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Viacom CEO Bob Bakish says he’s not worried about competition in the streaming space following his company’s merger with CBS.
Bakish said streaming players like Netflix are a “growth segment” for Viacom as they supply the video streaming services directly through studio production.
“Every single one of the services that are either in the market today or are announced are doing business with us on an original production basis, so we are in clear demand,” Bakish told CNBC’s David Faber on “Squawk Alley” Tuesday.
The streaming sector is becoming a crowded space with Netflix holding large market share and other new streaming launches from Apple, Disney, HBO and Comcast on the horizon. But Bakish said he is not worried about the competition because ViacomCBS is a major supplier of content to the streaming companies like Netflix.
“We will, on closing, be the leading market leader in television audience share in the United States. That makes us a partner video distributors absolutely need to have as part of their offering,” said Bakish.
“Still the majority of the consumers in the United States are big bundle consumers,” he added.
Last month, Viacom and CBS announced the companies would merge into ViacomCBS. Bakish will be the CEO of the combined company.
Bakish said he expects the deal to close in December.
