Hulu's Live TV Adds 14 More Channels, Discovery Plus Debuts

ViacomCBS has struck a deal with Disney to distribute more of their content on Hulu Plus Live TV. Terms of the deal announced on Monday weren't disclosed but the agreement gives Hulu access to 14 channels including BET, Comedy Central, MTV, Nickelodeon, VH1 and Paramount Network.

CBS already had a deal with Hulu to provide its broadcast channel along with the CW, the Smithsonian Channel and PopTV.

Since merging in 2019, ViacomCBS has made a flurry of carriage deals and has been seeking to capitalize on the combination of the company's film and television assets to compete as the threat of further consolidation hangs over the industry.

The deal comes ahead of Viacom's plans to rebrand CBSAll Access to Paramount Plus this year, a streaming service that will compete with a slate of original shows and gets its name from the company's film studio, Paramount Pictures.

But the streaming landscape is becoming increasingly competitive as the pandemic has pushed theatrical releases into people's living rooms, imperiling the box office.

And even traditional cable fare is now streaming. On Monday Discovery Plus debuted its subscription service for multiple platforms, relying on a heavy dose of unscripted and reality television content from networks like HGTV, the Food Network and Animal Planet.

Discovery President and CEO David Zaslav told CNBC on Monday that he thinks he can capture viewers with the niche.

"We're a great companion to Disney and Netflix," he said. "If you have Disney or Netflix, you have two great products, but we're completely different and we go really well with them."

The two-tiered service costs $4.99 with ads or $6.99 without them.