CBS Sees Retrans Rev Hitting $1B By 2017

Over the next five years, CBS expects revenue from retransmission consent and reverse compensation to quadruple from at least $250 million to $1 billion, according to CBS CEO Leslie Moonves.

“And let’s remember, these are whole dollars,” Moonves during an on-stage Q&A at a Deutsche Bank conference this morning. “They drop right to the bottom line.

“Investors should be able to count on the revenue,” he said. “The [retrans] game is being played. Everybody sort of knows what the range is. I think it is somewhat predictable.

“Each year the number moves up a little bit and every new deal is better than the deal before.”

CBS is just beginning to get its fair share of the programming fees that cable and satellite pay out, he said. “We are watched by a lot more people than a lot of cable networks that get paid a lot more than we do. But having started from zero three years ago, we are in a very good position.

“As we get online, that number will continue to increase.”

CBS is “very opposed” to federal legislation that would strip away broadcasters’ right to negotiate for retrans payments, he said. “The good news is that doesn’t appear to have much chance of passage. It would change the whole ecosystem.”

He also suggested that there was little reason for Congress to intervene. CBS has gone through a number of retrans and reverse comp negotiations, he said. “And we haven’t pulled down our signal one day in one market. So, we have been able to successfully negotiate because we’re fair and they’re fair and we think we deliver a good product.”