According to the Zhito Finance APP, the Global Entertainment Industry leader, Walt Disney Company (DIS.US), is changing some channels, but Shareholders are currently watching the same program — the merger of Hulu Live TV and Fubo, fully integrating the online live television businesses of both companies. This Entertainment Industry leader has announced the latest plan to bundle its struggling Hulu Live TV into the competitor with a Market Cap nearing 2 billion dollars, streaming company FuboTV (FUBO.US). Although this Trade helps pave the way for the establishment of an independent Sports live streaming joint venture, the rapidly declining Broadcasting - TV issue in the USA remains and is difficult to prevent the ultimate demise of Broadcasting - TV.

On January 6, Eastern Time, Disney announced the merger of its live television business Hulu + Live TV with one of its long-time competitors, streaming service provider FuboTV, holding up to 70% of the merged company’s shares. The merged company will continue to be listed on the New York Stock Exchange.

As part of this large-scale transaction, Disney has committed to providing FuboTV with a loan of 0.145 billion dollars. Additionally, almost at the same time the agreement was announced, FuboTV halted the lawsuit related to the joint venture Venu Sports formed with Disney, Fox, and Warner Bros. Discovery. The owners of Venu will pay Fubo 0.22 billion dollars in Cash / Money Market, thereby clearing obstacles for their upcoming Sports streaming platform.

The upcoming streaming platform Venu Sports is developed through a joint venture of Disney, Fox, and Warner Bros. Discovery, which plans to offer live sporting events from several major leagues, including the NFL and NBA. It will also include content from Disney's ESPN and Warner Bros. Discovery's TNT network. FuboTV sued Disney, Fox, and Warner Bros. Discovery last year over Venu Sports, claiming the proposed Sports streaming joint venture would be anti-competitive.

FuboTV is a virtual multi-channel video programming distributor, which means it provides live television channels over the Internet rather than through cable, Satellite, or fiber optic. Hulu’s live television service is an alternative to cable television, allowing users to watch live broadcasts from about 100 live television channels, including Sports, news, and shows.

FuboTV has indeed provided some slight assistance to Disney CEO Bob Iger. It has 1.6 million customers, and when combined with Hulu Live's 4.6 million customers, the merged live television service company will be closer to the video subscription user base of legacy television media companies like Comcast (CMCSA.US). Disney will own 70% of the expanded business, but in the eyes of some Analysts, Disney is merely persisting in divesting a business considered unprofitable. At the very least, this should help the Disney management led by Iger achieve the goal of at least a 10% operating margin for the direct-to-consumer segment of its streaming business next year.

Despite the potential to achieve annual synergies of 0.12 billion USD and reach a revenue scale of at least 7.5 billion USD by 2028, it remains uncertain whether these two struggling live television service companies can become stronger through the merger or at least escape their operational difficulties.

Even after the trade is completed, FuboTV will still lag far behind YouTube and Sling, which belong to the internet search giant Alphabet and the well-known Satellite operator Dish Network, respectively. The business model of the merged live television service company also seems unrealistic; the more customers pay, the higher the program production costs become. In the third quarter of last year, all costs associated with FuboTV’s subscribers, broadcasting - TV transmission fees, along with sales and marketing expenses consumed nearly its entire revenue scale of 0.4 billion USD.

Meanwhile, Disney, the entertainment and streaming giant with a market cap of up to 200 billion USD, is trying to collaborate with Warner Bros Discovery (WBD.US) and Fox (FOXA.US) to launch another streaming service. The upcoming Venu Sports aims to offer live programs from these three media giants. Last year, Fubo filed a lawsuit against this joint venture but withdrew the lawsuit after reaching a cash settlement proposal related to the Hulu trade.

Led by Bob Iger, Disney’s management plans to launch a completely consumer-facing ESPN sports live subscription service later this year, meaning Disney will manage or oversee three entirely different Sports-related online media subscription services.

In addition to this confusing and redundant business arrangement, Iger and Disney face a larger problem of how to handle the linear cable network ABC and its stable of cable television channels like FXX. Last year, the operating profit of this business segment fell by 16%. Warner Bros Discovery and Comcast are preparing to divest their traditional cable TV business and significantly reduce the proportion of live television business. However, this trade with FuboTV seems to be 'against the trend' and adds frustration to Disney's actual live television business situation, making the already declining prospects of Broadcasting - TV even more unclear. Perhaps Disney should not focus its business on this aspect that is destined to fade out of the public eye.