ESPN’s chairman talks about the future of it’s streaming and cable tv business.
Since Bob Iger’s return to lead Walt Disney Co. in November, he has been in frequent communication with ESPN Chairman Jimmy Pitaro. Iger enjoys sports and is well-versed in history. “He has forgotten more about sports than I’ll ever know,” Pitaro added.
According to a recent interview with ESPN Chairman Jimmy Pitaro, Bob Iger and Pitaro have shifted their focus towards ESPN’s future, with a particular emphasis on the streaming service ESPN+. They are considering when to offer the full channel to cable cord-cutters.
“We’re going to get to a point where we take our entire network, our flagship programming, and make it available direct to consumer,” Pitaro said. “That’s a ‘when,’ not an ‘if’….We’re only going to do it when it makes sense for our business and for our bottom line.”
At present, ESPN has two separate businesses: one broadcasting significant sporting events on traditional TV channels that generate large revenue for Disney, while the other airs more live sports on ESPN+ – a streaming service launched five years ago, which charges $10 per month.
As the number of ESPN’s streaming subscribers is increasing and its cable subscribers are decreasing, the two businesses are becoming more similar. Predicting the exact time when ESPN’s TV programming will be available online has become a major challenge in the media industry.
Executives at ESPN have been grappling with the numbers. Analyzing data and charts to determine the number of subscribers they would need to attract and at what cost. In order to replace the revenue currently received from pay-TV distributors with a streaming version of ESPN.
