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Viacom (pronounced with a long i as in "eye") began life as CBS Films, the television syndication division of CBS. more...

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In 1971, the division was renamed VIACOM (Video & Audio Communications), and in 1973 it was spun off, amid new FCC rules forbidding television networks from owning syndication companies (the rules were later repealed).

Viacom made large amounts of money during the 1970s and 1980s distributing old CBS classics to syndication, including such landmark shows as I Love Lucy, The Andy Griffith Show and All in the Family (which was later owned by Embassy/Columbia Pictures Television, now called Sony Pictures Television). They also syndicated shows for others, the biggest examples being The Cosby Show and Roseanne (which were produced by Carsey-Werner Productions; Carsey-Werner eventually got big enough to distribute their own shows, mainly because of the success of these two). Viacom also syndicated the Nickelodeon game shows Double Dare and Finders Keepers; both shows were co-syndicated by Fox Television Stations.

String of acquisitions

Viacom's first non-programming acquisition came in 1978 when the company purchased the Sonderling Broadcasting chain, giving it radio stations in New York City, Washington, DC, Houston, San Francisco and a TV station (CBS affiliate WAST, now NBC affiliate WNYT) in Albany, New York. Later that year, Viacom added NBC affiliate WNHB in New Britain, Connecticut (Hartford market) changing its calls to WVIT. The early 1980s saw Viacom sorting through the Sonderling stations with several being donated, swapped, or being the nucleus for new corporations (WOL in Washington, DC launched the Radio One group, today a large African-American-owned corporation). In 1983, Viacom purchased CBS affiliates KSLA in Shreveport, Louisiana and WHEC in Rochester, New York, followed three years later with (ironically) CBS-owned KMOX-TV in St. Louis, Missouri in 1986, with that sale that station's calls became KMOV.

In 1985, Viacom bought Warner-Amex Satellite Entertainment, which owned MTV and Nickelodeon, renaming the company MTV Networks. Viacom also received Warner-Amex's share of Viacom/WASEC joint venture Showtime Networks, Inc. (which included Showtime and The Movie Channel), which has retained its original name, Showtime Networks, Inc. In 1986, Viacom was bought by movie theater owner National Amusements, which brought Sumner Redstone to the company. Redstone made a string of large acquisitions in the early 1990s, announcing plans to buy Paramount Communications, parent of Paramount Pictures, in 1993, and buying the Blockbuster Video chain in 1994.

The Blockbuster acquisition gave Viacom access to large television holdings controlled by Aaron Spelling's company, Spelling Entertainment; along with his own productions (such as The Love Boat and Beverly Hills 90210), Spelling controlled the pre-1973 ABC and NBC back catalogs by way of Worldvision Enterprises and Republic Pictures. After these acquisitions, Viacom owned many movie and television production and syndication units, which were slowly integrated into Paramount; many TV shows previously distributed by Viacom, Republic or Worldvision have since gained Paramount closing logos.

Read more at Wikipedia.org