FuboTV Inc.’s stock tanked for a second straight day — down 23% in Wednesday’s regular session — after Walt Disney Co.’s ESPN, Fox Corp. and Warner Bros. Discovery Inc. announced a sports-streaming joint venture late Tuesday.
Shares of the leading sports-streaming service
FUBO,
are under siege in the face of juggernaut competition from Disney
DIS,
Fox
FOX,
and WBD
WBD,
whose vast array of programming due later this year will radically change the market landscape.
As of the third quarter of 2023, FuboTV had nearly 1.5 million paying subscribers, with a 20% year-over-year increase. But there’s uncertainty in its immediate future amid the announced joint venture, which boasts rights to sports properties on ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU, SECN, ACCN, ESPNEWS, ABC, Fox, FS1, FS2, BTN, TNT, TBS, truTV, as well as the ESPN+ streaming service.
Read more: Disney, Fox and Warner Bros. team up to launch new sports streaming service
FuboTV’s package includes major leagues — the NFL, NBA and MLB — as well as NASCAR, MLS, golf, tennis, boxing, MMA, and others.
Despite the specter of intensifying competition, at least one analyst sees both benefits and downside for FuboTV.
“Fubo faces high content costs, advertising headwinds, several well-capitalized competitors, and a stretched consumer, so it’s path to profitability remains challenging,” Wedbush Securities analyst Michael Pachter said in a note Wednesday. “The introduction of a standalone sports app could perversely benefit Fubo, insofar as it offers existing customers additional content and may make a Fubo bundle more attractive to prospective cord-cutters.”
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