Paramount CEO Doesn’t Believe Disney-Fox-WBD Sports Merger is ‘Ideal’
By Movieguide® Contributor
Paramount Global CEO Bob Bakish recently shared his thoughts on Disney, FOX Corp. and Warner Bros. Discovery’s sports streaming merger.
Bakish believes the deal’s biggest problem is its noticeable lack of sports.
“There’s still a lot we don’t know about this service – things like price; packaging; consumer appetite – and to the consumer point, for a true sports fan, this product only has a subset of sports,” Bakish said. “It’s missing half the NFL, a lot of college [and] has virtually no soccer [or] golf. So look, it’s hard to believe that’s ideal, especially at the price points that have been speculated in terms of our view on sports.”
Movieguide® reported on the merger:
Disney, Warners Bros. and Fox announced that they are joining forces to create a single sports streaming bundle.
Disney CEO Bob Iger said that the entertainment industry will take “an important step forward” with this new move.
Per CNBC, “From Disney, that includes ESPN and its sister networks, such as ESPN2, ESPNU, SECN, ACCN, ESPNEWS, as well as the ABC broadcast network. Warner Bros. Discovery’s networks that showcase sports are TNT, TBS and TruTV. Fox will include the Fox broadcast station along with FS1, FS2 and BTN.”
Alternatively, Bakish says Paramount+ is for “true sports fans.”
“Sports clearly remains a bright spot: NFL, Super Bowl and I’m thrilled that we have the NCAA [men’s college basketball tournament] and UEFA and the Masters as we continue into 2024,” he explained.
“That provides the full complement of sports, really year-round,” he said. “Bottom line, we very much like where we are with respect to sports execution and see the Paramount strategy creating substantial value therein.”
“We see clear value to an integrated sports payment strategy, true both for CBS and Paramount+,” he added.
According to Sportico, “Bakish also noted that the company was a big believer in its integrated sports-and-entertainment strategy, the dynamics of which are reflected in the Paramount+ usage stats.”
As far as consumer engagement goes, “90% of their engagement is with non-sports.”
“That’s a clear opportunity that we continue to exploit and we like…Marquee sports are locked up until the next decade. We very much like where we are in sports,” Bakish said.
Movieguide® recently reported on Disney, Fox and Warner Bros. Discovery:
Disney, Warner Bros. Discovery and Fox’s sports streaming merger might not happen as Fubo TV recently issued an antitrust lawsuit against the entertainment giants.
A statement from Fubo said, “the vertically-integrated media companies have engaged in a years-long campaign to block Fubo’s innovative sports-first streaming business resulting in significant harm to both Fubo and consumers. The complaint alleges that the forthcoming launch of a sports-streaming joint venture steals Fubo’s playbook and is the latest example of this campaign.”
“For decades, Defendants have leveraged their iron grip on sports content to extract billions of dollars in supra-competitive profits from distributors and consumers. Defendants earned many of these profits by ‘bundling’ their commercially critical sports content with other, less desirable content—forcing sports fans to purchase channels they did not want,” Fubo’s filing read.
“And once they have combined forces, Defendants’ incentive to exclude Fubo and other rivals will only increase,” it continued.
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Now more than ever we’re bombarded by darkness in media, movies, and TV. Movieguide® has fought back for almost 40 years, working within Hollywood to propel uplifting and positive content. We’re proud to say we’ve collaborated with some of the top industry players to influence and redeem entertainment for Jesus. Still, the most influential person in Hollywood is you. The viewer.
What you listen to, watch, and read has power. Movieguide® wants to give you the resources to empower the good and the beautiful. But we can’t do it alone. We need your support.
You can make a difference with as little as $7. It takes only a moment. If you can, consider supporting our ministry with a monthly gift. Thank you.
Movieguide® is a 501c3 and all donations are tax deductible.
