Disney Still in Talks with Potential Partners for ESPN Streamer, But Could Also Go It Alone
Disney Still in Talks with Potential Partners for ESPN Streamer, But Could Also Go It Alone
At this week’s town hall meeting for Disney employees, Jimmy Pitaro and Bob Iger said that Disney is prepared to stand alone when it launches its new ESPN streaming service.
Sports fans have been waiting years for ESPN to create a streaming service that offers everything you can watch when you turn on the channel on cable. ESPN+ is a good start, but until it allows users to watch each and every NFL, NBA, and other games that air on the linear ESPN network, it will always be a bit of a letdown when compared to its sibling channel.
- Disney CEO Bob Iger and ESPN chief Jimmy Pitaro spoke to company employees about the upcoming ESPN streaming service at a town hall meeting this week.
- The executives said that Disney is still looking for potential partners, but the potential exists for it to launch a streaming ESPN without help.
- A launch date of 2025 at the latest is still the plan, but the company has not settled on a price point yet.
Were There Any Updates on ESPN’s New Streaming Service at Disney Townhall?
Word first began to circulate that Disney had taken steps to launch a standalone, cable-free streaming version of ESPN in May, and since then reports have surfaced that it wants one or more partners to go in on the project, either as a joint venture or as minority owners. Mobile providers and digital firms have been in talks with Disney, as have major sports leagues, according to those reports.
Disney CEO Bob Iger and ESPN head Jimmy Pitaro confirmed during this week’s company townhall meeting with employees that such conversations had taken place, but also said that they weren’t necessarily essential to the company’s plans.
“We could go it alone,” Iger said about launching a new ESPN streamer without any partners. “We are fully prepared to do that. It would be a little more challenging if we did.”
That challenge would be largely financial, as Disney would have to assume all the costs of creating and launching the new service itself. ESPN’s profits have dipped 20% in 2023, and though Disney probably does have the financial heft to create its own ESPN streaming service without outside investment, declines in linear TV and box office revenues coupled with streaming losses that, while narrowing, are still in the hundreds of millions of dollars mean that it will be looking very closely at potential ESPN investors.
When is the New ESPN Streamer Coming, and How Much Will it Cost?
As to when customers could expect the new ESPN streaming service to be available, Pitaro confirmed Disney had a launch date of 2025 or earlier circled on the calendar. That will give the company time to make deals with cable companies and sports leagues to smooth out contracts and allow the streamer to go forward, as well as finalize any arrangements with partners/investors and get the cash flowing.
The financial investment required on the part of consumers is harder to determine, as Iger said a price point for the streamer has yet to be determined. In The Streamable's expert opinion the service is likely to cost $44.99 per month or more, and there’s essentially no chance that it will cost less than $30 per month to access.
Pitaro also says the company doesn’t just want to launch the streaming service with a live version of the linear channel and nothing else. New features like integrated fantasy and sports betting options are in the planning stages for the service, as well.
“We don’t just want to flip the switch,” Pitaro said. “We don’t want to just move our networks over and make them available over the top without significant product enhancements.”
Those enhancements could depend on which (if any) companies end up partnering with Disney to launch its ESPN streaming service. Fans can still expect that service by 2025, but it’s not yet known how much the company will charge for a subscription.
ESPN Select
ESPN Select is a streaming service that replaced ESPN+ and provides access to live NHL, MLB, and MLS games, PGA Tour Golf, international sports events, ESPN original programming, and a complete archive of “30 for 30.” Find out our review of the service and how to start streaming ESPN Select.