Bob Iger Explains Why Disney Pulled the Plug on Venu Sports
Last February, Disney, Warner Bros. Discovery, and Fox announced they were joining forces to launch a sports-centric streaming service that would combine their vast libraries.
Eventually dubbed Venu Sports, the joint venture would have brought together the biggest channels in sports broadcasting and, perhaps, radically changed the layout of streaming.
While the streamer was initially set to launch last fall, its debut was delayed when Fubo filed an antitrust lawsuit against the three joint venture partners.
Photo: Fubo
In a stunning ruling, U.S. District Judge Margaret Garnett sided with Fubo and granted a temporary injunction, blocking Venu’s launch.
The End of Venu Sports
Over the subsequent months, the legal process continued to slowly play out. Then, something unexpected happened.
In January, Disney announced that it had reached an agreement with Fubo to merge the streaming service with Hulu + Live TV. Under the new deal, Disney acquired a 70% stake in Fubo.
Photo: Disney
Subsequently, Disney and its partners pulled the plug on Venu.
Bob Iger Calls Venu “Redudent”
While the sports-centric streaming service failed to materialize, the basic concept behind Venu has lived on.
During The Walt Disney Company’s earnings call this morning, Disney CEO Bob Iger was asked about the decision to cancel Venu. According to Iger, it was the rise of the “skinny” television bundles that made Venu “redundant.”
NBC News
“Look what essentially happened is, after the decision was made and we started to implement the launch of Venu, the emergence of these skinnier bundles surfaced, and Venu basically looked redundant to us. And so this was a great opportunity for us to make ESPN available on multiple skinny bundles,” he said.
“The goal all along, as it relates to ESPN, is to make ESPN as accessible as possible and in as many ways as possible to the consumer. Some will want to consume it just through an app. Some will want to consume it as part of the more traditional, expanded basic bundle, some will migrate into in the direction of skinnier bundles, or sports bundles only.”
The Future of Cable Is “Skinny” Bundles
The emergence of skinny bundles, which are better tailored to viewers’ interests, has been one of the defining recent developments in cable. In the past year, we have seen providers such as Comcast, Charter, and even Fubo fight for skinny bundles.
Disney. Photo: English Jargon
In an ever-changing media environment, Disney has proven a unique ability to remain flexible. Based on Iger’s comments, the decision to pull the plug on Venu and acquire Fubo was just the latest example of the company reading the environment and changing its plans accordingly.
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