Kirk Van Houten
Registered User
- May 7, 2019
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Paramount is shutting down Showtime Sports, a brand that has been in existence for nearly 38 years. The move, which will happen by the end of the year, will lead to an undetermined number of layoffs, including Showtime Sports President Stephen Espinoza -- who has run Showtime Sports since 2011. As a result of the move, Showtime will be getting out of the boxing category, sources told SBJ. Paramount still owns the MMA company Bellator but has been in the market trying to sell it for months.
Showtime Sports’ documentaries and digital programming -- including the Showtime Basketball brand -- also will be going away at the end of the year. Part of the reason for the move is that Paramount has a sports division -- CBS Sports -- that produces content for broadcast and cable TV, plus the Paramount+ streaming service. It’s not known what sports -- if any -- Showtime will continue to carry. But starting next year, any sport on Showtime will be produced by CBS Sports. It's likely that CBS Sports will produce documentaries for Showtime over the next several years.
