Verizon Offers First Bundle to Combine Netflix, Paramount+ With Showtime and It’s Eerily Similar to Cable

Verizon is combining competing streamers Netflix Premium (the most expensive tier) and Paramount+ with Showtime in a new, first-of-its-kind bundle, according to Variety. As many confused (and amused) people were quick to point out, though, this option – with its bundling as oppsed to the a la carte nature of traditional streaming – isn’t that different from cable.

The bundle, which U.S.-based Verizon customers can snag for $25.99 per month through the company’s +play subscription hub, subtracts $5.99 from the $32 you’d pay for them separately. 

“With partners like Netflix and Paramount+ With Showtime on +play, we’re leading the industry in offering customers the content they want in completely new formats, with never-before-seen bundles they can’t get anywhere else,” Erin McPherson, Verizon’s chief content officer, said in a statement.

Netflix recently amended its available subscription plans to a four-tier pricing model that pushes its approach closer to that of its competition.

Naturally, social media had lots of opinions about how, well, time is a flat circle and everything old is new again. Here are a few reactions to the news:

Are we going in circles

— Annabella (@anabelafay) June 1, 2023

Sooo, cable? We’re circling back to cable now? ?

— usuallydope ✡️ (@UsuallyDopeSVSC) June 1, 2023

And another for when words just don’t do:

pic.twitter.com/FmpSL4IkYU

— the tribal clown (@ruega_por_ella) June 1, 2023

Last month, it was announced that the standalone Showtime app would be shut down by the end of the year, making bundles such as Verizon’s more attractive for consumers wanting more binge for their buck.

Hayden Mears is an entertainment journalist who enjoys (you guessed it) entertainment. He also likes fitness boxing and writing bios in the third person.