Co-owners ESPN, Fox and Warner Bros. Discovery pulled the plug on their sports streaming service Venu Sports.
They shut down the embattled venture before it had a chance to debut despite the three media entities having invested more than $400 million each, according to Front Office Sports.
“After careful consideration, we have collectively agreed to discontinue the Venu Sports joint venture, and not launch the streaming service,” the partners said in a joint statement Friday. “In an ever-changing marketplace, we determined that it was best to meet the evolving demands of sports fans by focusing on existing products and distribution channels.
“We are proud of the work to date and grateful to the Venu staff, whom we will support through this transition period.”
The move comes just days after Disney, ESPN’s parent company, settled a lawsuit by Fubo Inc. that argued Venu Sports violated antitrust laws. Disney settled the matter Monday by acquiring a majority stake in Fubo and creating a joint venture with that streaming service.
Disney will merge its own Hulu + Live TV service with Fubo’s operations to reach more than 6.2 million subscribers in North America.
Plans for the now-defunct Venu Sports were initially revealed last February with a goal of streaming nearly every North American pro and college sport along with golf and tennis majors, Formula One racing and World Cup soccer.
–Field Level Media
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ESPN, Fox, Warner Bros. pull plug on Venu Sports