You may or may not watch sports on television, but the announcement this afternoon of a new streaming partnership may be a major incentive for your household to cut that cable bill. In a seismic moment in streaming history, the Walt Disney Company (ESPN, ABC), FOX, and Warner Bros. Discovery (TNT, TBS) revealed that a new one-stop streaming destination with all their sports content will launch this fall. The partnership is currently unnamed but will be independently run under its own leadership team. Who said the Hulu model is dead and buried?
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According to the joint release, the all-in-one premier sports service will give viewers access to linear sports networks including ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU, SECN, ACCN, ESPNEWS, ABC, FOX, FS1, FS2, BTN, TNT, TBS, truTV, as well as ESPN+. Again, without having to have a cable subscription.
Sports programming will include the NFL/UFL, NBA/WNBA, MLB, NHL, ACC, Big 10, Big 12, Big East, SEC and 40 NCAA Championship Events, NCAA Men’s & Women’s Basketball Tournaments, The College Football Playoff, the PGA Tour, the PGA Championship, Wimbledon, U.S. Open, Australian Open, FIFA World Cup, Formula 1, NASCAR, UFC and much more.
The only games missing from “cable” would be sports content on NBC Sports Channel and regional sports networks. The rest of the NFL national games are on broadcast networks such as CBS and NBC or Prime Video. Other NHL and MLS games are on Apple TV+.
The service’s price point is unknown but ESPN+, Hulu, and Disney+ bundlers will be able to add it or modify their current Disney bundle, at least. How and if FOX or WBD try to incorporate it into their bundles is unclear. For many sports and television fans, this new option may be the incentive to finally cut cable from their monthly content bills. There are many local games still only on cable networks without direct streaming options (sorry Lakers, Yankees, Red Sox fans, etc.). But for others, this direct streaming option will make that monthly cable bill unnecessary.
In a statement, Bob Iger, Chief Executive Officer of The Walt Disney Company noted, “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. This means the full suite of ESPN channels will be available to consumers alongside the sports programming of other industry leaders as part of a differentiated sports-centric service. I’m grateful to Jimmy Pitaro and the team at ESPN, who are at the forefront of innovating on behalf of consumers to create new offerings with more choice and greater value.”
Lachlan Murdoch, Executive Chair and Chief Executive Officer of FOX said, “We’re pumped to bring the FOX Sports portfolio to this new and exciting platform. We believe the service will provide passionate fans outside the traditional bundle an array of amazing sports content all in one place.”
David Zaslav, Chief Executive Officer of Warner Bros. Discovery, said “At WBD, our ambition is always to connect our leading content and brands with as many viewers as possible, and this exciting joint venture and the unparalleled combination of marquee sports rights and access to the greatest sporting events in the world allows us to do just that. This new sports service exemplifies our ability as an industry to drive innovation and provide consumers with more choice, enjoyment, and value and we’re thrilled to deliver it to sports fans.”
Representatives from the new entity promised more details, including that pricepoint, in the months to come.