Primary Job Title Chairman, President & Chief Executive Officer Primary Organization CBS Corporation
Location New York, New York, United States Regions Greater New York Area, East Coast, Northeastern US Gender Male
Investor Type Individual/Angel Investor Stage Seed Number of Exits
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Leslie Moonves is President and Chief Executive Officer of CBS Corporation, one of the world’s leading media enterprises. In this role, he oversees all operations of the Company, including the CBS Television Network, The CW (a joint venture between CBS Corporation and Warner Bros. Entertainment), CBS Television Studios, CBS Global Distribution
Group (CBS Studios International and CBS Television Distribution), CBS Consumer Products, CBS Home Entertainment, CBS Films, CBS Interactive, Showtime Networks, CBS Sports Network, Pop (a joint venture between CBS Corporation and Lionsgate), Smithsonian Networks, Simon & Schuster, CBS Television Stations, CBS Radio and CBS EcoMedia.
Moonves came to CBS in 1995 as President of Entertainment, after serving as president of Warner Bros. Television, where his team developed hit shows like Friends and ER. Once at CBS, Moonves and his team took the Network from last to first place in the ratings, launching hit shows like Everybody Loves Raymond, Survivor, and CSI: Crime Scene Investigation. Moonves was promoted to President and CEO of CBS Television in 1998 and became Chairman in 2003. He was later named Co-President and Co-Chief Operating Officer of Viacom and Chairman of CBS in 2004, overseeing domestic and international broadcast television operations as well as its radio division and outdoor advertising operations. In 2006, when Viacom split its businesses into two publicly traded companies, Moonves was named President and CEO of the newly formed CBS Corporation, which has since been one of the best-performing companies in media.
Under Moonves’ direction, the CBS Television Network has been #1 in viewers for 12 of the last 13 years, and currently has television's #1 drama, NCIS; television’s #1 comedy, The Big Bang Theory; television’s #1 news program, 60 Minutes; as well as time period-leading shows on virtually every night of the week. At the same time, the Company’s premium cable service, Showtime Networks, has generated millions of new subscribers on the heels of its successful owned series, such as Ray Donovan, House of Lies, Dexter and The Affair, as well as the critically acclaimed, Emmy- and Golden-Globe-Award-winning series Homeland.
The Company’s push to sell its shows around the world has made international distribution sales a significant revenue source, with CBS content licensed to more than 200 markets in more than 30 languages across multiple media platforms. That emphasis on exploiting content has also enabled CBS to strike lucrative, multiyear deals with the industry’s biggest online distributors, including Netflix and Amazon.
CBS’s other divisions have also been robust under Moonves’ leadership, including interactive media. The Company’s acquisition of CNET, Inc. in 2008 helped make CBS Interactive the premier online content network for information and entertainment, with more than 280 million people from around the world visiting its websites each month. In publishing, Simon & Schuster routinely releases hundreds of New York Times bestsellers every year, including dozens that make it to #1, and is the publishing home of some of the world’s most recognized and prize-winning authors. Simon & Schuster is also a leader in digital publishing, with titles available across all major platforms and formats. In local broadcasting, CBS-owned TV stations are among the most-watched in the country, and CBS Radio is home to the most-listened-to radio stations in the U.S.
By distinguishing CBS as a producer and seller of world-class content across all mediums, Moonves has helped CBS Corporation grow in value, revenue and market share while identifying and developing key new revenue streams for future growth.