ESPN’s plans to move its business to a direct-to-consumer model have become more apparent over the last several weeks and a new report reveals when the company may be making its move.
Disney’s (DIS) ESPN “is expected to go DTC in two to three years,” or either in 2025 or 2026, according to a report by The New York Post’s Andrew Marchand.
DON’T MISS: ESPN Gets Closer to a Move That Will Kill Cable
ESPN is down to 74 million subscribers to its pay-TV model, which is down from 84 million just three years ago. The network had its most subscribers -- 100 million -- in 2011.
The network is expected to make the DTC move around the time its TV subscribers are down to around 50 to 60 million which would show that enough have made the decision to cut the cord.
ESPN is expected to roll out the DTC service on ESPN+, the streaming platform launched in 2018 that as of Q1 2023 has 25.3 million subscribers. The move would be to offer its largest live sports offerings like NFL’s ‘Monday Night Football’ and the NBA on the platform.
However, ESPN will also not abandon its cable viewership yet, which is why Marchand actually disagrees with many that the move will spell the full demise of cable -- at least in the near future.
He argues that there is still a lack of consolidation that’s occurred in the DTC space. Regional outlets like New York’s YES and MSG networks are already offering separate DTC plans for their sports teams which would force some consumers to shell out additional monthly fees for multiple subscriptions.
Cable could still potentially offer a more complete viewing experience for less.
