CNN is taking its All Access streaming subscription service overseas for the first time, announcing Tuesday that it will launch in the United Kingdom and Canada on Oct. 20 as the network works to build a bigger digital business under new owner Skydance.
The expansion comes a week after Skydance completed its acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery, bringing CNN and CBS News under the same corporate umbrella. It also advances CNN Chairman Mark Thompson’s effort to build a subscription business capable of offsetting declining cable TV revenues, with a goal of generating more than $1 billion annually in digital subscriptions by 2030.
The service will cost £4.99 (about $6.60) per month in the UK and C$7.99 (about $5.60) in Canada, with annual plans priced at £49.99 and C$79.99, respectively. CNN is offering discounted first-year subscriptions in both countries and plans to expand to additional international markets in 2027.
Subscribers will get access to unlimited reporting on CNN’s websites and apps, as well as live CNN programming, on-demand video, CNN Original Series and CNN Films.
“Following the enthusiastic reception of this offering in the US, expanding into the UK and Canada first has been our top international expansion priority as we continue to invest in and grow our direct-to-consumer business,” Alex McCallum, chief operating officer of CNN Worldwide, said in a statement.
The rollout comes ahead of November’s US midterm elections, with CNN promoting its political coverage as a selling point to international audiences. Eligible Canadian pay-TV customers will receive access to the new video offering at no additional cost, while existing CNN Live customers in the UK will be upgraded.
Thompson told financial Times All Access exceeded internal expectations, although CNN has not disclosed how many paying subscribers it has attracted in the United States.
CNN launches All Access in October 2025 in the US at $6.99 per month. Its international expansion now offers another test of whether the network can convert its global audience into a growing source of subscription revenue as traditional pay-TV viewership declines.
