Venu Sports to Launch Later This Month, Even as Antitrust Suit Against the Streamer Continues
Venu Sports to Launch Later This Month, Even as Antitrust Suit Against the Streamer Continues
The new sports streaming service will head to market before the 2024-25 NFL season starts, unless an injunction request by Fubo is granted.
According to a new report, the launch of Venu Sports might be even more imminent than many might have imagined. Disney, Fox, and Warner Bros. Discovery originally announced that Venu would launch simply “in the fall,” but a new report from Front Office Sports indicates that — even though fall technically doesn’t start until September — the service will launch sometime before the end of August. With the college football season getting underway on Aug. 24 and the NFL kicking off on Sept. 5, time is certainly of the essence for the three companies behind this joint venture.
Key Details:
- Closing arguments for Fubo’s injunction request will be heard on Monday.
- Judge Margaret Garnett has been apprised that Disney, Fox, and WBD intend to launch Venu by month’s end.
- The streamer will incorporate sports content from 14 channels and will cost $42.99 per month.
Word that Venu would be available to customers by the end of August was first made public by Fox CEO Lachlan Murdoch during his company’s quarterly earnings call last week. A launch before the end of August makes plenty of sense, given the forthcoming return of football.
“Obviously, a number of milestones have been achieved in the development of Venu,” Murdoch said. “As we’ve gone through the beta and as you lead towards the launch later this month, there’s new beta releases practically every day and the product is looking both excellent, really good, but also quite revolutionary in the way Americans are going to view sport. So we remain incredibly excited about it.”
Fox, along with Disney and WBD, confirmed that timeline in court last week. On Tuesday, arguments began in Fubo’s antitrust preliminary injunction request, which would prevent Venu from hitting the market and would also allow Fubo to create sports-channel-only packages with the cable networks from the three companies such as ESPN, TNT, and FS1. The request is part of Fubo’s antitrust lawsuit against Venu, which was filed mere weeks after the announcement that the joint venture service was under construction.
Venu Sports
Venu Sports was the planned live TV streaming service that would offer sports from ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU, SECN, ACCN, ESPNEWS, ABC, FOX, FS1, FS2, BTN, TNT, TBS, and truTV. Programming from ESPN+ and on-demand content would also be available, as would broadcasts of NFL, NBA, MLB, and NCAA games. However, in January 2025, after Fubo and Hulu + Live TV officially merged, Venu’s launch was put on hold thanks to a preliminary injunction. It was only a few days later that the joint venture was officially shut down for good.
Does Venu Launch Date Affect Fubo Lawsuit?
According to FOS, officials for Disney, Fox, and WBD have informed presiding Judge Margaret Garnett of their plans to launch Venu by the end of the month. But that does not necessarily mean she’ll issue a ruling on Fubo’s request for a preliminary injunction by Aug. 31. In other words, the possibility exists that Venu will reach customers, and then be pulled back by the judge’s ruling if she decides to grant an injunction, leaving customers in the lurch.
All sides are due back in court on Monday to present closing arguments, and Judge Garnett will accept post-hearing briefs through the end of the day. The judge has advised all parties present to come equipped with cases that could show precedent for their positions. The triad of companies involved in the birth of Venu also have to keep an eye out for interference from the government; Senators Bernie Sanders (D-VT) and Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) recently urged the Department of Justice and Securities and Exchange Commission to examine Venu for potential antitrust violations.
Still, the Fubo lawsuit is the most immediate threat to Venu. An injunction ruling in Fubo’s favor could be very expensive for Disney, Fox, and WBD, each of whom has spent $400 million to bring Venu to life thus far. Perhaps in order to avoid seeing that money be essentially set on fire, they will settle with Fubo and allow it to create a similar channel package to sell to subscribers.
That’s pure speculation, however, as nothing in the actions of the three companies suggests they’re open to settling as of now. Venu will cost $42.99 per month, and will offer streams of 14 channels, including ABC, Fox, ESPN, FS1, TNT, Big Ten Network, all sports from ESPN+ and more. It will be available to customers before the start of September, though how long it will be available is an open question.
Fubo
Fubo is a live TV streaming service offering a robust lineup of approximately 150 premier channels, with plans starting at $63.99 per month. This entry-level package provides access to local broadcast affiliates 18 of the leading 35 cable channels channels, and valuable regional sports networks (RSNs).