• by Wayne Friedman , Staff Writer, March 28, 2025

With more disruption and competition everywhere, it seems more fighting is to come around big legacy TV-based series that bring in high numbers of viewers.

Paramount Global’s highly rated neo-Western “Yellowstone,” which can be seen on the Paramount Network and its CBS Television Network, is just one of those.

The media battle is between Paramount and Comcast’s NBCUniversal. The latter has the exclusive rights to stream the blockbuster Western hit on Peacock through 2029, according to The Wall Street Journal.

But it doesn’t end there. The Taylor Sheridan-produced show is now planning two big spinoffs. Comcast says it should also come to Peacock because the characters and storylines are somewhat of a continuation of the original “Yellowstone.”

How big of a deal is “Yellowstone”? How about a TV series finale in December 2024 for the mostly cable TV centric show delivering 13.1 million viewers last year over a three-day period and 11.4 million on its Sunday time slot? Not too shabby.

Think back to the start of the streaming wars in 2019 -- when there was infighting or negotiations -- for longtime "sticky" series with high viewing like “Friends” (Warner Bros.) and “The Office” (NBCUniversal) -- both of which were on Netflix.

Both legacy TV-network based media companies wanted those shows back to help launch those companies' streaming platforms -- then HBO Max (now Max) and Peacock, respectively. “Friends” has been on Max exclusively since mid-2020. “The Office,” also exclusively, has been on Peacock since January 2021.

Back then -- and now -- library TV series of big, recent hits act as a foundation for streamers. But now, looking forward, there is a rush to maintain that viewership on a month-to-month basis -- all to keep the “churn” of subscribers (users opting out of service for a period) at a minimum.

With a streaming business that is maturing, things will only get worse. And possibly major TV-based shows with an expected major following will mean continued competition and battles among the big streaming players.