Sports-focused streaming cable television replacement Fubo exceeded its own guidance for subscriber growth during the first quarter (Q1) of the year, but the company had few reasons to celebrate amid some weaker financial indicators.
During the period that ended March 31, Fubo counted 1.47 million paid subscribers in North America, down nearly 3 percent compared with Q1 2024. The period included Super Bowl Sunday, when streaming cable TV replacement typically see an uptick in interest, though this year’s championship NFL game was free to stream in ultra high-definition on Fox-owned platform Tubi, which may have cut into Fubo’s potential growth.
Ad revenue declined 17 percent to $22.5 million, which Fubo executives said was attributed to a lack of inventory against some premium sports programming offered by Warner Bros Discovery’s (WBD) TNT Sports channels and those owned by Televisa-Univision. Overall revenue was $407.9 million in North America and $8.4 million outside the U.S. and Canada — Fubo owns Molotov in France and a few other businesses.
Fubo is in the process of merging its pay TV business with that of the Walt Disney Company, which would create one of the largest streaming cable TV alternatives on the market. The merger led to a restart in conversations between Fubo executives and their counterparts at WBD over carrying TNT Sports-inclusive channels once again, The Desk previously reported, but a deal has yet to be finalized.
The end result is that nearly 1.5 million Fubo subscribers are deprived of NBA basketball and NHL hockey games that are exclusive to TNT, TBS and Tru TV, unless they sign up for the premium version of Max, which adds at least $17 per month to their entertainment-related expenses. Even with a subscription to Max, Fubo subscribers can’t watch live basketball or hockey games from TNT Sports within their platform — a point of frustration for sports fans who pay more than $85 per month to watch live programming from Fubo.
Fubo also experienced an uptick in competition during Q1 when DirecTV launched its slimmer streaming TV package called MySports, which offers access to ESPN, Fox Sports 1, TNT, Golf Channel, USA Network, NFL Network, NHL Network, MLB Network, NBA TV and other sports-inclusive networks for just $70 per month. Regional sports networks can be mixed into MySports for a separate fee. The price undercuts Fubo’s base subscription package by around $15 per month, and is price-competitive when accounting for regional sports access.
Fubo is readying plans to compete with DirecTV and others with a forthcoming “Sports & Broadcasting” package, which promises low-cost access to premium sports networks. The package is expected to cost $20 to $30 less than Fubo’s base programming tier; The Desk previously reported the company is targeting Q3 for the launch of the package, which would be timed with the start of the NFL’s regular season.
Shares of Fubo were priced 16 percent lower in mid-afternoon trading.
