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CBS Television Distribution (CTD) is a global television distribution company, a merger of CBS Corporation's three television distribution arms CBS Paramount Domestic Television, CBS Paramount International Television, and King World Productions including its home entertainment arm CBS Home Entertainment. The division, the main distribution arm of CBS Paramount Television (now CBS Television Studios), was formed on September 26, 2006 by CBS Corporation and was headed by Roger King, who was CEO for King World. King died on December 8, 2007 after suffering a stroke in his home the previous day. The company handles distribution rights to acquired series from the Paramount Television libraries: (Desilu, Paramount Television, Viacom Productions and Enterprises, Republic Pictures Television, Big Ticket Television, Spelling Television, and Worldvision Enterprises) and CBS television libraries: (CBS Productions, King World, majority of those by Group W Productions, and its own first-run syndication and off-network series). CBS also handles TV rights to much of its own theatrical and made-for-television movies. The company formerly distributed the film libraries from Paramount Pictures and Republic Pictures, among others. The company is also responsible for international television distribuiton rights to those by Rysher Entertainment (owned domestically by 2929 Entertainment) and certain HBO series. This would make the 6th distribution name for CBS as CBS Films was the first, CBS Broadcast International as the 2nd, Eyemark Entertainment as the 3rd, CBS Paramount International Television as the 4th, and CBS Paramount Domestic Television as the 5th. From 2006-2008, CTD (in conjunction with Tribune Entertainment) distributed the DreamWorks Television and DreamWorks Pictures libraries (after Viacom acquired DreamWorks in February 2006), before the studio was spun off. These distribution rights are now held by Disney-ABC Domestic Television (for live-action TV series and post-9/2005 live-action films) and Trifecta Entertainment & Media (for earlier live-action films and all animated productions). Until May 2009, CTD distributed the Paramount Pictures library on television. By then, CBS also dropped the name "Paramount" from television for good, renaming CBS Paramount Television to CBS Television Studios. Paramount has too joined up with Trifecta. However, CTD continues to distribute films currently copyrighted by CBS (or a subdivision thereof), including those films from Cinema Center Films and CBS Theatrical Films, along with a few select entries which CBS bought ancillary rights to in later years (such as My Fair Lady). The international arm is called CBS Studios International. |
