Fubo has a new chief executive. Alisa Bowen is leaving her post as Disney+ president to take the job, effective immediately.
What We Know: Fubo’s board tapped Bowen to succeed David Gandler. He served as the company’s co-founder and CEO for more than a decade. The move follows last fall’s merger of Hulu + Live TV into Fubo, which handed Disney a 70% stake. Bowen spent nearly 10 years at Disney, most recently as Disney+ president. She helped build Disney+, Hulu and ESPN+ from Disney’s founding streaming team. Before Disney, she held leadership posts at News Corp, Dow Jones and Thomson Reuters.
What They Said: Andy Bird, chairman of the Board, Fubo: “Following the combination with Hulu + Live TV last year, Fubo has reached a pivotal moment in its strategic evolution, with a compelling Pay TV platform, strong content portfolio and unique integration in the Disney ecosystem. Alisa’s appointment is the culmination of a thoughtful process led by the independent directors of the Board to find the next leader to advance Fubo’s strategy and performance. Alisa is a proven operator who brings nearly 30 years of product, digital and operational experience, including leadership across Disney+, Hulu and ESPN+. She has an established track record of driving global subscriber growth and profitability, and we look forward to benefiting from her experience and expertise as Fubo enters its next chapter.”
Alisa Bowen, CEO Fubo: “I am excited to lead Fubo in its next phase as we sharpen its strategy across sports, news and entertainment. Also accelerate growth and drive profitability, while delivering even greater value to Fubo and Hulu + Live subscribers, our advertisers and our content partners. I look forward to working closely alongside this talented leadership team to strengthen Fubo as an industry leader. Creating significant value for all of our shareholders.”
What Remains Unclear: Disney hasn’t named a direct successor to Bowen at Disney+. Instead, co-presidents Joe Earley and Adam Smith now share that streaming portfolio alongside other Disney titles, according to Variety.
What It Means: Bowen inherits a larger, more complex platform than the one she’s leaving. Her mandate will be to sharpen Fubo’s sports, news and entertainment strategy while driving profitability. Ultimately, the switch closes one chapter of Fubo’s decade-long history and opens another closely tied to Disney’s streaming ambitions.
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John Mamola is Barrett Media’s sports editor and daily sports columnist. He brings over two decades of experience (Chicago, Tampa/St Petersburg) in the broadcast industry with expertise in brand management, sales, promotions, producing, imaging, hosting, talent coaching, talent development, web development, social media strategy and design, video production, creative writing, partnership building, communication/networking with a long track record of growth and success. He is a five-time recognized top 20 program director in a major market via Barrett Medi’s Top 20 series and has been honored internally multiple times as station/brand of the year (Tampa, FL) and employee of the month (Tampa, FL) by iHeartMedia. Connect with John by email at John@BarrettMedia.com.