The Showtime network was born in the era of early cable television, when it began broadcasting in 1976 with a concert featuring performances by ABBA, Pink Floyd and Rod Stewart. The network became a major competitor for pay-TV network HBO when it went national in 1978. Having become a subsidiary of CBS Corporation in 2005, Showtime followed other cable networks into the production of original series, and Showtime's catalogue contains notable series such as Shameless, Weeds, Dexter and Nurse Jackie.
Also following in the footsteps of other TV content providers, Showtime began offering its programming via a streaming platform in 2015.