WBBM | CBS Chicago
- Company typePublic
- Founded1941
- HeadquartersChicago, United States
- Headcount—
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingDigital Commerce or Content
WBBM | CBS Chicago firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- WBBM | CBS Chicago
- Legal name
- CBS Broadcasting Inc.
- Website
- https://cbschicago.com
- Company type
- Public
- Founded year
- 1941
- Operating status
- Operating
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
WBBM | CBS Chicago industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Local Broadcast Television News
- NAICS
- Television Broadcasting Stations (51612), Television Broadcasting Stations (516120)
- SIC
- Television Broadcasting Stations (4833)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Network-Affiliated Local TV Stations (ABC/CBS/NBC/FOX/CW/Telemundo/Univision, etc.) (MPABACAE)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Local TV Station Groups (Owned & Operated/Station Chains) (MPABACAA)
Keywords
Where WBBM | CBS Chicago is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Chicago
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
WBBM | CBS Chicago business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Digital Commerce or Content
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Broadcast Advertising: Traditional television advertising sales including local commercials, sponsorships, and promotional segments across broadcast programming.
- Digital Advertising: Online advertising across website, mobile app, and social media platforms including display ads, video ads, and sponsored content.
- Affiliate Distribution: Content distribution through CBS News network, Paramount+ streaming platform, and cable/satellite carriage agreements.
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels5 records
Marketing channels7 records
WBBM | CBS Chicago product offering
Product offeringCore offering
WBBM | CBS Chicago operates a CBS-owned local broadcast television station (WBBM-TV) and associated digital properties serving the Chicago metropolitan area. It produces and distributes local news, weather forecasting (First Alert Weather), investigative journalism (CBS 2 Investigators), and local sports coverage across over-the-air broadcast, cable/satellite carriage, Paramount+ streaming, and owned digital platforms including a website, mobile app, and social media channels.
Product overview
CBS News Chicago is a local broadcast television station operating under the CBS brand, offering a unified news and media platform that combines breaking news coverage, weather forecasting, sports reporting, and investigative journalism. The primary products include the CBS News Chicago website/app as the core platform, the First Alert Weather system for meteorological services, CBS 2 Investigators for investigative reporting, and live streaming capabilities for real-time content delivery. All offerings are integrated under the CBS News brand umbrella, serving the Chicago metropolitan area with local news, weather, sports, and entertainment content.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- First Alert Weather: The station's weather forecasting and severe weather alert brand providing Chicago area weather coverage.
- CBS 2 Investigators
Products and services
- WBBM-TV CBS Chicago Local Broadcast Station CBS-owned-and-operated local broadcast television station (WBBM-TV channel 2) delivering 24/7 breaking news, weather, sports, investigative, and community journalism to the Chicago metropolitan area via over-the-air broadcast and cable/satellite carriage.
- CBS News Chicago Digital Platform Digital platform comprising the CBS News Chicago website and mobile app (iOS and Android), providing local news articles, weather updates, video content, push notifications for breaking news, school closings, and flight delays at O'Hare and Midway, plus email newsletter subscriptions for the Chicago market.
- CBS News Chicago Live Streaming Live video streaming service offering real-time local news broadcasts, live event coverage, and on-demand video content for the Chicago market, distributed via the CBS News Chicago digital platform and the Paramount+ streaming service.
Companies that use WBBM | CBS Chicago
Customer profileSegments1 record
Ideal customer profiles2 records
WBBM | CBS Chicago technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature3 records
WBBM | CBS Chicago partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- Paramount+coreCBS Chicago content is distributed through Paramount+, the streaming platform owned by Paramount Global. The station's live news stream and on-demand content are available to Paramount+ subscribers, extending reach beyond traditional broadcast audiences.
- CBS News NetworkcoreCBS Chicago operates as a local affiliate of the CBS News network, gaining access to national news resources, correspondent reports, and branded content while contributing local Chicago coverage to the national network.
- Shedd AquariumminorCBS Chicago covers Shedd Aquarium stories and events, including the arrival of rescued beluga whales from Canada. The station provides media coverage while the aquarium serves as a story source for local interest content.
Scale indicators1 record
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
WBBM | CBS Chicago competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- WLS-TV (ABC 7 Chicago): WLS is the ABC-owned local television station in Chicago, offering directly comparable local news, weather, sports and investigative programming to WBBM. Both stations compete head-to-head for Chicago metro ratings, sports rights and advertiser dollars.
