Search Articles
MANHATTAN (CN) — Settling a civil antitrust case on the eve of federal appeals arguments, Walt Disney Co. and streaming sports provider FuboTV announced on Monday that they will merge their online live TV businesses, creating the second-largest digital pay-TV provider.
According to a press release, Disney will pay $220 million to FuboTV, which has agreed to drop all litigation with Disney and ESPN related to Venu Sports, a previously announced sports streaming platform planned by ESPN, FOX and Warner Bros. Discovery.
Under the deal, Disney will own a 70% majority stake of the newly merged company, while Fubo’s existing management team, led by co-founder/CEO David Gandler, will run the businesses, with a combined 6.2 million customers.
The new platform will be the second-largest online TV platform after YouTube TV, which last year reported more than 8 million subscribers, making it the fourth largest pay-TV distributor behind Charter, Comcast, and DirecTV.
Gandler called the deal “a win for consumers, our shareholders, and the entire streaming industry.”
“This combination enables us to deliver on our promise to provide consumers with greater choice and flexibility,” he said in announcement Monday. “Additionally, this agreement allows us to scale effectively, strengthens Fubo’s balance sheet and positions us for positive cash flow.”
A board of directors, with the majority appointed by Disney as well as independent directors, will govern the combined Fubo-Hulu+ company. Gandler will also serve on the board of directors, continuing as Fubo’s CEO.
The parties were set to deliver oral arguments in person at the Second Circuit Court of Appeals in Lower Manhattan on Monday morning over Fubo’s antitrust claims to block Walt Disney Co., Fox Corp. and Warner Bros. Discovery’s planned launch of the sports-focused Venu streaming package. Instead, they jointly filed stipulation of voluntary dismissal, ending Fubo’s civil action against the media giant.
Prior to the settlement deal, Fubo’s antitrust case was scheduled to go to trial in Manhattan federal court in October 2025.
Shares of FuboTV stock more than doubled Monday on news the sports-focused streaming service will combine with Hulu + Live TV.
In connection with the merger deal, Disney will enter into a new carriage agreement with Fubo affording the streaming service access to Disney assets, including ABC, ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU, SECN, ACCN, ESPNEWS, as well as ESPN+.
FuboTV sued Disney in Manhattan court last February seeking a preliminary injunction to block ESPN, Walt Disney, Fox, Warner Brothers Discovery and Hulu from proceeding with their joint venture streaming platform, Venu, which would bundle the majority of U.S. national sports broadcast rights controlled by the three companies in a single subscription.
In August 2024, U.S. District Judge Margaret Garnett ruled against The Walt Disney Co., Fox Corp. and Warner Bros. Discovery in barring Venu to proceed with its planned release slated for later that year, delaying the streaming platform’s launch until after looming antitrust issues have been answered in court.
In her ruling, Garnett concluded Fubo’s accusations of anticompetitive practices were valid enough to suggest that consumers could be significantly harmed if Venu’s late 2024 launch was allowed to proceed as planned. “Fubo is ultimately likely to succeed in demonstrating that [Venu] will substantially lessen competition or tend to create a monopoly in contravention of this country’s antitrust laws,” Garnett wrote.
The parties’ announcement on Monday of the settled legal claims and newly-combined platform did not address plans concerning the planned rollout of the Venu sports streaming service.
Follow @jruss_jrussSubscribe to our free newsletters
Our weekly newsletter Closing Arguments offers the latest about ongoing trials, major litigation and rulings in courthouses around the U.S. and the world, while the monthly Under the Lights dishes the legal dirt from Hollywood, sports, Big Tech and the arts.