Another day, another new sports streaming plan, as Fubo launches a new sport-focused skinny bundle.
Fubo announced Thursday that it is launching a new sports-focused skinny bundle starting next Tuesday for $56/mo ($46 for the first month). The new “Fubo Sports” plan will consist primarily of ESPN and Fox Sports networks — including some ABC and FOX stations — plus NFL Network, some CBS stations and CBS Sports Network, Tennis Channel and ION. Access to the new ESPN Unlimited service is included for no extra fee.
The plan will not include the TNT Sports networks, which have long been absent from Fubo. It will include one non-sports network, the cable news channel Fox News.
For about the same price, a user could purchase a bundle of ESPN Unlimited and Fox One for $40/mo and add NFL+ Premium for $15/mo to get the ESPN and Fox networks, plus NFL Network and RedZone (the latter of which is not included in the Fubo plan) — and ION, which is available for free through various other platforms as a FAST channel. That would still leave out CBS, CBSSN and Tennis Channel, which would require an additional $18/mo ($8/mo for Paramount+ and $10/mo for the Tennis Channel app).
The new Fubo Sports plan is cheaper than the DIRECTV STREAM MySports bundle unveiled earlier this year. MySports typically costs $70/mo — currently available to new users for $60/mo over the first two months — and includes all of the platforms in Fubo Sports except for Tennis Channel and ION, while adding NBC, the TNT Sports networks, NBA TV, MLB Network, NHL Network, Golf Channel and USA. (As with Fubo’s plan, it includes cable news networks, with CNN and MSNBC on top of Fox News.)
Both Fubo Sports and DIRECTV’s MySports cost more per month than the abandoned Venu Sports plan, which would have started out a monthly price of $43.
Fubo is still currently an independent vMVPD, but expects its sale to Disney — which was announced earlier this year — to close as soon as the fourth quarter of this year. It was that agreement that gave Fubo the right to launch a skinny bundle including Disney’s ESPN networks, ABC and DTC services. If the deal is approved, Fubo will merge with Hulu + Live TV, with Disney owning a majority 70% stake in the new company.
The new Fubo bundle comes at a busy time in the sports streaming space. In addition to the recent launches of ESPN Unlimited and Fox One, Disney earlier this week sued DISH Network-owned Sling for offering low-cost, short-term plans of as little as $5 for a single day to access the ESPN networks.
