ESPN to Debut on Disney+ by End of 2024
By Movieguide® Contributor
By the end of 2024, Disney+ will begin to feature select ESPN “live games” and studio programs to watch on the platform.
“We see this as a first step to bringing ESPN to Disney+ viewers as we ready the launch of our enhanced stand-alone ESPN streaming service in the fall of 2025,” Disney’s CEO Bob Iger said in a press release.
“It’s a start in terms of essentially conditioning the audience or subscribers to Disney+ and Hulu to the fact that sports is going to be there and it also will help us in terms of overall engagement with our bundle,” he continued.
Iger and ESPN have long-term contracts with college football championships, NCAA championships and the National Football League.
However, there is one powerhouse Iger is missing but believes his company can secure.
“We’re confident or optimistic we’re going to end up with an NBA deal that will be long term in our best interest in the best interest of our subscribers,” Iger described.
With the addition of ESPN, he is confident that Disney’s quarterly earnings will continue to increase as they did in Q2.
The company’s “strong performance in Q2 demonstrates we are delivering on our strategic priorities, while building for the future,” Iger stated.
“When you consider all of our businesses as a whole from Entertainment to Sports to Experiences, it’s clear that no one has what Disney has,” Iger continued. “The turnaround and growth initiatives we set in motion last year have continued to yield positive results, and we are executing against our ambitious strategic priorities with both speed and determination.”
A big booster for the Q2 earnings is the Experiences segment Disney offers.
“Our results were driven in large part by our Experiences segment as well as our streaming business,” Iger explained. “Importantly, entertainment streaming was profitable for the quarter, and we remain on track to achieve profitability in our combined streaming businesses in Q4.”
Movieguide® previously reported on the profit ESPN has brought to Disney:
A new report shows just how profitable ESPN is for The Walt Disney Co.
According to the Hollywood Reporter, “ESPN delivered $16 billion in revenue in fiscal 2022 (the company’s fiscal year ended Oct. 2022), and had profits of $2.9 billion.”
For comparison, Disney’s “entertainment” division, which includes TV networks, streaming, and movie and TV studios, turned a profit of just $2.1 billion.
This profitability explains why Disney is moving ESPN out of the “Entertainment” division and creating its own “Sports” division.
“Breaking out ESPN from the entertainment pack, a decision announced back in February, was one of Iger’s most dramatic moves since he returned to helm Disney nearly a year ago,” Deadline reported.
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