FuboTV, a streaming platform dedicated to live sports, has filed an antitrust complaint against Disney, Fox and Warner Bros. Discovery, accusing the companies of mounting “a years-long campaign” to hinder its activities. The company's lawsuit is coming soon. ESPN, Fox and Warner Bros. Discovery, owned by Disney, announced that they were launch a sports streaming service in fall 2024, which will allow subscribers to access sporting events from the networks they own. FuboTV's complaint claimed the companies were stealing its playbook and that launching their joint venture would destroy competition and lead to price inflation for consumers.
Additionally, FuboTV alleged that the launch of the defendants' streaming service is only “the latest coordinated step” in their “campaign to eliminate competition in the sports-focused streaming market” and in their efforts to block his activities. The streaming service said the defendants charged it content licensing rates that were 30 to 50 percent higher than the rates it charged other distributors. They also allegedly forced FuboTV to bundle “dozens of expensive non-sports channels” that “customers don't want” with their sports offerings as a condition of licensing their content. All of this increases the costs that FuboTV must pass on to its customers, the company explained.
FuboTV also claimed that the companies in question blocked it from offering streaming products subscribers wanted, including content available on Hulu. Additionally, the defendants allegedly placed a limitation on the number of subscribers who could purchase their content package, thereby ensuring that FuboTV could not make a dent in the market.
“Each of these companies has consistently engaged in anti-competitive practices aimed at monopolizing the market, stifling all forms of competition, creating higher prices for subscribers and depriving consumers of deserved choice,” said David Gandler, CEO of FuboTV, in a statement. “By coming together to exclusively reserve the distribution rights to a specialized live sports package, we believe these companies are erecting insurmountable barriers that will effectively prevent any new competitors from entering the market. This strategy ensures that consumers who want a range of dedicated sports channels are left behind. with no alternative but to subscribe to the defendants' joint venture.”
Engadget contacted all three defendants: ESPN declined to comment, while Fox and Warner Bros. Discovery have not yet responded. FuboTV is asking the court to enjoin the launch of the joint venture or impose restrictions, such as economic parity of licensing terms, on the defendants.