Streaming Sports for Sports Fans in the Disney-Fox and Amazon-Phi4Networks Era: A Major Success Story
CNBC and Sports Business Journal reported that the Warner Bros. Discovery is preparing a streaming service with Disney and Fox. The three companies agreed in principle to launch a stand alone standalone app that will stream a variety of sports and leagues in the fall.
The move to bring together some of the biggest sports networks could make it easier for viewers to find the right option for them. It could create the kind of super sports streaming service that sports fans navigating the awful current environment would appreciate — or it could just be a more expensive, incomplete, and bug-ridden version of what we already had with cable TV.
“The launch of this new streaming sports service is a significant moment for Disney and ESPN, a major win for sports fans, and an important step forward for the media business,” Disney CEO Bob Iger said in a statement. This means that consumers can use a differentiated sports-oriented service which includes the full suite of ESPN channels.
Sports streaming has become increasingly fractured as some leagues opt to continue airing games on traditional cable networks, while others have struck deals with streaming services. Last year, Warner Bros. Discovery’s Max streaming service launched a live sports add-on for an extra $9.99 per month.
Meanwhile, Amazon Prime Video has a deal to stream live Thursday Night Football games, and Apple TV Plus offers subscribers a Major League Soccer season pass. Paramount Plus and NBC’s Peacock also offer select live sports streams. Local blackouts due to regional sports streamers are another issue the combined app will have to deal with.
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The NBA is the thing that is triggering all this. We see time and again that the NBA is the second-best franchise on TV behind the NFL,” Krim said. New bids from Apple and others could come in as a result of the recent renegotiation of the contract. It’s a good way to team up and stay competitive.”
The announcement of the bundle also comes as ESPN and Warner Bros. Discovery are preparing to enter negotiations to renew their NBA rights, which expire at the end of next season.
“My sense is knowing the cast of characters, they’re looking at the original Hulu concept and thinking, ‘Well, that worked out really well for us.’ Let’s do that again. He said it was for live sports streaming.
Kevin Krim, the president and CEO of the ad measurement firm EDO, compared the three companies teaming up for sports like what some networks did when Hulu started in 2008.