Viacom Enterprises
Encyclopedia
Viacom Enterprises was a television distribution company formed in 1971 as the successor to CBS Enterprises, and spun off in 1973 due to now-repealed FCC
bylaws prohibiting networks from syndicating their own shows
.
Its purpose upon formation was to distribute the classic CBS
library, which also included the pre-1960 library of Desilu Productions
.
It distributed other series as well, among them All in the Family
, the Carsey-Werner Productions
library, and for a number of years distributed the MTM Enterprises
library until MTM acquired Jim Victory Television in 1980. It also distributed the first 4 seasons of The Montel Williams Show
, the pre-1984 New World Pictures library, most of the Cannon Films
library, a majority of the Elvis Presley
films originally released by Paramount Pictures
, the FNN
-produced program, Business This Morning and the CNBC-produced program, This Morning's Business.
In 1974, it formed Viacom Productions
to produce first-run television series airing on the major television networks.
In 1986, the company became a subsidiary of the newly-reincorporated Viacom Inc., after a takeover by National Amusements
.
In 1994, Viacom acquired Paramount Pictures. As a result, Viacom Enterprises was merged into Paramount Television
's distribution arm, Paramount Domestic Television
.
, while most of the theatrical output (which had included the Cannon Films and Elvis Presley libraries) are now handled by Trifecta Entertainment and Media under license from Paramount (films either produced in-house by CBS or had ancillary rights revert to CBS in later years are still distributed by CTD). However, worldwide television rights (outside of the United States and Canada) to the Cannon library belongs to MGM International Television Distribution
.
There are exceptions however:
Federal Communications Commission
The Federal Communications Commission is an independent agency of the United States government, created, Congressional statute , and with the majority of its commissioners appointed by the current President. The FCC works towards six goals in the areas of broadband, competition, the spectrum, the...
bylaws prohibiting networks from syndicating their own shows
Fin-syn
The Financial Interest and Syndication Rules, widely known as fin-syn rules, were a set of rules imposed by the Federal Communications Commission of the U.S. in 1970. The FCC sought to prevent the Big Three television networks from monopolizing the broadcast landscape by preventing them from owning...
.
Its purpose upon formation was to distribute the classic CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
library, which also included the pre-1960 library of Desilu Productions
Desilu Productions
Desilu Productions was a Los Angeles, California-based company jointly owned by actors Desi Arnaz and Lucille Ball, who were married to each other from 1940 to 1960....
.
It distributed other series as well, among them All in the Family
All in the Family
All in the Family is an American sitcom that was originally broadcast on the CBS television network from January 12, 1971, to April 8, 1979. In September 1979, a new show, Archie Bunker's Place, picked up where All in the Family had ended...
, the Carsey-Werner Productions
Carsey-Werner Productions
Carsey-Werner Productions is an independent production company founded in 1981 by former ABC writer/producer duo Marcy Carsey and Tom Werner...
library, and for a number of years distributed the MTM Enterprises
MTM Enterprises
MTM Enterprises was an American independent production company established in 1969 by Mary Tyler Moore and her then-husband Grant Tinker to produce The Mary Tyler Moore Show for CBS...
library until MTM acquired Jim Victory Television in 1980. It also distributed the first 4 seasons of The Montel Williams Show
The Montel Williams Show
The Montel Williams Show is a syndicated talk show hosted by Montel Williams. On January 30, 2008 it was announced that The Montel Williams Show would stop production on new episodes at the end of the 2007-2008 television season after seventeen years...
, the pre-1984 New World Pictures library, most of the Cannon Films
Golan-Globus
The Cannon Group Inc. was an American group of companies, including Cannon Films, which produced a distinctive line of low-to-medium budget films from 1967 to 1993...
library, a majority of the Elvis Presley
Elvis Presley
Elvis Aaron Presley was one of the most popular American singers of the 20th century. A cultural icon, he is widely known by the single name Elvis. He is often referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll" or simply "the King"....
films originally released by Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film production and distribution company, located at 5555 Melrose Avenue in Hollywood. Founded in 1912 and currently owned by media conglomerate Viacom, it is America's oldest existing film studio; it is also the last major film studio still...
