Disney this week finally released major details on one of the most anticipated media launches in years.
The new ESPN direct-to-consumer streaming service will sell for $29.99 a month, with bundling and annual-payment discounts available; it will launch in the early fall alongside football season; it will contain the entire ESPN linear universe, plus advanced streaming features; and it’ll simply be named “ESPN.”
Disney made the announcement Tuesday from New York, where its top executives have convened for Upfront presentations to advertisers. Here’s Disney’s press release.
The unlimited version of the ESPN app will include access to all of ESPN’s linear networks — ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU, SECN, ACCN, ESPNEWS and ESPN Deportes. This is in addition to ESPN on ABC, ESPN+, ESPN3, SECN+, and ACCNX. The service includes access to more than 47,000 live events each year, on-demand replays, studio shows, original programming, and more.
The unlimited ESPN app will be available with an annual payment option of $299.99, lowering its price to around $25 a month. Disney is also bundling the ESPN app with ad-supported tiers of Disney+ and Hulu for $35.99 a month, discounted to $29.99 a month with a one-year, early-bird promotional offer. A no-ads version of that bundle is available for $44.99 a month without a promo.
Those who already pay for ESPN with their pay TV subscription will have full authenticated access to the DTC app and it’s personalized “fan-friendly" features.
A separate $11.99 iteration of the ESPN subscription streaming service will mimic the limited flora and fauna of the legacy ESPN+ app. It will be available in the flagship Disney Bundle, alongside Disney+ and Hulu, for $16.99 a month, $26.99 with no ads.
Launching a DTC version of the most expensive channel in the remaining pay TV ecosystem represents a bold shift for Disney. The so-called “lynchpin” of pay TV is finally broken loose, but cord-cutting left Disney little choice. Too many of ESPN’s younger consumers no longer, or never had, cable or satellite TV.
“Our priority is looking at the 60 million households on the sidelines,” ESPN Chairman Jimmy Pitaro said Monday during a media event attended by CNBC.
Last week, Disney reported a 13% YoY decline in fiscal second quarter linear networks revenue to $2.418 billion, while tallying an 8% uptick in DTC revenue to $6.118 billion. Disney’s margins are still better on linear, but that shifts a little every day.
As for naming, Pitaro put it this way in Disney’s statement: "As we thought about the name, we kept returning to the fact that, across every generation, ESPN is the most trusted, loved and recognized name in sports, and that we should keep it simple and double down on the power of ESPN.”