Sports programming, until recently seen as the last best hope for linear broadcast and cable TV, has quickly become the ultimate weapon in what’s left of the streaming wars. This week, the Walt Disney Co. added an ESPN tile to its Disney+ app. It is also making some sports content, including live NBA, NHL games and Australian Open golf coverage available to people who don’t subscribe yet to ESPN+.
The move precedes next fall’s launch of ESPN flagship, which will enable streaming subscribers to watch all of ESPN’s content.
For Disney, added ESPN ensures that Disney+ Plus becomes a streaming platform that appeals to all members of the household, with sports Disney’s family entertainment and off-network and more grown-up fare provided by Hulu.
“This launch really highlights Disney as the preeminent, global Storyteller that can bring together entertainment and Sports in a truly unique way like no other streamer,” said Alisa Bowen, president of Disney+, while introducing the ESPN tile.
In the broadcast world, big sports events are often been used to give entertainment shows a boost. The show that airs after the Super Bowl gets sampling and if it’s can become a hit.
Bowen said she believed the same thing could happen in streaming.
There is “a long and successful history of being able to launch new shows off the back of major sporting events. And you know, that’s certainly an opportunity for us.” she said.
“But above all else, this is about repositioning. Disney+ as something with content for the whole family, and the ability to really build that co-viewing and family experience off the back of sports and general entertainment, Is a really big part of that evolution,” Bowen added
The new bundle is designed to compete with the streaming leaders Netflix and Amazon (YouTube has viewers, but other than NFL Sunday Ticket, it hasn’t invested in sports content.)
Amazon Prime Video has jumped into sports with both feet. Its $1 billion per year bet on the NFL appears to have paid off, with its Thursday Night Football franchise attracting millions of live viewers each week. Amazon doubled down, paying $!00 million for Black Friday Football, which seems to be on the road towards creating a new holiday for celebrating sports on TV.
The NBA tips off on Prime Video next year as part of a $1.8 billion rights deal, and Amazon is eying a way to provide local streaming for Major League Baseball.
Netflix, which long said it would never get into sports, is paying the NFL $150 million to stream two games on Christmas Day. With its technical infrastructure optimized for video on demand, Netflix and its subscribers experienced buffering and other glitches when millions tried to watch Mike Tyson sort-of fight Jake Paul last month.
Assuming it can work out the live programming bugs, having NFL games should boost Netflix’s advertising business. Before two years ago, Netflix also seemed determined to stay out of the advertising business. But once it decided to sell commercials, being able to stream NFL games became more than just a good idea.
Last month, Amy Reinhard, president of advertising at Netflix announced that its NFL in-game inventory was sold out, with FanDuel and Verizon among the sponsors.
FanDuel will be the exclusive pregame sportsbook betting partner with a sponsored in-show feature that will feature FanDuels wagering odd for the games. Verizon will be the official sponsor of a pre-kick segment that will run before the games.
The NFL games will also test Netflix’s ad-tech capabilities, including the ability to dyanmicall insert commercials into live streams, which isn’t easy. Amazon and Disney appear to have mastered this already.Netflix has said it plans to launching its in-house ad tech in the U.S. and most of the rest of the world in 2025.It hired former media agency exec NICOLL PANGIS to oversee the rollout.
Comcast NBCUniversal’s streamer Peacock was built with live programming in mind, but its launch was stifled when the 2020 Olympics was postponed because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Last year, Peacock paid the NFL $110 million to stream an exclusive Wild Card Playoff Game. The Kansas City Chiefs and the Miami Dolphins delivered 27.6 million viewers and brought Peacock about 3 million new subscribers. Peacock saw similar subscriber growth this year as viewers flocked to its coverage of the popular Paris Olympics.
Peacock will be upping its bet with NBA games next season as part of NBCU’s $2.6 billion deal with the league.
Ed Desser, president of Desser Media and a long-time industry executive and consultant, said that sports may not be vital for all streamers.
“If you’re Netflix, you’ve got enough critical mass. You can maybe have a little bit of sport,” Desser said.
”But increasingly sports is a vital port of the game and there are subscribers you can get with sports that you probably can’t get any other so, so for those, you’re going to need to hove some key offerings,” he said.
Desser said that the leagues are making sure that they have a position in streaming, and at the same time, streamers are looking to have a position in sports.
“In a way, you’re seeing some of the historical practices of bundling together content and trying to come up with something for everyone continuing,” Desser said. “I see it as being quite similar to what has been going on in the entertainment business for as long as I’ve been in it.”
Barrett Media produces daily content on the music, news, and sports media industries. To stay updated, sign up for our newsletters and get the latest information delivered straight to your inbox.