, the FNN
Financial News Network
The Financial News Network was a television network that operated throughout the United States during the 1980s.-Founding:Financial News Network was founded in 1981 by two men: Rodney Buchser, who had been general manager of KWHY, Channel 22 in Los Angeles and Glenn Taylor. The concept originated...
-produced program, Business This Morning and the CNBC-produced program, This Morning's Business.
In 1974, it formed Viacom Productions
Viacom Productions
Viacom Productions was a television production company active from 1974 until 2004.-History:*1971: Viacom Enterprises was reincorporated from CBS Enterprises .*1973: Viacom Enterprises was spun-off from CBS....
to produce first-run television series airing on the major television networks.
In 1986, the company became a subsidiary of the newly-reincorporated Viacom Inc., after a takeover by National Amusements
National Amusements
National Amusements, Inc. is a privately owned theatre company based in Dedham, Massachusetts, USA. The company was founded in 1936 as the Northeast Theatre Corporation by Michael Redstone....
.
In 1994, Viacom acquired Paramount Pictures. As a result, Viacom Enterprises was merged into Paramount Television
Paramount Television
Paramount Television was an American television production/distribution company that was active from January 1, 1968 to August 27, 2006.Its successor is CBS Television Studios, formerly CBS Paramount Television...
's distribution arm, Paramount Domestic Television
Paramount Domestic Television
Paramount Domestic Television was the television distribution arm of American television production company Paramount Television, once the TV arm of Paramount Pictures...
.
Rights
Today, many of the shows previously distributed by Viacom Enterprises are now distributed by CBS Television DistributionCBS Television Distribution
CBS Television Distribution is a global television distribution company, formed from the merger of CBS Corporation's two domestic television distribution arms CBS Paramount Domestic Television and King World Productions, including its home entertainment arm CBS Home Entertainment...
, while most of the theatrical output (which had included the Cannon Films and Elvis Presley libraries) are now handled by Trifecta Entertainment and Media under license from Paramount (films either produced in-house by CBS or had ancillary rights revert to CBS in later years are still distributed by CTD). However, worldwide television rights (outside of the United States and Canada) to the Cannon library belongs to MGM International Television Distribution
MGM Worldwide Television
MGM Worldwide Television is the Global operating division of MGM Television formed in 1995, responsible for the production/distribution of MGM's vast television library around the world....
.
There are exceptions however:
- All in the Family was later syndicated by Embassy CommunicationsEmbassy Television...
, which is now part of Sony Pictures TelevisionSony Pictures TelevisionSony Pictures Television, Inc. is an American and global television production/distribution subsidiary of Sony Pictures Entertainment. In turn, the latter is part of the Japanese conglomerate Sony.-Background:...
. - As aforementioned, the MTM library changed distributors to Victory Television in 1980. Victory was later reincorporated as MTM Television Distribution, which in turn was folded into 20th Television20th Television20th Television is an American television production and syndication company that was formed in 1992 by 20th Century Fox Film Corporation, a division of the Fox Entertainment Group, part of News Corporation....
after News CorporationNews CorporationNews Corporation or News Corp. is an American multinational media conglomerate. It is the world's second-largest media conglomerate as of 2011 in terms of revenue, and the world's third largest in entertainment as of 2009, although the BBC remains the world's largest broadcaster...
bought MTM. - Viacom was the original distributor for The Super Mario Bros. Super Show (although they were uncredited until the end of each program), produced by DiC Enterprises. That show is now owned by Cookie Jar EntertainmentCookie Jar EntertainmentThe Cookie Jar Group is an American and Canadian producer of children’s entertainment, consumer products and educational materials...
for all distribution rights. - The Dr. SeussDr. SeussTheodor Seuss Geisel was an American writer, poet, and cartoonist most widely known for his children's books written under the pen names Dr. Seuss, Theo LeSieg and, in one case, Rosetta Stone....
animated television specials produced by CBS and DePatie-Freleng EnterprisesDePatie-Freleng EnterprisesDePatie-Freleng Enterprises was a Hollywood-based animation production company, active from 1963 to 1981. They produced theatrical cartoons, animated series, commercials, title sequences and television specials. Notable among these is The Pink Panther film titles and cartoon shorts and the Dr....
were sold to Universal StudiosUniversal StudiosUniversal Pictures , a subsidiary of NBCUniversal, is one of the six major movie studios....
