Viacom NewFront: Conglomerate Playing Digital Landscape Like Stock Market ; “South Park” Could Be At Center Of Major Bidding War

South Park is king.

Viacom’s NewFronts presentation was very fascinating. For starters, the media conglomerate is more or less playing the stock market as to where to put it’s originals. Snapchat, Youtube, Facebook, and the recently acquired PlutoTV, are all getting some form of original Viacom programming with PlutoTV actually getting ad-supported channels from the company’s Comedy Central, MTV, BET, and Nickelodeon flagship brands starting May 1st.

In the realm of adult animation, the offerings are slim at the moment, instead focusing efforts on kids and maybe some social IP’s. However, there’s a large gorilla in the room and it’s name is South Park and MTV’s back catalog of animation classics. These all could be very much up for grabs for streaming services which could lead to big money contracts for not only Comedy Central’s longest running series, but also IP that hasn’t been seen in a while like Beavis and Butthead, Daria, and more. You know that Clone High re-up everyone’s begging for? Well….

It’s possible now. Hulu is paying big bucks for South Park right now, and it’s paying off, but will the mostly Disney-owned streaming service be able to support it’s recent foray into increased spending for originals all the while keeping hold of what might be the service’s most important streaming series? Netflix could be a player for South Park, and even a potential future home while WarnerMedia’s getting ready to pack up it’s shit and leave for it’s own streaming service which will most likely see the Adult Swim/Cartoon Network libraries somewhere else sooner rather than later.

Viacom’s running an auction of classic cars that will sell for millions all the while not putting it’s legs behind one or two services. Instead, the company is playing the digital landscape like the stock markets or a casino, put a couple of bucks here and there and then see what hits. It’s a wise strategy, and one that could see a bunch of checks with Apple, Google, and Netflix’s names written all over it.