Health of clients and ViacomCBS team comes first, said Jo Ann Ross

CBS has cancelled its live upfront presentation at Carnegie Hall in May out of coronavirus concern. The network will instead unveil its 2020-2021 primetime lineup and highlights from CBS Entertainment, CBS News, CBS Sports and CBS All Access in a video upfront special posted to digital platforms on Wednesday, May 13.

ViacomCBS said “important information and insights normally shared during ViacomCBS client dinners and presentations scheduled for March and April will instead be delivered digitally via video and other formats.”

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“We’ll miss Carnegie Hall and our agency dinners this year, but the health and safety of our clients and the ViacomCBS team comes first,” said Jo Ann Ross, president and chief advertising revenue officer, ViacomCBS Domestic Advertising Sales. “Our team has been planning for this possibility for weeks, and we have devised a digital showcase to unveil all of the premium content that we’re delivering throughout the company, from CBS Television Network and our robust cable portfolio across the Entertainment & Youth and Premium brands. We won’t miss a beat in engaging with clients around our unmatched offerings and solutions.”

The broadcast networks hold their upfront presentations at iconic theaters in New York across a week in May.

Kelly Kahl, president of CBS Entertainment, said CBS has a “very good story to tell,” and will tell it in a unique manner in 2020. “We’re confident that this alternate format for this year can deliver what we’ve come to expect from a CBS Upfront – entertainment, stars, strategy and the first look at our new primetime series,” he said.