- WTTW (PBS Chicago): WTTW is Chicago's PBS member station producing local news, investigative and public affairs programming, competing with WBBM for a share of Chicago's news and investigative-journalism audience. Both serve the same DMA with local news and investigative brands.
- WNBC (New York): WNBC is the NBC O&O station in New York and the most direct structural analogue to WBBM as a top-market network-owned local news operation. Comparable in scale, O&O economics, digital platform investment and multi-platform advertising model.
- KCBS-TV (Los Angeles, CBS O&O): KCBS is a sister CBS-owned station in Los Angeles operating under the same CBS O&O structure as WBBM. Comparable in branding, content approach, Paramount+ integration and CBS News network integration.
- WMAQ-TV (NBC 5 Chicago): WMAQ is the NBC-owned local television station serving Chicago, directly competing with WBBM for news audiences, sports rights and local advertising in the same market. Both are major-market network O&O stations with comparable 24/7 news operations and digital platforms.
- WGN-TV (Chicago): WGN is an independent Chicago local television station with its own news operation, competing with WBBM for Chicago audiences and advertisers. Similar local news, weather and sports product offering without direct network affiliation.
- KNBC (Los Angeles): KNBC is the NBC O&O in Los Angeles and another top-market peer to WBBM in terms of network ownership, audience scale, sports coverage depth and digital distribution. Directly comparable O&O operating model and revenue mix.
- WFLD-TV (FOX 32 Chicago): WFLD is the FOX-owned local television station in Chicago, providing parallel local news, weather and sports coverage to WBBM. Comparable in business model, distribution mix and target audience within the Chicago DMA.
Broad incumbents
- Nexstar Media Group: Nexstar is the largest US television station operator, owning numerous network-affiliated local stations across the country. While not in the same DMA as WBBM, it operates the same business model (network-affiliated local broadcast advertising) at scale and is the dominant consolidator in the local TV industry.
- Gray Television: Gray Television owns and operates a large portfolio of local broadcast television stations across the US. Comparable in local news, weather and sports advertising-supported business model, though typically in mid-sized markets rather than top-3 DMAs like WBBM's Chicago.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat3 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
WBBM | CBS Chicago social profiles
Digital presenceWBBM | CBS Chicago financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
WBBM | CBS Chicago leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
WBBM | CBS Chicago funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
WBBM | CBS Chicago M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about WBBM | CBS Chicago
What does WBBM | CBS Chicago do?
WBBM | CBS Chicago operates a CBS-owned local broadcast television station (WBBM-TV) and associated digital properties serving the Chicago metropolitan area. It produces and distributes local news, weather forecasting (First Alert Weather), investigative journalism (CBS 2 Investigators), and local sports coverage across over-the-air broadcast, cable/satellite carriage, Paramount+ streaming, and owned digital platforms including a website, mobile app, and social media channels.
Is WBBM | CBS Chicago a public or private company?
WBBM | CBS Chicago is a public company. It is classified as public and is currently operating.
When was WBBM | CBS Chicago founded?
WBBM | CBS Chicago was founded in 1941.
Where is WBBM | CBS Chicago based?
WBBM | CBS Chicago is headquartered in Chicago, United States, in the North America region.
How does WBBM | CBS Chicago make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Broadcast Advertising is the primary driver. The others are digital Advertising and affiliate Distribution.
Who are WBBM | CBS Chicago's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are WLS-TV (ABC 7 Chicago), WTTW (PBS Chicago), WNBC (New York), KCBS-TV (Los Angeles, CBS O&O), WMAQ-TV (NBC 5 Chicago), WGN-TV (Chicago), KNBC (Los Angeles) and WFLD-TV (FOX 32 Chicago). Broad incumbents are Nexstar Media Group and Gray Television.
Does WBBM | CBS Chicago have an API?
No public API is recorded for WBBM | CBS Chicago.
What industry is WBBM | CBS Chicago in?
WBBM | CBS Chicago's product category is Local Broadcast Television News. Its primary akta.pro industry code is MPABACAE, Network-Affiliated Local TV Stations (ABC/CBS/NBC/FOX/CW/Telemundo/Univision, etc.), with a secondary code of MPABACAA, Local TV Station Groups (Owned & Operated/Station Chains). Its NAICS code is 51612 and its SIC code is 4833.