Sports streaming bundle services save in 2025

Fubo CEO David Gandler is off to a great start to 2025 after spending much of last year in what he called an existential “duel” over his sports-first streaming business. Fubo sued Disney, Fox and Warner Bros. Discovery in February over their requirement that Fubo carry dozens of non-sports channels as a condition of offering sports channels, and over those companies’ plan to launch a new competitor, Venu Sports bring to.

“We fought to survive,” Gandler said in an interview on Tuesday.

On Monday, Fubo announced that it had resolved all related litigation as part of a multi-pronged agreement. Disney, Fox and WBD will pay Fubo $220 million, while Disney will take a 70% stake in a new company that combines the Hulu + Live TV business with Fubo. Gandler and the existing Fubo management team will lead the company (which I’ll call New Fubo – or anything but Hubo, really).

Fubo shares have risen more than 300% since the beginning of the year.

Disney also agreed to a new carriage agreement with Fubo that will allow the company to offer a sports-focused multichannel service, also known as a “Skinny Bundle.”

Within 36 hours of announcing the deal, Gandler was already meeting with Fubo employees tasked with developing this offering. He plans to release it as soon as possible. As his company approaches its 10th anniversary, Fubo finally has the opportunity to take a big step toward Gandler’s original vision: a streaming service for sports fans.

Gandler also has big plans for Hulu + Live TV pending regulatory approvals for the merger, which could take up to 18 months. The new company would have 6.2 million North American subscribers across the two brands, giving it additional leverage in negotiations with content distributors and advertisers.

“This creates a competitor that can compete in size with DirecTV and DirecTV Stream and Dish and Sling TV and YouTube TV,” Gandler said. “You have a company that … can compete fiercely with companies like Google’s YouTube.”

In recent years, YouTube TV has increased its lead as the largest virtual cable TV provider. The company said it had more than 8 million subscribers as of February 2024, as it gained ground on traditional pay-TV offerings from Charter and Comcast. YouTube’s addition of Sunday Ticket rights and the development of multiview capabilities have made the service a favorite of sports fans.

However, in December, YouTube TV increased its price by 14% to $83 per month, citing rising content costs. Many users complained, but other services offered little help. Hulu’s Live TV plan starts at $82/month; Fubo’s “Essential” plan currently costs $80 per month after a promotional period.

If 2024 was the year of YouTube’s dominance as the leading digital TV provider, 2025 looks set to be the year of dominance many Ways to watch sports on TV.

Now that the lawsuit against Fubo has concluded, Venu has signaled its intention to potentially hit the market as early as the spring. Disney’s ESPN also plans to launch a direct-to-consumer service that includes all content by the fall. DirecTV has expressed interest in building a sports-only channel package as leagues and regional sports networks continue to expand their own streaming subscriptions.

Gandler said he welcomed the new offers. “I think the only group that should really be taking a victory lap today is the consumers because they are the ultimate winner here and that’s what we fought for,” he said.

In the next phase of the streaming war, Fubo is positioning itself as a “super aggregator” with the hopes of giving fans the choice between different price points and access to different services such as the ESPN channels, NBA League Pass or their local sports network get to their interests.

But Fubo is not alone. Amazon views its platforms as content hubs; It also wants to sell you access to FanDuel Sports Networks as an add-on. Apple’s TV ambitions are similar. Disney is also building an entertainment destination by integrating more content into the Disney+ app, and ESPN is looking for ways to connect its apps to events broadcast outside its universe.

The problem is that none of them are able to offer everything from a single source. Everyone has a firm grip on their exclusive programming, as do Netflix and Peacock, etc. In an increasingly post-cable world, sports rights seem to function like heads of the dreaded hydra: add one to an aggregated service, and two more pop from new entrants. Fans are overwhelmed with confusion.

Fubo hopes for his position without Exclusive rights make it a more user-friendly aggregation option for services looking to expand their reach, but reaching the end goal still seems a long way off. However, Gandler had to travel a long, winding path to even get here. And he’s still fighting.