Billions is one of Showtime's hit showsCredit:Showtime
Stan,which is owned by Nine - also the owner of theHerald,has been negotiating to extend or renew its contract with ViacomCBS for Showtime content after it failed to sign long-term content deals with US studios Disney and WarnerMedia,the owner of premium network HBO.
The looming decision by ViacomCBS means that new shows created by Showtime,the media giant's premium network,may not be available on Stan once its current deal expires early next year,sources said. Existing shows likeBillions will be available on Stan for as long as they run under the terms of the agreement secured back in 2016,but it is unclear whether the new plans to be announced by Mr Bakish will preclude the streaming service from doing future deals for Showtime content.
Stan separately has a long-term output deal in place with ViacomCBS'Paramount studio,which makes shows such asYellowStoneandThe Great.It also has access to ViacomCBS'back catalogue of shows.
The decision by ViacomCBS suggests the American giant plans to intensify its push into the increasingly crowded Australian streaming video market. 10 All Access is also likely to be rebranded to reflect the new content available,sources said. The refreshed service is expected to launch in February.
Nine chief executive Hugh Marks has previously said thatno single output deal would "make or break Stan". The existing Showtime deal was estimated to be worth about $35 million a year and wasdescribed as "the most significant content licensing deal in recent Australian history".
Stan was hopeful of landing a multi-million dollar deal with WarnerMedia in May but an agreement was ultimately signed with Foxtel. It lost the streaming rights to Disney shows whenDisney+ launched in Australia late last year. In the coming months shows likeFriends will also be removed from the streaming platform,which has about 2 million subscribers.
But the streaming service has other content deals in place with prominent Hollywood studios such as Starz,Sony and Paramount. Industry sources also indicated that Stan is negotiating with NBCUniversal,which has a content slate that includes shows likeSaturday Night LiveandThe Good Place. Some NBC titles that Stan has access to includingThe Office andSeinfeld are largely non-exclusive.