HBO Max operator Warner Bros Discovery Inc. accused Paramount Global of conspiring with the creators of South Park to keep some of the show’s content out of HBO’s more than $500 million deal for exclusive streaming rights to the cartoon comedy series.
(Bloomberg) — HBO Max operator Warner Bros Discovery Inc. accused Paramount Global of conspiring with the creators of South Park to keep some of the show’s content out of HBO’s more than $500 million deal for exclusive streaming rights to the cartoon comedy series.
In a lawsuit filed Friday in New York state court, Warner alleged a “multi-year scheme” by Paramount to divert content in a “blatant” attempt to prop up its own streaming service, Paramount+, with help from South Park Digital Studios and MTV Entertainment Studios. HBO is seeking more than $200 million in damages.
Paramount, which owns the Comedy Central channel where South Park shows are first broadcast, sought to “unfairly take advantage of Warner/HBO by breaching its contract and stealing its content,” according to the lawsuit.
Representatives from Paramount, MTV and South Park weren’t immediately available for comment.
HBO Max announced in October 2019 it had won the exclusive streaming rights to South Park, with all 23 seasons of the show available on the service and three new seasons to debut 24 hours after premiering on Comedy Central. HBO said the deal, which ran from June 2020 to June 2025, included payments of about $1.7 million for each of the 333 episodes.
But in August 2021, Paramount Global, formerly known as Viacom CBS, signed a $900 million deal with the show’s creators, in which the they would produce a series of specials for Paramount+.
Two months later, Paramount+ and MTV announced the exclusive premier of two South Park Post-COVID “events,” which HBO alleges violated its contract. South Park failed to inform HBO of any season 24 episodes at that time and had provided fewer than the agreed upon episodes, according to the suit.
HBO said Paramount earned “massive” profits at its expense. Paramount added 9.4 million streaming subscribers in the fourth quarter of 2021, 80% of which came from Paramount+, according to the suit. Paramount Chief Executive Officer Robert Bakish also reported a rise in subscribers following the release of South Park The Streaming Wars and Streaming Wars Part 2.
South Park, which has aired for 26 years, is one of the longest-running shows in TV history. It has outlived every program on Comedy Central except for The Daily Show.
The case is WarnerMedia Direct LLC v Paramount Global, New York State Supreme Court, New York County.
(Updates with details from lawsuit.)
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