Disney, FOX, and Warner Bros. Discovery announced this month that they will be collaborating to develop a new TV streaming service this fall with an emphasis on sports.
There would be 14 live sports channels available with this service, including TNT, ESPN, BTN, and FOX Sports, to mention a few. The requirement to transfer between apps in order to view every game on a streaming service would be resolved, which is one of the main issues.
However, a lot of people are now curious about what this means for live TV streaming services and cable TV in the future. Fubo has recently expressed worries about the intentions and ramifications of this new joint venture. Fubo is now suing to halt the service, taking it a step further.
Although specifics are yet unknown, Fubo filed an antitrust complaint against Disney, Fox, and Warner Bros. Discovery over the service; Eirq Gardne was the first to notice it. Although there aren’t many specifics yet, a copy of the lawsuit should be available soon.
This is in response to a statement that Fubo has published objecting to the service. This is Fubo’s whole statement:
We’ve certainly been captivated by the news that Fox, Disney, and Warner Bros. Discovery are teaming up to launch a streaming service that would exclusively feature sports. Since Fubo has continuously defended the right of consumers to make their own decisions, the availability of more sports streaming options is not surprising. As we’ve already seen, streaming joint ventures are rarely successful, and forming a consortium out of former rivals is a challenging task. We also know that sports-only programming faces several difficulties.
READ MORE: Fubo, Which Continues To Burn Through Millions Of Dollars, Has Simply Bought Itself More Time
Customers have shown that they desire a combined bundle of news, sports, and entertainment that is set apart by a high-caliber user experience. What Fubo offers is this. Along with consistently pushing the envelope in live TV streaming, we have also introduced industry-first features like 4K, multi-viewing, and AI solutions like our recently released Instant Headlines.
Our attention must also be focused on this joint venture’s implications and underlying motivations. The purpose of this joint venture and its effect on fair market competition should worry every American consumer. This joint venture highlights a worrying trend: a large market share alliance that apparently controls 60–85% of all sports material could dictate terms of the market in a way that may not be in the best interests of consumers as a whole.
We are confident that anything that results from this joint venture will not be able to match our extensive programming and high-quality product experience.
It makes sense that Fubo could be concerned that this new joint venture might undercut them given the heavy emphasis on sports streaming that Fubo and other streaming services have placed on the platform. Additionally, it eliminates the middlemen fees associated with services like Fubo, which might make it less expensive than Fubo. Finally, in order to obtain ESPN, most businesses, like Disney, require you to carry a lot of other channels. Disney will now begin selling it straight to customers without the large bundle.
Watch for pushback against this planned streaming service from cable TV companies and other streaming services. The issue currently is the leverage that Warner Bros., Disney, and Fox have over them should they begin selling straight to customers.
There will be more shocking news soon.
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