(owners of a theme park license for the Seuss universe and producers of a few theatrical Seuss adaptations) in 2001. NBCUniversal Television Distribution currently handles these specials for television as of the present time. - Several Hanna-BarberaHanna-BarberaHanna-Barbera Productions, Inc. was an American animation studio that dominated North American television animation during the second half of the 20th century...
series that aired on CBS were once distributed by Viacom. These shows later transferred to Worldvision Enterprises (except for Harlem GlobetrottersHarlem Globetrotters (TV series)Harlem Globetrotters was a Saturday morning cartoon produced by Hanna-Barbera and CBS Productions, featuring animated versions of players from the basketball team, Harlem Globetrotters....
, co-produced by CBS), and are now owned by Warner Bros. TelevisionWarner Bros. TelevisionWarner Bros. Television is the television production arm of Warner Bros. Entertainment, itself part of Time Warner. Alongside CBS Television Studios, it serves as a television production arm of The CW Television Network , though it also produces shows for other networks, such as Shameless on...
(Worldvision itself has also been absorbed in part into what became CTD). - The GarfieldGarfieldGarfield is a comic strip created by Jim Davis. Published since June 19, 1978, it chronicles the life of the title character, the cat Garfield ; his owner, Jon Arbuckle; and Arbuckle's dog, Odie...
cartoon specials and Garfield and FriendsGarfield and FriendsGarfield and Friends is an American animated television series based on the comic strip Garfield by Jim Davis. The show was produced by Film Roman, in association with United Feature Syndicate and Paws, Inc., and ran on CBS Saturday mornings from September 17, 1988 to December 10, 1994, with...
TV show were sold to 20th Century Fox20th Century FoxTwentieth Century Fox Film Corporation — also known as 20th Century Fox, or simply 20th or Fox — is one of the six major American film studios...
(which released the live-action Garfield movies) in 2004. The worldwide rights to the series are owned by Starz Media GlobalStarz MediaStarz Media is the motion picture, animation, television, and home video subsidiary of Liberty Media.-Subsidiaries:Starz Media's subsidiaries include:*Anchor Bay Entertainment - distribution division for DVDs and videos....
, while the DVD rights resides with Starz Media's home entertainment subsidiary Anchor Bay EntertainmentAnchor Bay EntertainmentAnchor Bay Entertainment is a U.S. based home entertainment and production company and is a division of Starz Media, which is a unit of Starz, LLC. It was previously owned by IDT Entertainment until 2006 when IDT was purchased by Starz Media. Anchor Bay markets and sells feature films, series,...
.
See also
- Viacom ProductionsViacom ProductionsViacom Productions was a television production company active from 1974 until 2004.-History:*1971: Viacom Enterprises was reincorporated from CBS Enterprises .*1973: Viacom Enterprises was spun-off from CBS....
- CBSCBSCBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
- Paramount TelevisionParamount TelevisionParamount Television was an American television production/distribution company that was active from January 1, 1968 to August 27, 2006.Its successor is CBS Television Studios, formerly CBS Paramount Television...
- CBS Paramount TelevisionCBS Paramount TelevisionCBS Television Studios is an American television production/distribution company that was formed on January 17, 2006 by CBS Corporation merging Paramount Television and CBS Productions...
- CBS Television DistributionCBS Television DistributionCBS Television Distribution is a global television distribution company, formed from the merger of CBS Corporation's two domestic television distribution arms CBS Paramount Domestic Television and King World Productions, including its home entertainment arm CBS Home Entertainment...
- Viacom (1971-2005)