些分銷。我們將繼續研究所有類型的捆綁產品，但實際上我們會抓住機會，看看什麼才能真正帶來最大的價值，什麼才能加速我們的計劃。

Kutgun Maral, Evercore ISI.

Kutgun Maral，Evercore ISI。

The TV media were well ahead of expectations and above the core trends you saw last quarter. Maybe you could talk about what drove the upside there in the quarter? And maybe looking to Q2, I appreciate that sports ad inventory is sequentially lighter. But separate to that, can you help us think about any current linear trends, especially as you head into the upfront? And Naveen, I just want to make sure, in terms of the guidance for the full year on free cash flow, I just want to make sure that I didn't miss it, but you're effectively reiterating the prior guidance?

電視媒體的表現遠遠超出預期，並且高於上個季度看到的核心趨勢。也許您可以談談推動本季上漲的因素是什麼？也許展望第二季度，我發現體育廣告庫存會逐漸減少。但除此之外，您能否幫助我們思考當前的線性趨勢，尤其是在您進入前期時？納文，我只是想確認一下，就全年自由現金流的指導而言，我只是想確保我沒有錯過，但您實際上是在重申之前的指導嗎？

Kutgun, I'll take the first half of that question, and then I'll pass it over to Naveen for the second half. Listen, we're absolutely pleased with the performance that we had this quarter as it relates to revenue. And certainly, the strength of CBS and the broadcast slate, 17 straight year in a row where they're number one and sports was a really a big driver. Now that helped us to make up for some softness in the digital landscape. And as Naveen talked about, we still have good solid sports in Q2, although a little lighter.

Kutgun，我先回答這個問題的前半部分，然後交給 Naveen 回答後半部分。聽著，我們對本季的營收表現非常滿意。當然，哥倫比亞廣播公司的實力和連續 17 年排名第一的廣播節目以及體育節目確實是一大推動力。這有助於我們彌補數位領域的一些弱點。正如納文所說，儘管第二季的比賽稍微輕鬆了一些，但我們仍然擁有良好的競技狀態。

So we continue to expect those trends to look very similar. And in terms of how things are looking in the upfront, listen, we feel really good about the conversations and discussions that we've been having. I will note that scatter in this quarter is up double digits, which has always been a really interesting early indicator for us for the upfront. So we're feeling really good. Now listen, macro is certainly on people's mind. But everyone is giving us great feedback. We continue to hear good things, particularly around the unique set of assets and the volume of hits and the really strong sports portfolio. So we feel pretty good. Naveen?

因此我們繼續預期這些趨勢會非常相似。就目前的情況而言，聽著，我們對一直以來的對話和討論感到非常滿意。我要指出的是，本季的散度上升了兩位數，這對我們前期來說一直是一個非常有趣的早期指標。所以我們感覺非常好。現在聽著，宏觀經濟肯定是人們關注的焦點。但每個人都給了我們很好的回饋。我們不斷聽到好消息，特別是有關獨特的資產組合、熱門產品數量和真正強大的體育投資組合。所以我們感覺很好。納文？

Yeah. Thanks, Chris. So with respect to our comments on full year guidance, I think it's important to remember a few things. Number one, the fundamental drivers of earnings improvement that was built into our 2025 plan remain in place. That includes significant improvements in B2C profitability that take advantage of the improvement in churn in ARPU and sub revenue growth that we highlighted, it includes the ongoing non-content expense reductions that we're making across the company.

是的。謝謝，克里斯。因此，關於我們對全年指導的評論，我認為有必要記住幾件事。首先，我們在 2025 年計畫中確立的獲利改善基本驅動力仍然存在。這包括 B2C 獲利能力的顯著提高，利用了我們強調的 ARPU 流失率和子收入成長的改善，還包括我們在整個公司範圍內持續進行的非內容費用削減。

And it includes finding ways to get more leverage from those content investments across all the dimensions of our business, linear streaming, licensing theatrical, and you heard a number of examples of that from the CEOs today. All that said, the macro environment is uniquely dynamic right now, and that does create some uncertainty, which has the potential to impact revenue, primarily in advertising. At the same time, we are pushing the pedal harder on expense reductions. But I think it's premature to try to quantify the impact of that on earnings and cash flow until we have more clarity on how all the macro stuff will unfold. So with that, I just want to thank everyone on behalf of the co-CEOs for joining us today.

這包括尋找方法從內容投資中獲得更多槓桿，涵蓋我們業務的各個方面，包括線性串流媒體、影院許可等等，今天各位執行長已經談到了許多這樣的例子。儘管如此，目前的宏觀環境非常動態，這確實帶來了一些不確定性，有可能影響收入，主要是廣告收入。同時，我們正在加強削減開支。但我認為，在我們更清楚地了解所有宏觀因素將如何發展之前，試圖量化其對收益和現金流的影響還為時過早。因此，我謹代表聯合執行長感謝大家今天的出席。

We are proud of the progress we're making to drive value as we deliver high-performing content and continue to advance the business. We also want to thank our teams and our partners for their continued contributions. Have a great evening, everyone.

我們為在提供高效能內容和持續推進業務的過程中所取得的推動價值的進步感到自豪。我們也要感謝我們的團隊和合作夥伴的持續貢獻。祝大家晚上愉快。

Thank you. This now concludes today's call. Thank you for joining. You may now disconnect your lines.

謝謝。今天的電話會議到此結束。感謝您的加入。現在您可以斷開線路了。