Following a legal battle, Disney has struck a deal that will allow Fubo and Hulu to merge and launch an entirely new streaming service.
The road to the merger started last year when Fubo launched a lawsuit against Disney (a co-owner of Hulu) along with Fox and Warner Bros. Discovery, on the grounds that those company’s plan to launch Venu Sports, a new sports-focused streaming service, was anti-competitive. Venu Sports is expected to launch in the fall and will be a sports-centric streaming service featuring ESPN, ABC, Fox, Fox Sports 1, Fox Sports 2, TNT, and others, with coverage spanning the NFL, NBA, NHL, NCAA, and more.
Now, though, Fubo has announced that it came to an agreement with Disney to merge Hulu + Live TV with Fubo, creating a new multichannel video distributer. Disney will own roughly 70 percent of the new platform, which will be run by Fubo’s co-founder and CEO David Gandler. Hulu will also continue to operate as a streaming service without a live TV option.
In his statement on the merger, Gandler insisted that the deal would allow Fubo to continue to “deliver on our promise to provide consumers with greater choice and flexibility.”
“This agreement allows us to scale effectively, strengthens Fubo’s balance sheet, and positions us for positive cash flow. It’s a win for consumers, our shareholders, and the entire streaming industry,” he continued.
The lawsuit against Disney has been dropped because of the deal, which seems to give Disney an even bigger stake in the future of streaming. Fubo is much closer to linear TV
