As Disney, Max, and Hulu Prepare to Bundle, Which Other Streaming Combos Could Be Created?
Paramount+ has been at the center of several bundle discussions, but it’s not the only streamer that could benefit from combining with others.
One of streaming’s longest-standing taboos has finally been broken. Disney and Warner Bros. Discovery are taking their collaboration on a joint venture sports streaming service one step further, and announced this week that they would bring their subscription video-on-demand (SVOD) services Disney+, Hulu, and Max together in a cross-company bundle, the first in streaming’s history to be offered to all consumers. Now that Disney and WBD have crossed this particular Rubicon, the experts at The Streamable are examining what other potential streaming partnerships have already been discussed between companies, as well as some that they should be talking about.
Key Details:
- Paramount+ has been at the heart of several bundle discussions in the past year.
- Fox CEO Lachlan Murdoch said this week that the JV sports streamer from his company, Disney and Fox is a logical candidate for bundles with SVOD platforms.
- Apple TV+ should consider as many bundle partners as possible, while Netflix would be best served avoiding bundles for now.
Streaming services are increasingly exploring ways to prevent customers from canceling their subscriptions as readily as they do now, and after numerous other experiments, they are beginning to open their minds to the prospect of partnering with what otherwise would be considered competitors. Bundled services create a better value proposition in the minds of buyers, particularly as many now see the choice between cable and streaming as a decision between two similarly priced evils.
Paramount+ has recently been at the center of many bundling discussions, and is a logical candidate to be one-half of a partnership. Its general entertainment library is a good fit to be paired with most platforms in the industry, thanks to the wide range of content available. And while it has fewer live sporting events than a service like Peacock, it carries one of the biggest packages of the most desirable sport in the United States with its Sunday afternoon NFL football streams and rotating Super Bowl broadcasts.
At the end of 2023, reports emerged that Apple had engaged with Paramount Global about a possible bundle of Apple TV+ and Paramount+. There have not been many updates regarding that potential combo since December, but the partnership would offer Apple TV+’s prestige original TV shows and give viewers of that service access to something it distinctly lacks: library content. Apple TV+ recently began importing a series of licensed movies, but they were all limited engagements, and many have already departed the streamer.
Paramount+ and NBCUniversal’s streaming platform Peacock have also had similar discussions about teaming up, whether in a soft bundle that sees both services sold at one price or in a hard bundle where the content and interfaces of both streamers are combined into a single app. However, former Paramount CEO Bob Bakish reportedly held those discussions without providing frequent updates to his company’s ownership, and the terms he negotiated were viewed by Paramount controlling shareholder Shari Redstone as too favorable to Peacock, so it is believed that the window for such a deal has closed.
What Are the Smartest Bundle Options Available to Streamers?
There will almost certainly be an increasing number of bundling choices for streaming customers to consider in the near future. Disney, Fox, and Warner Bros. Discovery are hard at work on a joint venture sports streaming platform currently, and Fox chief executive Lachlan Murdoch said this week that in his view, bundling the streamer with SVOD services makes a lot of sense. Indeed, WBD has already confirmed that Max will be available in a bundle with the service, and it’s likely that the Disney+, Max, and Hulu bundle will also be sold as a combined offering with the JV.
Paramount+ would be a highly logical service to bundle with the JV, as it would bring viewers of the service access to CBS’s inventory of Sunday afternoon NFL games to pair with Fox’s. But there’s no streamer that wouldn’t benefit from offering itself in a bundle with the JV, with the possible exception of Netflix (more on that later).
Apple TV+ is also a streamer that should consider any bundle offer that crosses its path. The service has built a reputation as a streamer with high-quality shows, but also one that simply doesn’t have a lot of content. Until recently, Apple TV+ has had difficulty scaling its customer base, as viewers don’t see the value in paying $10 per month for a streamer with a limited catalog and relatively infrequent new releases. Pairing with a service like Peacock or Paramount+ makes a great deal of sense for Apple TV+; these streamers have strong back-catalogs of popular shows that viewers can engage with while they wait for new releases, and each offers live sports, which could give Apple the opportunity to upsell sports fans to an MLS Season Pass subscription.
Prime Video and Max is another logical bundle, especially in the light of recent news that WBD is gearing up to produce another “Lord of the Rings” movie. Amazon infamously spent more on the first season of its LOTR show “The Rings of Power” than any other studio had ever spent on a TV series at the time, and Season 2 is likely to hit the streamer this year. Putting Max and Prime Video together could forge the “One Bundle to Rule Them All,” and give fans of the franchise a way to stream the TV series and movies all at one price.
The one streamer that should look askance at bundles is Netflix. As the world's largest and most profitable streaming service, there’s very little incentive for Netflix to lend its branding to the success of another product. The company already sees this logic, as evidenced by its current policy of refusing to license its originals to other streaming services, despite the fact that it licenses a considerable number of titles from other studios. Netflix already has the original content to draw a large audience, and while it obviously sees the benefit of offering shows and movies from other sources, it does not appear that the streamer’s executives want to provide that same benefit to potential partners.
There are essentially limitless possible combinations when running through potential future streaming bundles, but these are the ones that seem to make the most sense for now. Disney and WBD have potentially opened the floodgates for more streaming bundles, and the industry may be about to undergo its most fundamental evolution since Hulu launched way back in 2007.
Amazon Prime Video
Amazon Prime Video is a subscription video streaming service that includes on-demand access to 10,000+ movies, TV shows, and Prime Originals like “The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power,” “Jack Ryan,” “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel,” “The Boys,” and more. Subscribers can also add third-party services like Max, Showtime, STARZ, and dozens more with Amazon Prime Video Channels. Prime Video also offers exclusive live access to NFL Thursday Night Football.