CBS Sells 'Madam Secretary' in Multi-Platform Syndication Deal

By Paige Albiniak
( Broadcasting & Cable )
published

CBS has sold one-hour drama Madam Secretary across three platforms with staggered premieres, the company said Thursday.

The one-hour drama, which stars Téa Leoni as the U.S. Secretary of State, already airs on Netflix. The show’s fourth season, which premieres Sunday, Oct. 8, will join the subscription streaming platform “sometime in mid-2018,” according to CBS.

Madam Secretary will launch on cable network WE tv in 2018, and will debut on CBS-owned and other stations in weekend broadcast syndication next fall.

Related: CBS to Get Out-of-Home Measurement From Nielsen“CBS dramas continue to be in demand on all viewing platforms as their subscribers and viewers covet content that appeals to mass audiences,” said Scott Koondel, chief content licensing officer, CBS Corporation, in a statement. “This proven off-network model will provide tremendous incremental value for both CBS and our licensing partners.”

Madam Secretary is produced by CBS Television Studios in association with Revelations Entertainment. Executive producers are Barbara Hall, Lori McCreary, David Grae, Eric Stoltz and Academy Award-winner Morgan Freeman. Barbara Hall is the series creator.

Paige Albiniak
Paige Albiniak

Contributing editor Paige Albiniak has been covering the business of television for more than 25 years. She is a longtime contributor to Next TV, Broadcasting + Cable and Multichannel News. She concurrently serves as editorial director for The Global Entertainment Marketing Academy of Arts & Sciences (G.E.M.A.). She has written for such publications as TVNewsCheck, The New York Post, Variety, CBS Watch and more. Albiniak was B+C’s Los Angeles bureau chief from September 2002 to 2004, and an associate editor covering Congress and lobbying for the magazine in Washington, D.C., from January 1997 - September 2002.