Fubo Throws the Red Flag on New Sports Streaming Service
It was only back in February in Media Impact Report #52 that we shared the news that Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD), Disney, and Fox had joined forces to create a new sports streaming service that they dubbed Venu. The service was scheduled to launch now, in time for the height of the sports season with the kickoff of the NFL and college football seasons and MLB and WNBA post-seasons, followed closely by the start of the NBA and NHL regular seasons. A lot can change in just a few months.
Not long after the joint venture was announced, competing sports streamer Fubo sued Venu on antitrust grounds, citing they were, “… limiting competition, removing consumer choice, and ultimately leading to steep price hikes for consumers and boosting profits for the partners.” On August 16, a U.S. District Court granted Fubo’s request for a temporary injunction blocking the service from launching. Venu has since appealed that ruling and requested an expedited decision to remove the injunction because they are “losing tens of millions of dollars…and consumers are denied access to the innovative new product that Venu would have provided.”
Venu was hoping for the quick ruling so it could still capitalize on the critical fourth quarter demand for sports, but it does not look like they are going to win that coin toss. A trial has been set for October 2025, which could last three to four weeks, so consumers may not have the option of subscribing to Venu until well into next fall’s football season—if the service even exists at all by then.
The Fubo lawsuit is not the only issue that Venu is facing. One of the main joint venture partners is WBD, included primarily due to their rights to NBA Basketball. But when the NBA announced their new 11-year media rights contract, WBD (owner of Turner Sports) did not make the cut. WBD has also “lawyered up” and is suing the NBA to reclaim those rights, arguing that the NBA denied them the opportunity to match a competing offer. Unless WBD is successful in their lawsuit, they bring minimal value to the Venu partnership. So even if the courts rule that Venu can move forward, their consumer offering is less enticing than it appeared when they announced just six months ago.
Fubo has argued that the more competitive approach to the marketplace is for each network to offer their own standalone streaming services. WBD already has that in Max, and Disney has announced that ESPN will have direct-to-consumer (DTC) offerings on the market next fall. That leaves only Fox Sports without a DTC offering, but don’t be surprised if they are scrambling to remedy that given the precarious future of Venu.
If Fubo’s lawsuit succeeds, Venu will cease to exist before it even began. While that will be a tough blow to Disney, Fox, and WBD – the big losers will be sports fans, especially those who have made the shift to streaming. Today, fans must navigate a myriad of platforms—both linear and streaming—to watch the sports and teams they love. Venu wasn’t the perfect solution—it excluded major sports coverage from Paramount/CBS and NBCUniversal—but it was a step in the right direction of consolidating and simplifying the streaming sports landscape. For now, the future of streaming sports lies in the hands of the U.S. District Court.
This article is featured in Media Impact Report No. 58. View the full report here.
