Published: August 22, 2024
Everything you need to know about streaming packages
By Movieguide® Contributor
Now that bundling has hit the streaming world, here’s why that happened and what the best bundles available are right now.
Until now, bundles were practically non-existent in the streaming world, as it didn’t make sense to simply offer a reduced price. Often these bundles were offered by third-party companies – such as mobile phone companies – who covered the difference from the regular price. This changed when streaming services began to introduce ad-supported TV last year, creating a second source of income alongside the monthly fee.
This second revenue stream has allowed services to offer their platform at a lower price without significantly reducing revenue. In fact, bundles have arguably increased revenue by significantly reducing customer churn.
“We found that if you bundle the product with other content that more people in the family like – fundamentally, the more you watch the product, the more people in the family watch it, the lower the churn,” said David Zaslav, CEO of Warner Bros. Discovery.
Streamers have many reasons to be excited about bundle deals, and so do consumers, as they give them access to their favorite content at a significantly lower cost. Consumers currently have four major bundle deals to choose from. Three of them revolve around Disney+, and the fourth offers Netflix at a low price.
Disney+ can currently be bundled with Hulu ($10.99 with ads, $19.99 without ads), Hulu and ESPN+ ($14.99 with ads, $24.99 without ads), or Hulu and Max ($16.99 with ads, $29.99 without ads). Finally, Comcast subscribers can get Netflix (with ads), Peacock, and AppleTV+ for $15 per month.
Although no additional packages are currently in the works, ESPN, Fox and Warner Bros. Discovery continue to battle over their industry-changing sports streaming package, which was blocked by Fubo earlier this month.
Movieguide® previously reported:
The launch of ESPN, Fox and Warner Bros. Discovery’s Venu Sports, the “future home of sports streaming,” has been temporarily blocked after Fubo, a smaller sports streaming platform, filed for an injunction.
According to ESPN, U.S. District Judge Margaret M. Garnett in the Southern District of New York said in her 69-page ruling Friday that Fubo would likely succeed in proving that the joint venture violated antitrust law and that Fubo and consumers ‘would suffer irreparable harm without an injunction.'”
Venu Sports would combine 15 linear TV networks and “provide cable-cutters with access to a variety of sporting events from each media company’s portfolio, including NFL, NBA, MLB, NHL, tennis, soccer, golf, NASCAR racing and UFC fights.”
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