Disney today announced that it will be launching its all-new ESPN streaming service next year. It was also announced today that Disney was ending their distribution deal with Netflix in favor of its own upcoming streaming service.
We first heard about this new streaming service last year when Disney acquired a minority stake in BAMTech, the MLB-founded monster behond many popular sports and streaming services today. Disney today also announced that it increased its stake in BAMTech to $1.54 billion investment, giving it majority control of over 75% in BAMTech.
While Disney is working with ESPN to launch its own joint streaming service, we still have no news about the pricing structure. Disney did vaguely announce that it will include host of games from every major sports organization in the US, give customers option to purchase add-ons for other sports like hockey and soccer:
The ESPN-branded multi-sport service will offer a robust array of sports programming, featuring approximately 10,000 live regional, national, and international games and events a year, including Major League Baseball, National Hockey League, Major League Soccer, Grand Slam tennis, and college sports. Individual sport packages will also be available for purchase, including MLB.TV, NHL.TV and MLS Live.
Disney noted that it will not create the new streaming service into an app, rather will include it in the current ESPN app. This is a great idea as it gives a much more fluid and better experience for current ESPN subscribers. Those who already have cable services will be able to access the additional content through provider authentication.
