On Sports Streaming: ESPN, FOX, Warner/Discovery and a Joint Venture
Last week, ESPN, FOX and Warner Bros. Discovery announced a joint venture to stream sports content in the U.S. including NFL, NBA, WNBA, MLB, NHL, NASCAR, College Sports, UFC, PGA TOUR Golf, Grand Slam Tennis, the FIFA World Cup, Cycling and more.
Their joint press release said, "fans would have access to the linear sports networks including ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU, SECN, ACCN, ESPNEWS, ABC, FOX, FS1, FS2, BTN, TNT, TBS, truTV, as well as ESPN+."
Bob Iger, CEO - The Walt Disney Company, said: “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.
Lachlan Murdoch, CEO - 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 of the traditional bundle an array of amazing sports content all in one place.”
David Zaslav, CEO Warner Bros. Discovery, said: “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.”
OUR TAKE
Challenges facing the joint venture include 1) antitrust concerns, 2) mediating the interests of three major content providers and 3) managing the economics of digital streaming.
As the market for streaming sports content increase 1) context providers will likely introduce innovative delivery approaches and 2) firms such as Amazon, Apple and Netflix will increase their participation in the sports streaming market.
This joint venture is another sign that traditional television content will continue to transition to digital streaming.