 | |
| Formerly | CBS Video Enterprises, Inc. (1979–1983) CBS Video (1980–2006) MGM/CBS Home Video (1980–1982) CBS/Fox Video (1982–2000) |
|---|---|
| Company type | Division |
| Industry | Home entertainment |
| Founded | 1979; 46 years ago (1979) |
| Founder | Cy Leslie |
| Headquarters | , United States |
| Parent | CBS (1979–2000) CBS Corporation (2007–2019) CBS Entertainment Group (2019–present) |
CBS Home Entertainment (formerlyCBS Video Enterprises, Inc.,MGM/CBS Home Video,CBS/Fox Video andCBS Video, currently branded asCBS DVD for DVD releases andCBS Blu-ray forBlu-ray releases) is an American home video company that distributes films and television shows produced by theCBS Entertainment Group that releases content from the CBS library (CBS Studios,CBS Media Ventures,CBS News, and their predecessor companies) on home media.
CBS, Inc. established a home video arm, CBS Video Enterprises (CVE), in 1979 withCy Leslie as chairman.
In 1980, CVE formed a joint venture withMetro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM), calledMGM/CBS Home Video which licensed the film library of MGM for release on home videocassette, following the early leads ofParamount Home Video and20th Century Fox'sMagnetic Video division. In addition to the MGM film library, the company released output fromCBS News,CBS Records, theCBS television network,CBS Theatrical Films, and the motion picture division ofLorimar.
By 1981,MGM/CBS had expanded fromVHS andBetamax toRCA'sCED system as well. Also that year, CBS Video Enterprises handled distribution of its five titles bySamuel Goldwyn Home Entertainment in conjunction with MGM/CBS.[1] In 1982,CBS withdrew from the MGM joint venture. The MGM/CBS company reorganized intoMGM/UA Home Video.
A short time later, CBS purchased a stake in 20th Century Fox's home video operation, and formedCBS/Fox Video. The new company reissued many of CBS' properties issued under the CBS/Fox label, in addition to films under the 20th Century Fox banner. Two specialty labels,Key Video, andPlayhouse Video, were also created.
The CBS/Fox joint venture was reorganized in 1990, with Key Video and Playhouse Video ceasing operations, and Fox Video was created to release the mainstream output of 20th Century Fox.CBS continued to issue their product and programming under the Fox Video label until 1998, and utilized the CBS/Fox label forBBC Video in the United States until these rights expired on June 30, 2000 and wasn't renewed. On June 28, 2000, BBC Worldwide Americas announced a new partnership withWarner Home Video that would begin effectively on July 1, 2000, excluding the release ofWalking with Dinosaurs, which was instead transferred over from CBS/Fox to Warner Home Video on September 1, 2000.[2] In 2001, CBS/Fox Video was folded into20th Century Fox Home Entertainment.
WhenViacom purchasedCBS in 2000,Paramount Home Entertainment became CBS Video/DVD's distributor (which CBS was controlled byNational Amusements from 2000 to 2025). Both companies were split again on December 31, 2005, but they were still controlled by National Amusements.CBS Corporation formedCBS Home Entertainment as a new home entertainment arm in 2007.
Sony Pictures Home Entertainment won the right to release material from the newly formed incarnation ofCBS Films beginning in 2010, under license from CBS Home Entertainment; five years later,Lionsgate Home Entertainment succeeded Sony Pictures Home Entertainment as CBS Films' home media distributor.
Most less-demanded CBS programs are either released on manufactured-on-demand DVDs by CBS itself or licensed toVisual Entertainment Inc.
CBS andViacomre-merged on December 4, 2019, formingViacomCBS (nowParamount Skydance Corporation).