• by Karlene Lukovitz  @KLmarketdaily, March 3, 2023

In another sign of streaming services’ growing openness to cooperation as they shift strategic focus from subscriber volume growth to profitability, Disney’s ESPN is reportedly wooing competitive media as well as major sports leagues to participate in a plan that would make ESPN properties a hub for sports live streaming.

While the concept is still in talking stages, with no partners yet lined up and no specific timeline, it calls for creating a feature on ESPN.com and the free ESPN app that would link users directly to where a live sporting event is streaming, sources told CNBC. ESPN declined to comment on the report.

Partners might include national/global streaming service partners like Amazon Prime Video and/or regional sports networks (RSNs). 

ESPN’s pitch is that making it a first-stop “TV Guide for live sports” would address sports fans’ growing frustration about the difficulty of finding and accessing sports as major leagues’ rights are increasingly split up among streaming services and linear networks, while benefiting viewership and supporting revenue streams for all partners.

One possible model that’s been broached would have ESPN taking a cut of subscription revenue from users who sign up for a partner streaming service through the ESPN site or app, but just supplying a link without taking a cut if the user is already a subscriber to the partner site.

A hub might be attractive to beleaguered RSNs, including Sinclair’s Diamond Sports Group, which may file for bankruptcy after missing a $140-million debt payment.

ESPN already frequently lists the channel a game is on, even if the outlet is not Disney-owned.

But it provides links only to its own licensed content, which accounts for nearly 30% of all televised and streamed U.S. sports, according to the sources.

Some existing sports services already have programs that offer links for affiliate outlets.