Image: Cath Virginia / The Verge
Venu, the live sports streaming service from ESPN, Fox, and Warner Bros. Discovery, isn’t happening. In a statement on Friday, the three companies announced the decision “not to move forward with the contemplated joint venture is effective immediately.”
Since announcing Venu last year, the service hit a legal roadblock: an antitrust lawsuit from the live TV streaming service Fubo that temporarily blocked its launch. Last week, Disney announced a settlement with Fubo and agreed to merge Hulu + Live TV with Fubo. DirecTV and EchoStar, both of which raised concerns about the launch of Venu, weren’t happy about Fubo’s decision to settle.
“After careful consideration, we have collectively agreed to discontinue the Venu Sports joint venture and not launch the streaming service,” the companies said in a joint statement. “In an ever-changing marketplace, we determined that it was best to meet the evolving demands of sports fans by focusing on existing products and distribution channels.”
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