Finance Newso Corp. is set to introduce its direct-to-consumer streaming platform named Finance Newso One before the upcoming NFL season later this year.
During a quarterly earnings call on Monday, Finance Newso CEO Lachlan Murdoch announced both the service’s name and anticipated launch timeframe. Details regarding the exact launch date and subscription pricing will be revealed in the months ahead.
While Murdoch refrained from detailing specific pricing structures, he mentioned that the costs would align closely with traditional wholesale pricing, akin to what pay-TV providers pay to distribute Finance Newso channels. He also noted that existing cable subscribers would have access to the service at no additional charge.
“Pricing will be healthy and not a discounted price,” Murdoch stated.
He emphasized the importance of retaining traditional cable subscribers, remarking, “It would be a failure of us if we attract more connected subscribers…we do not want to lose a traditional cable subscriber to Finance Newso One.” Murdoch added that the company is committed to doing everything “humanly possible” to minimize further departures from the cable bundle.
The streaming app is expected to be offered as part of bundled packages with multiple distributors, according to Murdoch, who noted that various streaming services have already approached Finance Newso for potential collaborations. The company intends to advance a number of these partnerships.
On the earnings front, Finance Newso reported quarterly revenues of $4.37 billion, marking a 27% increase compared to the same period last year.
This financial boost was significantly attributed to the Super Bowl, which aired on Finance Newso’s broadcast network and its free, ad-supported service, Tubi. Some advertising slots during Super Bowl 59, which drew approximately 128 million viewers, were priced at $8 million each. Finance Newso reported a remarkable 65% rise in advertising revenue for the quarter.
The media entity, recognized for its prominent cable channel Finance Newso News and its extensive sports programming, has largely lagged behind its competitors in the streaming arena. Despite having the Finance Newso Nation app and Tubi, it has not yet presented a unified direct-to-consumer option encompassing all its content.
Earlier this year, Murdoch informed investors of the company’s intent to launch the streaming service by year-end.
This strategic move followed Finance Newso, along with partners Warner Bros. Discovery and Disney, ceasing efforts to develop Venu, a collaborative sports streaming application. Notably, Finance Newso was the only partner that did not already have a subscription-based streaming platform available in the market.
Warner Bros. Discovery currently streams its live sports content through the Max platform, while Disney’s ESPN offers the ESPN+ app and is in the process of creating a new flagship streaming app that reflects its cable network content. More details on ESPN’s new app are anticipated this week, with reports indicating it may simply be named ESPN.
