By Daily Mail (U.S.) | Created at 2025-01-06 16:10:15 | Updated at 2025-01-09 16:28:10
3 days ago
Hulu+ Live TV is set to be merged with smaller rival after a longstanding legal dispute was finally settled.
Disney - which owns Hulu - and bundled streaming service FuboTV have agreed to combine their online live TV businesses, it was announced on Monday.
The combination creates the second-biggest internet pay-TV company in North America, behind YouTube TV, with 6.2 million subscribers.
The new service will be bigger than the third main player among online cable providers, SlingTV.
The deal also potentially clears the way for the launch of Venu - Disney's sports streaming venture that combines ESPN content with Fox and Warner Bros Discovery.
Fubo has ended its antitrust lawsuit that said Venu would lead to higher prices for Americans watching sports.
Venu, announced in February, will make sports available from a variety of sources available in one centralized app and is set to shake up the world of sports broadcasting.
The deal does not include Hulu's subscription business, where members pay a monthly fee to stream the service's catalog of content at any time
Disney's popular Hulu+ Live will merge with Fubo in a new business deal
News of the deal sent Fubo's stock soaring in early trading, surging more than 120 percent within minutes.
A district court judge found that Fubo was likely to win its case and issued an injunction to temporarily bar Venu's launch, Reuters reported.
'All litigation between Fubo and Disney has been settled,' the companies said on Monday.
The three media majors will ask the US Court of Appeals on Monday to reverse the ruling.
As part of Monday's announcement, Disney will also enter into a new carriage agreement with Fubo that will allow Fubo to create a new sports service featuring Disney's sports and broadcast networks including ABC, ESPN, as well as ESPN+.
Fubo and Hulu + Live TV will continue to be available to consumers as separate offerings after the deal is closed.
