Fox Unveils Fox One Streaming Service Ahead of NFL Season, Revenue Jumps 27%

Fox Corporation is set to launch its consumer-facing streaming service, named "Fox One," ahead of the National Football League (NFL) season. This service will encompass all of Fox's content in news, sports, and entertainment. The announcement comes after the company abandoned efforts to launch a joint venture sports streaming platform called "Venu."

Fox CEO Lachlan Murdoch revealed the name and timing of the upcoming streaming service during the company's quarterly earnings call. Specific launch dates and pricing details will be announced in the coming months. Murdoch did not provide exact pricing information but indicated that the cost would align with what is referred to as the wholesale price, meaning it would be similar to the fees paid by pay-TV distributors for Fox's channels. He also mentioned that cable TV subscribers would have free access to this service.

Murdoch emphasized that the pricing would be reasonable and not discounted. He stated, "If we attract more connected users but lose traditional cable TV users, that would be a failure for us." The company is taking all possible measures to prevent more users from leaving their cable TV packages. Murdoch also mentioned that Fox plans to offer the application as part of bundled packages with other distributors and services. He noted that several other streaming platforms have reached out to Fox regarding bundling and that the company is "moving forward with some of these partnerships."

Fox reported quarterly revenue of $4.37 billion, a 27% increase from the previous year. The company's financial performance was boosted by the Super Bowl event, which aired on Fox's broadcast network and its ad-supported streaming service "Tubi." The 59th Super Bowl attracted approximately 128 million viewers, with some ad spots priced at $8 million each. Fox reported a 65% increase in advertising revenue for the quarter.

Fox, known for its cable news channel Fox News and its sports programming on broadcast and cable TV, has been relatively cautious in the streaming space compared to its peers. While the company owns the "Fox Nation" streaming app and the "Tubi" platform, it has not yet offered all of its content directly to consumers. In February, Murdoch disclosed plans to launch a streaming service by the end of the year. This decision followed Fox's exploration with Warner Bros. Discovery and Disney to abandon the joint venture sports streaming app "Venu." Fox was the only partner that had not yet launched a subscription streaming app in the market.

Warner Bros. Discovery offers its live sports content on the Max platform, while Disney's ESPN has its ESPN+ app and is developing a new flagship streaming app that will reflect its cable TV network content. The company is expected to reveal more details about this app in the coming days.