CBS paid $7M for Prince Harry, Meghan Markle interview by Oprah: Reports

CBS reportedly paid a licensing fee of between $7 and $9 million to air the special, according to The Wall Street Journal. Meghan and Harry were not paid to take part in the interview.

Page Six reports: 

CBS reportedly paid more than $7 million for the rights to air Oprah Winfrey’s highly anticipated tell-all interview with Prince Harry and Duchess of Sussex Meghan Markle. 

The two-hour interview, set to air at 8 p.m. Sunday March 7, cost the network a pretty penny — likely somewhere between $7 million and $9 million, the Wall Street Journal reported. 

CBS bought the lucrative rights — the network is charging $325,000 for every 30 seconds of commercial time — from Winfrey’s Harpo Productions, and can also license the interview in international markets. A spokesman for the Sussexes’ told the Journal they were not paid for the interview. 

In a snippet of the interview teased on “CBS This Morning” Friday, Markle tells Winfrey she feels “liberated” to speak for herself after having to turn down the TV host’s’ initial request because she wasn’t “allowed” to talk to her then. 

The special is the couple’s first televised interview since they abruptly quit Buckingham Palace last year.