Disney said that buying Comcast's stake in Hulu at fair market value would advance its streaming goals, according to CNN. The deal ends long-running speculation about Hulu's fate, but there is still a due diligence process expected to be completed by 2024 to determine the value of the streaming service before agreeing on a final sale price.
Comcast said it expects to conduct a due diligence process and determine Hulu's fair value. Disney's bid to buy the remaining shares will begin in 2019, valuing Hulu at up to $27.5 billion.
Disney CEO Bob Iger recently made it public that he intends to buy back the remaining shares of the streaming service. The decision comes as Disney makes significant changes to its media business, with Iger publicly suggesting a possible sale of its ABC division and seeking a partner for ESPN to quickly transition to a streaming model.
Disney wants full ownership of Hulu
Hulu is an American subscription streaming service, founded in 2007 under joint ownership by a group of media companies including 21st Century Fox, Comcast, and CNN's former company Time Warner.
In 2020, NBCU launched its own subscription-based streaming platform, Peacock, and Comcast began moving programming from Hulu to the new platform, including Bravo and NBC shows.
Disney has also bundled Hulu as part of its streaming portfolio, which includes Disney+ and ESPN+. But Hulu has been a bright spot in Disney’s media empire as it works to quickly turn its streaming business profitable and attract large numbers of subscribers thanks to its vast entertainment library. Disney is scheduled to report quarterly earnings results on November 8.
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