ViacomCBS Inc. was the corporate name adopted on December 4, 2019, when CBS Corporation and Viacom Inc. completed their merger and began trading on the Nasdaq under the tickers VIACA and VIAC.[1] The company’s logo, introduced alongside the merger, was a simple wordmark that combined the two parent names in a bold, all-caps sans-serif. It served as the corporate identity for just over two years, until the company renamed itself Paramount Global on February 16, 2022.[2]
Design and History
The ViacomCBS logo was unveiled in early December 2019, shortly after the merger closed.[3] The design featured the combined company name in an all-caps, bold version of the typeface Gotham, set in two different shades of blue.[4] The two-tone treatment was used deliberately to distinguish “Viacom” from “CBS,” helping audiences understand the new company’s lineage.[5]
The only notable graphic detail was at the junction of the two names: the “C” in “CBS” slightly overlapped the “M” in “Viacom,” creating a curved cutout in the “M” to suggest the two entities coming together.[4] The logo did not carry over the CBS “Eye” symbol or Viacom’s custom lettering, and design commentary at the time described the mark as corporate and unremarkable.[3]
The ViacomCBS identity was short-lived. On February 15, 2022, the company announced it would be renamed Paramount Global, effective the following day. In an internal memo, CEO Bob Bakish and board chair Shari Redstone said the new name reflected the company’s content and its role as a steward of a rich heritage, noting that “for more than a century, the name Paramount has been synonymous with great entertainment and industry leadership.”[2] The company would be legally known as Paramount Global but referred to simply as Paramount.[2]
Typography and Design
The wordmark was set in a bold, all-caps version of the geometric sans-serif typeface Gotham.[4] “Viacom” and “CBS” were rendered in two different shades of blue, with the “C” of “CBS” overlapping the “M” of “Viacom” to create a subtle interlocking effect.[4] The designer or agency responsible for the mark has not been publicly identified in available sources.
Logo Index is an independent educational archive covering logos, visual identities and graphic design history. All trademarks and brand assets remain the property of their respective owners.
